41AND IT WAS IN THE MORNING AND HE TOOK BALAK <OBJ.> BALAAM AND HE BROUGHT UP HIM BAMOTH BAAL AND HE SAW FROM THERE [THE] OUTSKIRT[S] OF THE PEOPLE 41The next morning, Balak took Balaam and brought him up to Bamoth-baal. From there he could see the outskirts of the camp of the people.
1AND HE SAID BALAAM TO BALAK BUILD FOR <THE> ME IN THIS [PLACE] SEVEN ALTARS AND PREPARE FOR <THE> ME IN THIS [PLACE] SEVEN YOUNG BULLS AND SEVEN RAMS Balaam’s First Oracle 1Then Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me seven altars here, and prepare for me seven bulls and seven rams.”
2AND HE DID BALAK JUST AS HE HAD SPOKEN BALAAM AND HE OFFERED UP BALAK AND BALAAM A YOUNG BULL AND A RAM ON THE ALTAR 2So Balak did as Balaam had instructed, and Balak and Balaam offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
3AND HE SAID BALAAM TO BALAK TAKE YOUR STAND WITH BURNT OFFERING YOUR SO LET ME GO PERHAPS HE WILL MEET YAHWEH TO MEET ME AND [THE] WORD OF WHATEVER HE WILL SHOW ME AND I WILL TELL TO <THE> YOU AND HE WENT A BARE HEIGHT 3“Stay here by your burnt offering while I am gone,” Balaam said to Balak. “Perhaps the LORD will meet with me. And whatever He reveals to me, I will tell you.” So Balaam went off to a barren height,
4AND HE MET GOD <TO> BALAAM AND HE SAID TO HIM <OBJ.> [THE] SEVEN THE ALTARS I HAVE ARRANGED AND I HAVE OFFERED UP A YOUNG BULL AND A RAM ON THE ALTAR 4and God met with him. “I have set up seven altars,” Balaam said “and on each altar I have offered a bull and a ram.”
5AND HE PUT YAHWEH A WORD IN [THE] MOUTH OF BALAAM AND HE SAID RETURN TO BALAK AND THUS YOU WILL SPEAK 5Then the LORD put a message in Balaam’s mouth, saying, “Return to Balak and give him this message.”
6AND HE RETURNED TO HIM AND THERE! [HE WAS] STANDING WITH BURNT OFFERING HIS HE AND ALL [THE] LEADERS OF MOAB 6So he returned to Balak, who was standing there beside his burnt offering, with all the princes of Moab.
7AND HE LIFTED UP ORACLE HIS AND HE SAID FROM ARAM HE LED ME BALAK [THE] KING OF MOAB FROM [THE] MOUNTAINS OF [THE] EAST COME! CURSE! FOR <THE> ME JACOB AND COME! DENOUNCE! ISRAEL 7And Balaam lifted up an oracle, saying: “Balak brought me from Aram, the king of Moab from the mountains of the east. ‘Come,’ he said, ‘put a curse on Jacob for me; come and denounce Israel!’
8WHAT? WILL I CURSE [ONE WHOM] NOT HE HAS CURSED HIM GOD AND WHAT? WILL I DENOUNCE [ONE WHOM] NOT HE HAS DENOUNCED YAHWEH 8How can I curse those whom God has not cursed? How can I denounce those whom the LORD has not denounced?
9FOR FROM [THE] TOP OF [THE] ROCKS I SEE HIM AND FROM [THE] HILLS I OBSERVE HIM THERE! A PEOPLE [WHICH] <TO> ALONE IT DWELLS AND AMONG THE NATIONS NOT IT RECKONS ITSELF 9For I see them from atop the rocky cliffs, and I watch them from the hills. Behold, a people dwelling apart, not reckoning themselves among the nations.
10WHO? HAS HE COUNTED [THE] DUST OF JACOB AND A NUMBER <OBJ.> [THE] FOURTH PART OF ISRAEL LET IT DIE SELF MY [THE] DEATH OF UPRIGHT [PEOPLE] AND LET IT BE END MY LIKE HIS 10Who can count the dust of Jacob or number even a fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous; let my end be like theirs!”
11AND HE SAID BALAK TO BALAAM WHAT? HAVE YOU DONE TO <THE> ME TO CURSE ENEMIES MY I TOOK YOU AND HERE! YOU HAVE BLESSED ACTUALLY <BLESS> 11Then Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I brought you here to curse my enemies, and behold, you have only blessed them
12AND HE ANSWERED AND HE SAID ¿ NOT <OBJ.> [THAT] WHICH HE WILL PUT YAHWEH IN MOUTH MY <OBJ.> IT WILL I TAKE CARE TO SPEAK 12But Balaam replied, “Should I not speak exactly what the LORD puts in my mouth
13AND HE SAID TO HIM BALAK COME THERE! PLEASE WITH ME TO A PLACE ANOTHER WHERE YOU WILL SEE IT FROM THERE ONLY OUTSKIRT[S] ITS YOU WILL SEE AND ALL OF IT NOT YOU WILL SEE AND CURSE IT FOR <THE> ME FROM THERE Balaam’s Second Oracle 13Then Balak said to him, “Please come with me to another place where you can see them. You will only see the outskirts of their camp— not all of them. And from there, curse them for me.”
