11 Balak said to Balaam, "What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies, but you have done nothing but bless them!" 12 He answered, "Must I not speak what the Lord puts in my mouth?"
13 Then Balak said to him, "Come with me to another place where you can see them; you will not see them all but only the outskirts of their camp. And from there, curse them for me." 14 So he took him to the field of Zophim on the top of Pisgah, and there he built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar. 15 Balaam said to Balak, "Stay here beside your offering while I meet with him over there." 16 The Lord met with Balaam and put a word in his mouth and said, "Go back to Balak and give him this word." 17 So he went to him and found him standing beside his offering, with the Moabite officials. Balak asked him, "What did the Lord say?" 18 Then he spoke his message: "Arise, Balak, and listen; hear me, son of Zippor. 19 God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? 20 I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it. 21 "No misfortune is seen in Jacob, no misery observed[1] in Israel. The Lord their God is with them; the shout of the King is among them. 22 God brought them out of Egypt; they have the strength of a wild ox. 23 There is no divination against[2] Jacob, no evil omens against[2] Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and of Israel, 'See what God has done!' 24 The people rise like a lioness; they rouse themselves like a lion that does not rest till it devours its prey and drinks the blood of its victims." 25 Then Balak said to Balaam, "Neither curse them at all nor bless them at all!" 26 Balaam answered, "Did I not tell you I must do whatever the Lord says?" 27 Then Balak said to Balaam, "Come, let me take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God to let you curse them for me from there." 28 And Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, overlooking the wasteland. 29 Balaam said, "Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me." 30 Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
11 And Balak said unto Balaam, What hast thou done unto me? I took thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast blessed them altogether. 12 And he answered and said, Must I not take heed to speak that which the Lord hath put in my mouth?
13 And Balak said unto him, Come, I pray thee, with me unto another place, from whence thou mayest see them: thou shalt see but the utmost part of them, and shalt not see them all: and curse me them from thence. 14 And he brought him into the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah,
11 And Balak said to Balaam, "What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, and behold, you have done nothing but bless them." 12 And he answered and said, "Must I not take care to speak what the Lord puts in my mouth?"
13 And Balak said to him, "Please come with me to another place, from which you may see them. You shall see only a fraction of them and shall not see them all. Then curse them for me from there." 14 And he took him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar 15 Balaam said to Balak, "Stand here beside your burnt offering, while I meet the Lord over there." 16 And the Lord met Balaam and put a word in his mouth and said, "Return to Balak, and thus shall you speak." 17 And he came to him, and behold, he was standing beside his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab with him. And Balak said to him, "What has the Lord spoken?" 18 And Balaam took up his discourse and said, "Rise, Balak, and hear; give ear to me, O son of Zippor: 19 God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? 20 Behold, I received a command to bless: he has blessed, and I cannot revoke it. 21 He has not beheld misfortune in Jacob, nor has he seen trouble in Israel. The Lord their God is with them, and the shout of a king is among them. 22 God brings them out of Egypt and is for them like the horns of the wild ox. 23 For there is no enchantment against Jacob, no divination against Israel; now it shall be said of Jacob and Israel, 'What has God wrought!' 24 Behold, a people! As a lioness it rises up and as a lion it lifts itself; it does not lie down until it has devoured the prey and drunk the blood of the slain." 25 And Balak said to Balaam, "Do not curse them at all, and do not bless them at all." 26 But Balaam answered Balak, "Did I not tell you, 'All that the Lord says, that I must do'?" 27 And Balak said to Balaam, "Come now, I will take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God that you may curse them for me from there." 28 So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, which overlooks the desert.
11 Balak said to Balaam, "What's this? I brought you here to curse my enemies, and all you've done is bless them." 12 Balaam answered, "Don't I have to be careful to say what God gives me to say?"
13 Balak said to him, "Go with me to another place from which you can only see the outskirts of their camp - you won't be able to see the whole camp. From there, curse them for my sake." 14 So he took him to Watchmen's Meadow at the top of Pisgah. He built seven altars there and offered a bull and a ram on each altar 15 Balaam said to Balak, "Take up your station here beside your Whole-Burnt-Offering while I meet with him over there." 16 God met with Balaam and gave him a message. He said, "Return to Balak and give him the message." 17 Balaam returned and found him stationed beside his Whole-Burnt-Offering and the nobles of Moab with him. Balak said to him, "What did God say?" 18 Then Balaam spoke his message-oracle: On your feet, Balak. Listen, listen carefully son of Zippor: 19 God is not man, one given to lies, and not a son of man changing his mind. Does he speak and not do what he says? Does he promise and not come through 20 I was brought here to bless; and now he's blessed - how can I change that? 21 He has no bone to pick with Jacob, he sees nothing wrong with Israel. God is with them, and they're with him, shouting praises to their King 22 God brought them out of Egypt, rampaging like a wild ox. 23 No magic spells can bind Jacob, no incantations can hold back Israel. People will look at Jacob and Israel and say, "What a great thing has God done!" 24 Look, a people rising to its feet, stretching like a lion, a king-of-the-beasts, aroused, Unsleeping, unresting until its hunt is over and it's eaten and drunk its fill. 25 Balak said to Balaam, "Well, if you can't curse them, at least don't bless them." 26 Balaam replied to Balak, "Didn't I tell you earlier: 'All God speaks, and only what he speaks, I speak'?" 27 Balak said to Balaam, "Please, let me take you to another place; maybe we can find the right place in God's eyes where you'll be able to curse them for me." 28 So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, with a vista over the Jeshimon (Wasteland). 29 Balaam said to Balak, "Build seven altars for me here and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for sacrifice." 30 Balak did it and presented an offering of a bull and a ram on each of the altars.
