Numbers 22:9-20

English Standard Version

^9 (A)And God came to Balaam and said, “Who are these men with you?” ¹⁰ And Balaam said to God, “Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, has sent to me, saying, ¹¹ ‘Behold, a people has come out of Egypt, and it covers the face of the earth. Now come, curse them for me. Perhaps I shall be able to fight against them and drive them out.’” ¹² God said to Balaam, “You shall not go with them. You shall not curse the people, for ^(B)they are blessed.” ¹³ So Balaam rose in the morning and said to the princes of Balak, “Go to your own land, for the Lord has refused to let me go with you.” ¹⁴ So the princes of Moab rose and went to Balak and said, “Balaam refuses to come with us.”

¹⁵ Once again Balak sent princes, more in number and more honorable than these. ¹⁶ And they came to Balaam and said to him, “Thus says Balak the son of Zippor: ‘Let nothing hinder you from coming to me, ^17 (C)for I will surely do you great honor, and whatever you say to me I will do. ^(D)Come, curse this people for me.’” ¹⁸ But Balaam answered and said to the servants of Balak, ^(E)“Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, ^(F)I could not go beyond the command of the Lord my God to do less or more. ¹⁹ So you, too, ^(G)please stay here tonight, that I may know what more the Lord will say to me.” ^20 (H)And God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “If the men have come to call you, rise, go with them; ^(I)but only do what I tell you.”