³ As a result, Moab greatly feared the people, because they were so numerous. Because a sense of impending doom was afflicting the Moabites as they faced the Israelis, ⁴ the Moabites told the elders of Midian, “This horde of people is about to lick up everything around us, like an ox licks up the green ground.”

At that time, Zippor’s son Balak was the king of Moab. ⁵ He sent messengers to Beor’s son Balaam in Pethor, near the Euphrates^[a] River, the land where the descendants of his people originated,^[b] to summon his aid. He said, “Look! A group of^[c] people have escaped from Egypt. They cover the surface of the whole earth, and are sitting here right in front of me.