11 Then Balak said to Balaam, "What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, and look, you have blessed them bountifully!" 12 So he answered and said, "Must I not take heed to speak what the Lord has put in my mouth?"
13 Then Balak said to him, "Please come with me to another place from which you may see them; you shall see only the outer part of them, and shall not see them all; curse them for me from there." 14 So he brought him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, and offered a bull and a ram on each altar 15 And he said to Balak, "Stand here by your burnt offering while I meet the Lord over there." 16 Then the Lord met Balaam, and put a word in his mouth, and said, "Go back to Balak, and thus you shall speak." 17 So he came to him, and there he was, standing by his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab were with him. And Balak said to him, "What has the Lord spoken?" 18 Then he took up his oracle and said: "Rise up, Balak, and hear! Listen to me, son of Zippor! 19 "God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good 20 Behold, I have received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it. 21 "He has not observed iniquity in Jacob, Nor has He seen wickedness in Israel. The Lord his God is with him, And the shout of a King is among them 22 God brings them out of Egypt; He has strength like a wild ox. 23 "For there is no sorcery against Jacob, Nor any divination against Israel. It now must be said of Jacob And of Israel, 'Oh, what God has done!' 24 Look, a people rises like a lioness, And lifts itself up like a lion; It shall not lie down until it devours the prey, And drinks the blood of the slain." 25 Then Balak said to Balaam, "Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all!" 26 So Balaam answered and said to Balak, "Did I not tell you, saying, 'All that the Lord speaks, that I must do'?" 27 Then Balak said to Balaam, "Please come, I will take you to another place; perhaps it will please God that you may curse them for me from there." 28 So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, that overlooks the wasteland. 29 Then Balaam said to Balak, "Build for me here seven altars, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams." 30 And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on every altar.
11 Then King Balak demanded of Balaam, "What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies. Instead, you have blessed them!" 12 But Balaam replied, "I will speak only the message that the Lord puts in my mouth."
13 Then King Balak told him, "Come with me to another place. There you will see another part of the nation of Israel, but not all of them. Curse at least that many!" 14 So Balak took Balaam to the plateau of Zophim on Pisgah Peak. He built seven altars there and offered a young bull and a ram on each altar. 15 Then Balaam said to the king, "Stand here by your burnt offerings while I go over there to meet the Lord ." 16 And the Lord met Balaam and gave him a message. Then he said, "Go back to Balak and give him my message." 17 So Balaam returned and found the king standing beside his burnt offerings with all the officials of Moab. "What did the Lord say?" Balak asked eagerly. 18 This was the message Balaam delivered: "Rise up, Balak, and listen! Hear me, son of Zippor. 19 God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through? 20 Listen, I received a command to bless; God has blessed, and I cannot reverse it! 21 No misfortune is in his plan for Jacob; no trouble is in store for Israel. For the Lord their God is with them; he has been proclaimed their king. 22 God brought them out of Egypt; for them he is as strong as a wild ox. 23 No curse can touch Jacob; no magic has any power against Israel. For now it will be said of Jacob, 'What wonders God has done for Israel!' 24 These people rise up like a lioness, like a majestic lion rousing itself. They refuse to rest until they have feasted on prey, drinking the blood of the slaughtered!" 25 Then Balak said to Balaam, "Fine, but if you won't curse them, at least don't bless them!" 26 But Balaam replied to Balak, "Didn't I tell you that I can do only what the Lord tells me?" 27 Then King Balak said to Balaam, "Come, I will take you to one more place. Perhaps it will please God to let you curse them from there." 28 So Balak took Balaam to the top of Mount Peor, overlooking the wasteland. 29 Balaam again told Balak, "Build me seven altars, and prepare seven young bulls and seven rams for me to sacrifice." 30 So Balak did as Balaam ordered and offered a young bull and a ram on each altar.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Numbers 23:11-30
Commentary on Numbers 23:11-30
(Read Numbers 23:11-30)
Balak was angry with Balaam. Thus a confession of God's overruling power is extorted from a wicked prophet, to the confusion of a wicked prince. A second time the curse is turned into a blessing; and this blessing is both larger and stronger than the former. Men change their minds, and break their words; but God never changes his mind, and therefore never recalls his promise. And when in Scripture he is said to repent, it does not mean any change of his mind; but only a change of his way. There was sin in Jacob, and God saw it; but there was not such as might provoke him to give them up to ruin. If the Lord sees that we trust in his mercy, and accept of his salvation; that we indulge no secret lust, and continue not in rebellion, but endeavour to serve and glorify him; we may be sure that he looks upon us as accepted in Christ, that our sins are all pardoned. Oh the wonders of providence and grace, the wonders of redeeming love, of pardoning mercy, of the new-creating Spirit! Balak had no hope of ruining Israel, and Balaam showed that he had more reason to fear being ruined by them. Since Balaam cannot say what he would have him, Balak wished him to say nothing. But though there are many devices in man's heart, God's counsels shall stand. Yet they resolve to make another attempt, though they had no promise on which to build their hopes. Let us, who have a promise that the vision at the end shall speak and not lie, continue earnest in prayer, Luke 18:1.