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Chapter 24

Balaam, however, perceiving that the Lord was pleased to bless Israel, did not go aside as before to seek omens, but turned his gaze toward the wilderness. When Balaam looked up and saw Israel encamped, tribe by tribe, the spirit of God came upon him, and he recited his poem:

The oracle of Balaam, son of Beor,
    the oracle of the man whose eye is true,
The oracle of one who hears what God says,
    and knows what the Most High knows,
Of one who sees what the Almighty sees,
    in rapture[a] and with eyes unveiled:
How pleasant are your tents, Jacob;
    your encampments, Israel!
Like palm trees spread out,
    like gardens beside a river,
Like aloes the Lord planted,
    like cedars beside water;
Water will drip from their buckets,
    their seed will have plentiful water;
Their king will rise higher than Agag[b]
    and their dominion will be exalted.
They have the like of a wild ox’s horns:
    God who brought them out of Egypt.
They will devour hostile nations,
    break their bones, and crush their loins.(A)
Crouching, they lie like a lion,
    or like a lioness; who will arouse them?
Blessed are those who bless you,
    and cursed are those who curse you!(B)

10 In a blaze of anger at Balaam, Balak clapped his hands[c] and said to him, “It was to lay a curse on my foes that I summoned you here; yet three times now you have actually blessed them!(C) 11 Now flee to your home. I promised to reward you richly, but the Lord has withheld the reward from you!” 12 Balaam replied to Balak, “Did I not even tell the messengers whom you sent to me, 13 ‘Even if Balak gave me his house full of silver and gold, I could not of my own accord do anything, good or evil, contrary to the command of the Lord’? Whatever the Lord says I must say.(D)

The Fourth Oracle. 14 “But now that I am about to go to my own people, let me warn you what this people will do to your people in the days to come.” 15 Then he recited his poem:

The oracle of Balaam, son of Beor,
    the oracle of the man whose eye is true,
16 The oracle of one who hears what God says,
    and knows what the Most High knows,
Of one who sees what the Almighty sees,
    in rapture and with eyes unveiled.
17 I see him, though not now;
    I observe him, though not near:
A star shall advance from Jacob,
    and a scepter[d] shall rise from Israel,
That will crush the brows of Moab,(E)
    and the skull of all the Sethites,
18 Edom will be dispossessed,
    and no survivor is left in Seir.
Israel will act boldly,
19     and Jacob will rule his foes.

20 Upon seeing Amalek, Balaam recited his poem:

First[e] of the nations is Amalek,
    but their end is to perish forever.(F)

21 Upon seeing the Kenites,[f] he recited his poem:

Though your dwelling is safe,
    and your nest is set on a cliff;
22 Yet Kain will be destroyed
    when Asshur[g] takes you captive.

23 Upon seeing[h] [the Ishmaelites?] he recited his poem:

Alas, who shall survive of Ishmael,
24     to deliver them from the hands of the Kittim?
When they have conquered Asshur and conquered Eber,
They too shall perish forever.

25 Then Balaam set out on his journey home; and Balak also went his way.

Footnotes

  1. 24:4 In rapture: lit., “falling,” therefore possibly “in a trance.” However, this interpretation is uncertain.
  2. 24:7 Agag: during Saul’s reign, king of Amalek (1 Sm 15:8), fierce enemy of Israel during the wilderness period; see v. 20 (Ex 17:8–16).
  3. 24:10 Balak clapped his hands: a gesture suggesting contempt or derision, apparently made in anger (cf. Jb 27:23; Lam 2:15).
  4. 24:17 A star…a scepter: some early Christian writers, as well as rabbinic interpreters, understood this prophecy in messianic terms. So, for example, Rabbi Akiba designates Bar Kosiba the messiah in the early second century A.D. by calling him Bar Kokhba, i.e., son of the star, alluding to this passage. Although this text is not referred to anywhere in the New Testament, in a Christian messianic interpretation the star would refer to Jesus, as also the scepter from Israel; cf. Is 11:1. But it is doubtful whether this passage is to be connected with the “star of the Magi” in Mt 2:1–12. The brows of Moab, and the skull of all the Sethites: under the figure of a human being, Moab is specified as the object of conquest by a future leader of Israel. The personification of peoples or toponyms is common enough in the Old Testament; see, e.g., Hos 11:1; Ps 98:8. In Jer 48:45, which paraphrases the latter part of our verse, Moab is depicted as someone whose boasting warrants its ruin. In view of the use of Heb. pe’ah (here “brows”) in Nm 34:3 to indicate a boundary, some see in the “brows” of Moab and the “skull” of the Sethites a representation of features of Moab’s topography, i.e., the borderlands and the interior plateau. The Sethites: cf. Gn 4:25; here probably a general designation for nomadic/tribal groups on the borders of Palestine, unless they are to be identified with the Shutu mentioned in Execration texts of the early second millennium B.C. and the fourteenth century Amarna tablets from Egypt; however, the Shutu are not attested in Moab. On the basis of Gn 4:25 and Gn 25, one might also think of a reference to humanity in general.
  5. 24:20 First: lit., “the beginning.” In the Bible, Amalek is a people indigenous to Palestine and therefore considered as of great antiquity. There is a deliberate contrast here between the words “first” and “end.”
  6. 24:21 The Kenites lived in high strongholds in the mountains of southern Palestine and the Sinai Peninsula, and were skilled in working the various metals found in their territory. Their name is connected, at least by popular etymology, with the Hebrew word for “smith”; of similar sound to qayin, i.e., “Kain” or “smith,” is the Hebrew word for “nest,” qen—hence the play on words in the present passage.
  7. 24:22 Asshur: the mention of Asshur, i.e., Assyria, is not likely before the ninth or eighth centuries B.C.
  8. 24:23–24 Upon seeing: this phrase, lacking the Hebrew text, is found in the Septuagint, but without “the Ishmaelites” designated as the subject of the oracle. The Hebrew text of the oracle itself shows considerable disarray; the translation therefore relies on reconstruction of the putative original and is quite uncertain.

