Worldwide disease epidemics are on the rise, and Jesus Christ prophesied that pestilence of major proportions would arise in the last days. The last of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, pestilence, is depicted as a pale, greenish-yellow horse ridden by Death, with Hades following after. They are given power to kill one quarter of the earth's population through war, famine, plague, and beasts. War often leads to famine, which breeds disease, erupting into epidemics under the right conditions, while animal and insect bites transmit certain diseases, making weakened people easier targets for wild beasts. Signs of old and new diseases on the verge of pandemic are already evident. A professor of microbiology warns that deteriorating refugee conditions, fast-increasing populations, high-risk sexual habits, and scarce pure drinking water presage global epidemics. A new strain of cholera, Bengal cholera, has infected hundreds of thousands from India to Thailand, with thousands dying. Classic cholera is infecting thousands in the former Soviet Union due to internal conflicts and breakdown in sewage services. The El Tor variety of cholera spread from Peru to Colombia and Bolivia, killing thousands. New forms of diphtheria have emerged in Russia, and cases of bubonic plague, the Black Death, have been reported in Kazakhstan and the U.S. Tuberculosis is making a comeback in Russia, Europe, and the U.S., while new diseases like hantavirus baffle researchers, found in rodents across multiple regions. The World Health Organization believes new rodent-borne diseases could be unleashed globally soon, yet they hesitate to act due to the risk of releasing disease-carrying fleas. AIDS continues to spread, with predictions of higher case numbers in Asia than in Africa over the next decade. In sub-Saharan Africa, nearly one-third of pregnant women test HIV-positive, with millions of children expected to be orphaned by AIDS-related deaths. The U.S., despite its advanced health-care system, is unprepared for major viral outbreaks, with experts warning of vulnerability to an influenza-like pandemic similar to the 1918-1919 event that killed millions. God warned Israel of wasting disease and fever if they disobeyed His commandments, promising to send pestilence among them. Yet, He also offers protection, declaring that if they heed His voice, He will put none of the diseases upon them that were brought on others, for He is the LORD who heals.

In the account of King David's numbering of Israel, God's anger was already stirred against the nation. When David conducted the census, it was irregular, missing a critical ransom payment as outlined in the law. This irregularity was a symptom of David's heart being amiss, as he failed to consider God's instructions. When David deferred the choice of punishment to God, He chose a plague as the penalty, linked to an improper census. This plague resulted in the death of 70,000 Israelites, marking the most significant loss of life at one time to that point. Even Jerusalem faced the threat of destruction before God restrained the destroying angel. David's recognition of his own guilt came as he pleaded with God, acknowledging that he had sinned and done wickedly, while questioning what the innocent sheep of Israel had done to deserve such judgment. Through David's offerings, he sought to rededicate himself to God and restore the fellowship that had slipped away, leading to this calamity. God's mercy allowed for restoration to begin at the very place where the Temple would later be built.