Numbers 23 - English Standard Version (ESV)

Balaam's First Oracle

23 And Balaam said to Balak, (A)“Build for me here seven altars, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” 2 Balak did as Balaam had said. And Balak and Balaam (B)offered on each altar a bull and a ram. 3 And Balaam said to Balak, (C)“Stand beside your burnt offering, and I will go. Perhaps the Lord will come (D)to meet me, and whatever he shows me I will tell you.” And he went to a bare height, 4 (E)and God met Balaam. And Balaam said to him, “I have arranged the seven altars and I have offered on each altar a bull and a ram.” 5 And the Lord (F)put a word in Balaam's mouth and said, “Return to Balak, and thus you shall speak.” 6 And he returned to him, and behold, he and all the princes of Moab were standing beside his burnt offering. 7 And Balaam (G)took up his discourse and said,

“From (H)Aram Balak has brought me,
the king of Moab (I)from the eastern mountains:
‘Come, (J)curse Jacob for me,
and come, denounce Israel!’
8 How can I curse whom God has not cursed?
How can I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?
9 For from the top of the crags (K)I see him,
from the hills I behold him;
behold, (L)a people dwelling alone,
and (M)not counting itself among the nations!
10 (N)Who can count the dust of Jacob
or number the fourth part[a] of Israel?
Let me die (O)the death of the upright,
and let my end be like his!”

11 And Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? (P)I took you to curse my enemies, and behold, you have done nothing but bless them.” 12 And he answered and said, (Q)“Must I not take care to speak what the Lord puts in my mouth?”

Balaam's Second Oracle

13 And Balak said to him, “Please come with me to another place, from which you may see them. You shall see only a fraction of them and shall not see them all. Then curse them for me from there.” 14 And he took him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, (R)and built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar. 15 Balaam said to Balak, (S)“Stand here beside your burnt offering, while I meet the Lord over there.” 16 And the Lord met Balaam and (T)put a word in his mouth and said, “Return to Balak, and thus shall you speak.” 17 And he came to him, and behold, he was standing beside his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab with him. And Balak said to him, “What has the Lord spoken?” 18 And Balaam took up his discourse and said,

“Rise, Balak, and hear;
give ear to me, O son of Zippor:
19 (U)God is not man, that he should lie,
or a son of man, that he should change his mind.
Has he said, and will he not do it?
Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
20 Behold, I received a command to bless:
(V)he has blessed, and (W)I cannot revoke it.
21 (X)He has not beheld misfortune in Jacob,
nor has he seen trouble in Israel.
The Lord their God is with them,
and the shout of a king is among them.
22 (Y)God brings them out of Egypt
and is for them like (Z)the horns of the wild ox.
23 For there is no enchantment against Jacob,
no (AA)divination against Israel;
now it shall be said of Jacob and Israel,
(AB)‘What has God wrought!’
24 Behold, a people! (AC)As a lioness it rises up
and as a lion it lifts itself;
(AD)it does not lie down until it has devoured the prey
and drunk the blood of the slain.”

25 And Balak said to Balaam, “Do not curse them at all, and do not bless them at all.” 26 But Balaam answered Balak, “Did I not tell you, (AE)‘All that the Lord says, that I must do’?” 27 And Balak said to Balaam, (AF)“Come now, I will take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God that you may curse them for me from there.” 28 So Balak took Balaam to the top of (AG)Peor, which overlooks (AH)the desert.[b] 29 And Balaam said to Balak, (AI)“Build for me here seven altars and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” 30 (AJ)And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 23:10 Or dust clouds
  2. Numbers 23:28 Or Jeshimon

Cross references

  1. Numbers 23:1 : ver. 29
  2. Numbers 23:2 : ver. 14, 30
  3. Numbers 23:3 : ver. 15
  4. Numbers 23:3 : [ch. 24:1]
  5. Numbers 23:4 : ver. 16
  6. Numbers 23:5 : ver. 12, 16; ch. 22:38; Deut. 18:18; Isa. 51:16; 59:21; Jer. 1:9
  7. Numbers 23:7 : ver. 18; ch. 24:3, 15, 20, 21, 23; Job 27:1; 29:1; Ps. 49:4; 78:2; Isa. 14:4; Mic. 2:4; [ch. 21:27]
  8. Numbers 23:7 : [ch. 22:5]
  9. Numbers 23:7 : [Gen. 29:1]
  10. Numbers 23:7 : ch. 22:6
  11. Numbers 23:9 : [ch. 24:17]
  12. Numbers 23:9 : Deut. 32:28
  13. Numbers 23:9 : Ex. 33:16; [Ezra 9:2; Esth. 3:8; Eph. 2:14]
  14. Numbers 23:10 : See Gen. 13:16
  15. Numbers 23:10 : Ps. 37:37; 116:15; Rev. 14:13
  16. Numbers 23:11 : ch. 22:11; 24:10; Deut. 23:5; Neh. 13:2
  17. Numbers 23:12 : See ver. 5
  18. Numbers 23:14 : ver. 1, 2
  19. Numbers 23:15 : ver. 3
  20. Numbers 23:16 : ver. 5, 12
  21. Numbers 23:19 : 1 Sam. 15:29; Mal. 3:6; Rom. 11:29; Titus 1:2; Heb. 6:18; James 1:17
  22. Numbers 23:20 : ch. 22:12; Gen. 12:2; 22:17
  23. Numbers 23:20 : ch. 22:18
  24. Numbers 23:21 : [Jer. 50:20]
  25. Numbers 23:22 : ch. 24:8
  26. Numbers 23:22 : Deut. 33:17; Job 39:9-12; Ps. 22:21; 92:10
  27. Numbers 23:23 : ch. 22:7
  28. Numbers 23:23 : Ps. 44:1
  29. Numbers 23:24 : Gen. 49:9
  30. Numbers 23:24 : Gen. 49:27
  31. Numbers 23:26 : See ch. 22:18
  32. Numbers 23:27 : ver. 13
  33. Numbers 23:28 : ch. 25:18; 31:16; Josh. 22:17; Ps. 106:28, 29; Hos. 9:10; [ch. 25:3, 5]
  34. Numbers 23:28 : See ch. 21:20
  35. Numbers 23:29 : ver. 1
  36. Numbers 23:30 : ver. 2

