¹² Balaam said to Balak, ‘I already said this to the men that you sent to bring me. ¹³ I told them, “I can only speak the message that the Lord tells me. I cannot do good things or bad things just because I want to do them. Even if Balak gives his palace full of silver and gold to me, I cannot do anything different. I have to obey the Lord's command.” ¹⁴ So I will now return to my own people. But listen! Before I go, I will tell you what these Israelites will do to your people in the future.’