24 Now when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel,(A) he did not resort to divination(B) as at other times, but turned his face toward the wilderness.(C) When Balaam looked out and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came on him(D) and he spoke his message:

“The prophecy of Balaam son of Beor,
    the prophecy of one whose eye sees clearly,(E)
the prophecy of one who hears the words of God,(F)
    who sees a vision from the Almighty,[a](G)
    who falls prostrate, and whose eyes are opened:

“How beautiful are your tents,(H) Jacob,
    your dwelling places, Israel!

“Like valleys they spread out,
    like gardens beside a river,(I)
like aloes(J) planted by the Lord,
    like cedars beside the waters.(K)
Water will flow from their buckets;
    their seed will have abundant water.

“Their king will be greater than Agag;(L)
    their kingdom will be exalted.(M)

“God brought them out of Egypt;
    they have the strength of a wild ox.
They devour hostile nations
    and break their bones in pieces;(N)
    with their arrows they pierce them.(O)
Like a lion they crouch and lie down,
    like a lioness(P)—who dares to rouse them?

“May those who bless you be blessed(Q)
    and those who curse you be cursed!”(R)

10 Then Balak’s anger burned(S) against Balaam. He struck his hands together(T) and said to him, “I summoned you to curse my enemies,(U) but you have blessed them(V) these three times.(W) 11 Now leave at once and go home!(X) I said I would reward you handsomely,(Y) but the Lord has kept you from being rewarded.”

12 Balaam answered Balak, “Did I not tell the messengers you sent me,(Z) 13 ‘Even if Balak gave me all the silver and gold in his palace, I could not do anything of my own accord, good or bad, to go beyond the command of the Lord(AA)—and I must say only what the Lord says’?(AB) 14 Now I am going back to my people, but come, let me warn you of what this people will do to your people in days to come.”(AC)

Balaam’s Fourth Message

15 Then he spoke his message:

“The prophecy of Balaam son of Beor,
    the prophecy of one whose eye sees clearly,
16 the prophecy of one who hears the words(AD) of God,
    who has knowledge from the Most High,(AE)
who sees a vision from the Almighty,
    who falls prostrate, and whose eyes are opened:

17 “I see him, but not now;
    I behold him, but not near.(AF)
A star will come out of Jacob;(AG)
    a scepter will rise out of Israel.(AH)
He will crush the foreheads of Moab,(AI)
    the skulls[b](AJ) of[c] all the people of Sheth.[d]
18 Edom(AK) will be conquered;
    Seir,(AL) his enemy, will be conquered,(AM)
    but Israel(AN) will grow strong.
19 A ruler will come out of Jacob(AO)
    and destroy the survivors of the city.”

Balaam’s Fifth Message

20 Then Balaam saw Amalek(AP) and spoke his message:

“Amalek was first among the nations,
    but their end will be utter destruction.”(AQ)

Balaam’s Sixth Message

21 Then he saw the Kenites(AR) and spoke his message:

“Your dwelling place is secure,(AS)
    your nest is set in a rock;
22 yet you Kenites will be destroyed
    when Ashur(AT) takes you captive.”

Balaam’s Seventh Message

23 Then he spoke his message:

“Alas! Who can live when God does this?[e]
24     Ships will come from the shores of Cyprus;(AU)
they will subdue Ashur(AV) and Eber,(AW)
    but they too will come to ruin.(AX)

25 Then Balaam(AY) got up and returned home, and Balak went his own way.

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 24:4 Hebrew Shaddai; also in verse 16
  2. Numbers 24:17 Samaritan Pentateuch (see also Jer. 48:45); the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
  3. Numbers 24:17 Or possibly Moab, / batter
  4. Numbers 24:17 Or all the noisy boasters
  5. Numbers 24:23 Masoretic Text; with a different word division of the Hebrew The people from the islands will gather from the north.