Numbers 24
Christian Standard Bible
24 Since Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he did not go to seek omens as on previous occasions, but turned[a] toward the wilderness. 2 When Balaam looked up and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God(A) came on him, 3 and he proclaimed his poem:
The oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
the oracle of the man whose eyes are opened,
4 the oracle of one who hears the sayings of God,
who sees a vision from the Almighty,(B)
who falls into a trance with his eyes uncovered:
5 How beautiful are your tents, Jacob,
your dwellings, Israel.
6 They stretch out like river valleys,[b]
like gardens beside a stream,
like aloes the Lord has planted,
like cedars beside the water.
7 Water will flow from his buckets,
and his seed will be by abundant water.
His king will be greater than Agag,(C)
and his kingdom will be exalted.
8 God brought him out of Egypt;
he is like[c] the horns of a wild ox for them.(D)
He will feed on enemy nations
and gnaw their bones;
he will strike them with his arrows.
9 He crouches, he lies down like a lion
or a lioness—who dares to rouse him?(E)
Those who bless you will be blessed,
and those who curse you will be cursed.(F)
10 Then Balak became furious with Balaam, struck his hands together, and said to him, “I summoned you to put a curse on my enemies, but instead, you have blessed them these three times. 11 Now go to your home! I said I would reward you richly,(G) but look, the Lord has denied you a reward.”
12 Balaam answered Balak, “Didn’t I previously tell the messengers you sent me: 13 If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go against the Lord’s command, to do anything good or bad of my own will? I will say whatever the Lord says.(H) 14 Now I am going back to my people, but first, let me warn you what these people will do to your people in the future.”
Balaam’s Fourth Oracle
15 Then he proclaimed his poem:
The oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
the oracle of the man whose eyes are opened;
16 the oracle of one who hears the sayings of God
and has knowledge from the Most High,
who sees a vision from the Almighty,
who falls into a trance with his eyes uncovered:(I)
17 I see him, but not now;
I perceive him, but not near.
A star will come from Jacob,
and a scepter will arise from Israel.(J)
He will smash the forehead[d] of Moab
and strike down[e] all the Shethites.[f]
18 Edom will become a possession;
Seir(K) will become a possession of its enemies,
but Israel will be triumphant.
19 One who comes from Jacob will rule;
he will destroy the city’s survivors.
20 Then Balaam saw Amalek and proclaimed his poem:
Amalek was first among the nations,(L)
but his future is destruction.
21 Next he saw the Kenites and proclaimed his poem:
Your dwelling place is enduring;
your nest is set in the cliffs.
22 Kain will be destroyed
when Asshur takes you captive.
23 Once more he proclaimed his poem:
Ah, who can live when God does this?
24 Ships will come from the coast of Kittim;(M)
they will carry out raids against Asshur and Eber,(N)
but they too will come to destruction.
25 Balaam then arose and went back to his homeland, and Balak also went his way.
Numbers 24
Contemporary English Version
24 Balaam was sure that the Lord would tell him to bless Israel again. So he did not use any magic to find out what the Lord wanted him to do, as he had the first two times. Instead, he looked out toward the desert 2 and saw the tribes of Israel camped below. Just then, God's Spirit took control of him, 3 and Balaam said:
“I am the son of Beor,
and my words are true,[a]
so listen to my message!
4 It comes from the Lord,
the God All-Powerful.
I bowed down to him
and saw a vision of Israel.
5 “People of Israel,
your camp is lovely.
6 It's like a grove of palm trees[b]
or a garden beside a river.
You are like tall aloe trees
that the Lord has planted,
or like cedars
growing near water.
7 You and your descendants
will prosper like an orchard
beside a stream.
Your king will rule with power
and be a greater king
than Agag the Amalekite.[c]
8 With the strength of a wild ox,
God led you out of Egypt.
You will defeat your enemies,
shooting them with arrows[d]
and crushing their bones.
9 (A) Like a lion you lie down,
resting after an attack.
Who would dare disturb you?
“Anyone who blesses you
will be blessed;
anyone who curses you
will be cursed.”
10 When Balak heard this, he was so furious that he pounded his fist against his hand and said, “I called you here to place a curse on my enemies, and you've blessed them three times. 11 Leave now and go home! I told you I would pay you well, but since the Lord didn't let you do what I asked, you won't be paid.”
12 Balaam answered, “I told your messengers 13 that even if you offered me a palace full of silver or gold, I would still obey the Lord. And I explained that I would say only what he told me. 14 So I'm going back home, but I'm leaving you with a warning about what the Israelites will someday do to your nation.”
Balaam's Fourth Message
15 Balaam said:
“I am the son of Beor,
and my words are true,[e]
so listen to my message!
16 My knowledge comes
from God Most High,
the Lord All-Powerful.
I bowed down to him
and saw a vision of Israel.
17 “What I saw in my vision
hasn't happened yet.
But someday, a king of Israel
will appear like a star.
He will wipe out you Moabites[f]
and destroy[g] those tribes
who live in the desert.[h]
18 Israel will conquer Edom
and capture the land
of that enemy nation.
19 The king of Israel will rule
and destroy the survivors
of every town there.[i]
20 “And I saw this vision
about the Amalekites:[j]
Their nation is now great,
but it will someday
disappear forever.[k]
21 “And this is what I saw
about the Kenites:[l]
They think they're safe,
living among the rocks,
22 but they will be wiped out
when Assyria conquers them.[m]
23 “No one can survive
if God plans destruction.[n]
24 Ships will come from Cyprus,
bringing people who will invade
the lands of Assyria and Eber.
But finally, Cyprus itself
will be ruined.”
25 After Balaam finished, he started home, and Balak also left.
Footnotes
- 24.3 my words are true: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 24.6 grove of palm trees: Or “green valley.”
- 24.7 Agag the Amalekite: The Amalekites were longtime enemies of the Israelites (see Exodus 17.8-16), and Agag was one of their most powerful kings.
- 24.8 shooting them with arrows: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 24.15 my words are true: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 24.17 you Moabites: Or “the territories of Moab.”
- 24.17 destroy: The Standard Hebrew Text; the Samaritan Hebrew Text “the skulls of.”
- 24.17 those tribes … desert: The Hebrew text has “the descendants of Sheth,” which probably refers to the people who lived in the desert areas of Canaan before the Israelites.
- 24.19 every town there: Or “Ir in Moab.”
- 24.20 the Amalekites: See the note at 24.7.
- 24.20 but … forever: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 24.21 the Kenites: A group of people who lived in the desert south of Israel.
- 24.22 them: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 22.
- 24.23 destruction: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 23.
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