You Might Also Like:

Numbers 23 - Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

23 And Balaam saith unto Balak, `Build for me in this [place] seven altars, and make ready for me in this [place] seven bullocks and seven rams.' 2 And Balak doth as Balaam hath spoken, and Balak -- Balaam also -- offereth a bullock and a ram on the altar, 3 and Balaam saith to Balak, `Station thyse...
Read More

Numbers 23 - Wycliffe Bible (WYC)

23 And Balaam said to Balak, Build thou here to me seven altars, and make thou ready so many calves, and rams of the same number. (And Balaam said to Balak, Build thou here seven altars for me, and prepare seven calves, and the same number of rams.) 2 And when Balak had done by the word of Balaam, t...
Read More

Numbers 23 - World English Bible (WEB)

23 Balaam said to Balak, “Build here seven altars for me, and prepare here seven bulls and seven rams for me.” 2 Balak did as Balaam had spoken; and Balak and Balaam offered on every altar a bull and a ram. 3 Balaam said to Balak, “Stand by your burnt offering, and I will go. Perhaps Yahweh will co...
Read More

Numbers 23 - The Voice (VOICE)

23 Balaam (to Balak): This is what I need from you. Build seven altars here, and then get seven bulls and seven rams ready to sacrifice. 2 Balak did just as Balaam had asked him to do. Then together they offered a bull and a ram on each of the seven altars. Balaam (to Balak): 3 You stay here, close ...
Read More

Numbers 23 - Tree of Life Version (TLV)

A Curse Turns to Blessings23 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Build me seven altars here and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” 2 So Balak did just as Balaam had said. Balak and Balaam offered a bull and a ram on each altar. 3 Balaam said to Balak, “Stay here beside your offering. I will ...
Read More

Numbers 23 - Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)

23 1 And Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me here seven altars, and provide for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” 2 Balak did as Balaam had said; and Balak and Balaam offered on each altar a bull and a ram. 3 And Balaam said to Balak, “Stand beside your burnt offering, and I will go; perhaps t...
Read More

Numbers 23 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

23 1 And Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me here seven altars, and provide for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” 2 Balak did as Balaam had said; and Balak and Balaam offered on each altar a bull and a ram. 3 And Balaam said to Balak, “Stand beside your burnt offering, and I will go; perhaps t...
Read More

Numbers 23 - New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised (NRSVA)

23 1 Then Balaam said to Balak, ‘Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me.’ 2 Balak did as Balaam had said; and Balak and Balaam offered a bull and a ram on each altar. 3 Then Balaam said to Balak, ‘Stay here beside your burnt-offerings while I go aside. Perhaps t...
Read More

Numbers 23 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

23 1 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me.”(A)2 Balak did as Balaam had said and offered[a] a bull and a ram on each altar.(B)3 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stay here beside your burnt offerings while I go aside. Perhaps the Lord will c...
Read More

Numbers 23 - New Living Translation (NLT)

Balaam Blesses Israel23 Then Balaam said to King Balak, “Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven young bulls and seven rams for me to sacrifice.” 2 Balak followed his instructions, and the two of them sacrificed a young bull and a ram on each altar. 3 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stand here by ...
Read More

Numbers 23 - New Life Version (NLV)

Balaam Tells What Will Happen the First Time23 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Build seven altars here for me. And make ready seven bulls and seven rams for me here.” 2 Balak did as Balaam had said. Balak and Balaam gave a bull and a ram on each altar in worship. 3 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stand be...
Read More

Numbers 23 - New King James Version (NKJV)

The Prophecies of Balaam23 Then Balaam said to Balak, (A)“Build seven altars for me here, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” 2 And Balak did just as Balaam had spoken, and Balak and Balaam (B)offered a bull and a ram on each altar. 3 Then Balaam said to Balak, (C)“Stand by your bu...
Read More

Numbers 23 - New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

Balaam’s first message23 Balaam said, ‘Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me.’ 2 Balak did as Balaam said, and the two of them offered a bull and a ram on each altar. 3 Then Balaam said to Balak, ‘Stay here beside your offering while I go aside. Perhaps the Lord ...
Read More

Numbers 23 - New International Version (NIV)

Balaam’s First Message23 Balaam said, “Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams(A) for me.” 2 Balak did as Balaam said, and the two of them offered a bull and a ram on each altar.(B) 3 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stay here beside your offering while I go aside. Perhaps the ...
Read More

Numbers 23 - New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

Balaam’s First Message From God23 Balaam said to Balak, “Build me seven altars here. Prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me to sacrifice.” 2 Balak did just as Balaam said. The two of them offered a bull and a ram on each altar. 3 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stay here beside your offering. I’ll g...
Read More

Numbers 23 - New English Translation (NET)

Balaam Blesses Israel23 [a] Balaam said to Balak, “Build me seven altars here, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” 2 So Balak did just as Balaam had said. Balak and Balaam then offered on each[b] altar a bull and a ram. 3 Balaam said to Balak, “Station yourself[c] by your burnt of...
Read More