14AND HE TOOK HIM [THE] FIELD OF ZOPHIM TO [THE] TOP OF <THE> PISGAH AND HE BUILT SEVEN ALTARS AND HE OFFERED UP A YOUNG BULL AND A RAM ON THE ALTAR 14So Balak took him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, where he built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
15AND HE SAID TO BALAK TAKE YOUR STAND THUS WITH BURNT OFFERING YOUR AND I I WILL MEET THUS 15Balaam said to Balak, “Stay here beside your burnt offering while I meet the LORD over there.”
16AND HE MET YAHWEH <TO> BALAAM AND HE PUT A WORD IN MOUTH HIS AND HE SAID RETURN TO BALAK AND THUS YOU WILL SPEAK 16And the LORD met with Balaam and put a message in his mouth, saying, “Return to Balak and speak what I tell you.”
17AND HE WENT TO HIM AND THERE HE [WAS] STANDING WITH BURNT OFFERING HIS AND [THE] LEADERS OF MOAB [WERE] WITH HIM AND HE SAID TO <THE> HIM BALAK WHAT? HAS HE SPOKEN YAHWEH 17So he returned to Balak, who was standing there by his burnt offering with the princes of Moab. “What did the LORD say?” Balak asked
18AND HE LIFTED UP ORACLE HIS AND HE SAID ARISE O BALAK AND HEAR GIVE EAR! TO ME [O] SON HIS ZIPPOR 18Then Balaam lifted up an oracle, saying: “Arise, O Balak, and listen; give ear to me, O son of Zippor.
19NOT [IS] A HUMAN GOD SO HE MAY LIE AND A SON OF HUMANKIND SO HE MAY CHANGE HIS MIND ¿ HE HAS HE SAID AND NOT WILL HE ACT? AND HAS HE SPOKEN? AND NOT WILL HE FULFILL? IT 19God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?
20HERE! [SURELY] BLESSING I HAVE RECEIVED AND HE HAS BLESSED AND NOT I WILL TURN BACK IT 20I have indeed received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot change it.
21NOT HE HAS LOOKED AT DISASTER IN JACOB AND NOT HE HAS SEEN TROUBLE IN ISRAEL YAHWEH GOD HIS [IS] WITH HIM AND A SHOUT OF A KING [IS] AMONG <THE> HIM 21He considers no disaster for Jacob; He sees no trouble for Israel. The LORD their God is with them, and the shout of the King is among them.
22GOD [IS] BRINGING OUT THEM FROM EGYPT LIKE [THE] HORNS OF A WILD OX [BELONG] TO <THE> HIM 22God brought them out of Egypt with strength like a wild ox
23FOR NOT ENCHANTMENT [IS] IN JACOB AND NOT DIVINATION [IS] IN ISRAEL ABOUT <THE> THIS TIME IT WILL BE SAID OF JACOB AND OF ISRAEL WHAT! HAS HE DONE GOD 23For there is no spell against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and Israel, ‘What great things God has done!’
24THERE! A PEOPLE LIKE A LION IT RISES AND LIKE A LION IT LIFTS ITSELF UP NOT IT WILL LIE DOWN UNTIL IT WILL DEVOUR PREY AND [THE] BLOOD OF [THOSE] SLAIN IT WILL DRINK 24Behold, the people rise like a lioness; they rouse themselves like a lion, not resting until they devour their prey and drink the blood of the slain.”
25AND HE SAID BALAK TO BALAAM NEITHER AT ALL <CURSE> NOT YOU WILL CURSE IT NOR AT ALL <BLESS> NOT YOU WILL BLESS IT 25Now Balak said to Balaam, “Then neither curse them at all nor bless them at all!”
26AND HE ANSWERED BALAAM AND HE SAID TO BALAK ¿ NOT DID I SPEAK TO YOU <TO> SAYING ALL THAT HE WILL SPEAK YAHWEH <OBJ.> IT I WILL DO 26But Balaam replied “Did I not tell you that whatever the LORD says, I must do?”
27AND HE SAID BALAK TO BALAAM COME! PLEASE LET ME TAKE YOU TO A PLACE ANOTHER PERHAPS IT WILL BE PLEASING IN [THE] EYES OF <THE> GOD AND YOU WILL CURSE IT FOR <THE> ME FROM THERE 27“Please come,” said Balak “I will take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God that you curse them for me from there.”
28AND HE TOOK BALAK <OBJ.> BALAAM [THE] TOP OF <THE> PEOR WHICH LOOKS DOWN OVER [THE] FACE OF THE DESOLATE PLACE 28And Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, which overlooks the wasteland.*NoteCloseOr Jeshimon
29AND HE SAID BALAAM TO BALAK BUILD FOR <THE> ME IN THIS [PLACE] SEVEN ALTARS AND PREPARE FOR <THE> ME IN THIS [PLACE] SEVEN YOUNG BULLS AND SEVEN RAMS 29Then Balaam said “Build for me seven altars here, and prepare for me seven bulls and seven rams.”
30AND HE DID BALAK JUST AS HE HAD SAID BALAAM AND HE OFFERED UP A YOUNG BULL AND A RAM ON THE ALTAR 30So Balak did as Balaam had instructed, and he offered a bull and a ram on each altar.