Numbers 23

1 And Balaam said to Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven oxen and seven rams.

Balaam said to Balak, “Build seven altars here for me and prepare seven bulls and seven rams.”

2 And Balak did as Balaam had spoken; and Balak and Balaam offered on every altar a bull and a ram.

So Balak did as Balaam requested. Then Balak and Balaam offered a bull and a ram on every altar.

3 And Balaam said to Balak, Stand by thy burnt offering, and I will go: perhaps the LORD will come to meet me: and whatever he showeth me I will tell thee. And he went to an high place.

Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stand at your burnt offering and I will go. Perhaps Yahweh will come to meet me. Whatever he shows me I will tell you.” So he went away to a hilltop with no trees.

4 And God met Balaam: and he said to him, I have prepared seven altars, and I have offered upon every altar a bull and a ram.

While he was on the hilltop, God met him, and Balaam said to him, “I have built seven altars, and I have offered up a bull and a ram on each one.”

5 And the LORD put a word in Balaam’s mouth, and said, Return to Balak, and thus thou shalt speak.

Yahweh put a message in Balaam's mouth and said, “Return to Balak and speak to him.”

6 And he returned to him, and, lo, he stood by his burnt sacrifice, he, and all the princes of Moab.

So Balaam returned to Balak, who was standing by his burnt offering, and all the leaders of Moab were with him.

7 And he took up his parable, and said, Balak the king of Moab hath brought me from Aram, out of the mountains of the east, saying, Come, curse Jacob for me, and come, defy Israel.

Then Balaam began to speak his prophecy and said, “Balak has brought me from Aram, the king of Moab from the eastern mountains. 'Come, curse Jacob for me,' he said. 'Come, defy Israel.'

8 How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? or how shall I defy, whom the LORD hath not defied?

How can I curse those whom God has not cursed? How can I oppose those whom Yahweh does not oppose?

9 For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him: lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations.

For from the top of the rocks I see him; from the hills I look at him. See, there is a people who live alone and do not consider themselves as just an ordinary nation.

10 Who can count the dust of Jacob, and the number of the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!

Who can count the dust of Jacob or number even only one-fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of a righteous person, and let my life's end be like his!”

11 And Balak said to Balaam, What hast thou done to me? I took thee to curse my enemies, and, behold, thou hast blessed them altogether.

Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies, but look, you have blessed them.”

12 And he answered and said, Must I not take heed to speak that which the LORD hath put in my mouth?

Balaam answered and said, “Should I not be careful to say only what Yahweh puts in my mouth?”

13 And Balak said to him, Come, I pray thee, with me to another place, from which thou mayest see them: thou shalt see but the utmost part of them, and shalt not see them all: and from there curse them for me.

So Balak said to him, “Please come with me to another place where you can see them. You will only see the nearest of them, not all of them. There you will curse them for me.”

14 And he brought him into the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, and offered a bull and a ram on every altar.

So he took Balaam into the field of Zophim, to the top of Mount Pisgah, and built seven more altars. He offered up a bull and a ram on each altar.

15 And he said to Balak, Stand here by thy burnt offering, while I meet the LORD yonder.

Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stand here by your burnt offering, while I meet with Yahweh over there.”

16 And the LORD met Balaam, and put a word in his mouth, and said, Go again to Balak, and say thus.

So Yahweh met Balaam and put a message in his mouth. He said, “Return to Balak and give him my message.”

17 And when he came to him, behold, he stood by his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab with him. And Balak said to him, What hath the LORD spoken?

Balaam returned to him, and look, he was standing by his burnt offering, and the leaders of Moab were with him. Then Balak said to him, “What has Yahweh said?”

18 And he took up his parable, and said, Rise, Balak, and hear; hearken to me, thou son of Zippor:

Balaam began his prophecy. He said, “Rise up, Balak, and hear. Listen to me, you son of Zippor.

19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

God is not a man, that he should lie, Or a human being, that he should change his mind. Has he promised anything without doing it? Has he said he would do something without carrying it out?

20 Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it.

Look, I have been commanded to bless. God has given a blessing, and I cannot reverse it.

21 He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel: the LORD his God is with him, and the shout of a king is among them.

He has seen no hardship in Jacob or trouble in Israel. Yahweh their God is with them, and shouts for their king are among them.

22 God brought them out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn.

God brought them out of Egypt with strength like that of a wild ox.

23 Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel: according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought!

There is no sorcery that works against Jacob, and no fortune-telling harms Israel. Instead, it must be said about Jacob and Israel, 'Look what God has done!'

24 Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he shall eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain.

Look, the people rise like a lioness, as a lion emerges and attacks. He does not lie down until he eats his victim and drinks the blood of what he has killed.”

25 And Balak said to Balaam, Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all.

Then Balak said to Balaam, “Do not curse them or bless them at all.”

26 But Balaam answered and said to Balak, Did I not tell thee, saying, All that the LORD speaketh, that I must do?

But Balaam answered and said to Balak, “Did I not tell you that I must say all that Yahweh tells me to say?”

27 And Balak said to Balaam, Come, I pray thee, I will bring thee to another place; perhaps it will please God that thou mayest from there curse them for me.

So Balak replied to Balaam, “Come now, I will take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God for you to curse them there for me.”

28 And Balak brought Balaam to the top of Peor, that looketh toward Jeshimon.

So Balak took Balaam to the top of Mount Peor, which looks down on the wilderness.

29 And Balaam said to Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bulls and seven rams.

Balaam said to Balak, “Build me seven altars here and prepare seven bulls and seven rams.”

30 And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on every altar.

So Balak did as Balaam had said; he offered up a bull and a ram on each altar.