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Balaam looked up and saw Israel camping tribe by tribe. Then the spirit of God came upon him, and he uttered his oracle, saying:

“The oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
    the oracle of the man whose eye is clear,[a]
the oracle of one who hears the words of God,
    who sees the vision of the Almighty,[b]
    who falls down, but with eyes uncovered:
how fair are your tents, O Jacob,
    your encampments, O Israel!
Like palm groves that stretch far away,
    like gardens beside a river,
like aloes that the Lord has planted,
    like cedar trees beside the waters.
Water shall flow from his buckets,
    and his seed shall have abundant water,
his king shall be higher than Agag,
    and his kingdom shall be exalted.

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 24:3 Or closed or open
  2. Numbers 24:4 Traditional rendering of Heb Shaddai

When Balaam looked out and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came on him(A) and he spoke his message:

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

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

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

“Their king will be greater than Agag;(I)
    their kingdom will be exalted.(J)

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 24:4 Hebrew Shaddai; also in verse 16

Balaam’s Fourth Oracle

15 So he uttered his oracle, saying:

“The oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
    the oracle of the man whose eye is clear,[a]
16 the oracle of one who hears the words of God,
    and knows the knowledge of the Most High,[b]
who sees the vision of the Almighty,[c]
    who falls down, but with his eyes uncovered:
17 I see him, but not now;
    I behold him, but not near—
a star shall come out of Jacob,
    and a scepter shall rise out of Israel;
it shall crush the borderlands[d] of Moab,
    and the territory[e] of all the Shethites.

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 24:15 Or closed or open
  2. Numbers 24:16 Or of Elyon
  3. Numbers 24:16 Traditional rendering of Heb Shaddai
  4. Numbers 24:17 Or forehead
  5. Numbers 24:17 Some Mss read skull

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(A) of God,
    who has knowledge from the Most High,(B)
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.(C)
A star will come out of Jacob;(D)
    a scepter will rise out of Israel.(E)
He will crush the foreheads of Moab,(F)
    the skulls[a](G) of[b] all the people of Sheth.[c]

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Footnotes

  1. Numbers 24:17 Samaritan Pentateuch (see also Jer. 48:45); the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
  2. Numbers 24:17 Or possibly Moab, / batter
  3. Numbers 24:17 Or all the noisy boasters

The Authority of Jesus Questioned

23 When he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” 24 Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?” And they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.” 27 So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

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The Authority of Jesus Questioned(A)

23 Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority(B) are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”

24 Jesus replied, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 25 John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or of human origin?”

They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘Of human origin’—we are afraid of the people, for they all hold that John was a prophet.”(C)

27 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”

Then he said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

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