1Now when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he did not resort to divination as at other times, but turned his face towards the wilderness. 2When Balaam looked out and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came on him 3and he spoke his message:
‘The prophecy of Balaam son of Beor,
the prophecy of one whose eye sees clearly,
4the prophecy of one who hears the words of God,
who sees a vision from the Almighty,24:4 Hebrew Shaddai; also in verse 16
who falls prostrate, and whose eyes are opened:
5‘How beautiful are your tents, Jacob,
your dwelling-places, Israel!
6‘Like valleys they spread out,
like gardens beside a river,
like aloes planted by the Lord,
like cedars beside the waters.
7Water will flow from their buckets;
their seed will have abundant water.
‘Their king will be greater than Agag;
their kingdom will be exalted.
8‘God brought them out of Egypt;
they have the strength of a wild ox.
They devour hostile nations
and break their bones in pieces;
with their arrows they pierce them.
9Like a lion they crouch and lie down,
like a lioness – who dares to rouse them?
‘May those who bless you be blessed
and those who curse you be cursed!’
10Then Balak’s anger burned against Balaam. He struck his hands together and said to him, ‘I summoned you to curse my enemies, but you have blessed them these three times. 11Now leave at once and go home! I said I would reward you handsomely, but the Lord has kept you from being rewarded.’
12Balaam answered Balak, ‘Did I not tell the messengers you sent me, 13“Even if Balak gave me all the silver and gold in his palace, I could not do anything of my own accord, good or bad, to go beyond the command of the Lord – and I must say only what the Lord says”? 14Now I am going back to my people, but come, let me warn you of what this people will do to your people in days to come.’
Balaam’s fourth message
15Then he spoke his message:
‘The prophecy of Balaam son of Beor,
the prophecy of one whose eye sees clearly,
16the prophecy of one who hears the words of God,
who has knowledge from the Most High,
who sees a vision from the Almighty,
who falls prostrate, and whose eyes are opened:
17‘I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near.
A star will come out of Jacob;
a sceptre will rise out of Israel.
He will crush the foreheads of Moab,
the skulls24:17 Samaritan Pentateuch (see also Jer. 48:45); the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain. of24:17 Or possibly Moab, / batter all the people of Sheth.24:17 Or all the noisy boasters
18Edom will be conquered;
Seir, his enemy, will be conquered,
but Israel will grow strong.
19A ruler will come out of Jacob
and destroy the survivors of the city.’
Balaam’s fifth message
20Then Balaam saw Amalek and spoke his message:
‘Amalek was first among the nations,
but their end will be utter destruction.’
Balaam’s sixth message
21Then he saw the Kenites and spoke his message:
‘Your dwelling-place is secure,
your nest is set in a rock;
22yet you Kenites will be destroyed
when Ashur takes you captive.’
Balaam’s seventh message
23Then he spoke his message:
‘Alas! Who can live when God does this?24:23 Masoretic Text; with a different word division of the Hebrew The people from the islands will gather from the north.
24Ships will come from the shores of Cyprus;
they will subdue Ashur and Eber,
but they too will come to ruin.’
25Then Balaam got up and returned home, and Balak went his own way.
1Balaam saw that the Lord was pleased to give his blessing to Israel. So he didn’t try to use evil magic as he had done at other times. Instead, he turned and looked toward the desert. 2He looked out and saw Israel. They had set up their camps tribe by tribe. The Spirit of God came on him. 3Balaam spoke the message he had received from God. He said,
“Here is the message God gave Balaam, the son of Beor.
It’s the message God gave to the one who sees clearly.
4It’s the message God gave to the one who hears the words of God.
He sees a vision from the Mighty One.
He falls down flat with his face toward the ground.
His eyes have been opened by the Lord.
5“People of Jacob, your tents are very beautiful.
Israel, the places where you live are very beautiful.
6“They spread out like valleys.
They are like gardens beside a river.
They are like aloes the Lord has planted.
They are like cedar trees beside a stream.
7Their water buckets will run over.
Their seeds will have plenty of water.
“Their king will be greater than King Agag.
Their kingdom will be honored.
8“God brought them out of Egypt.
They are as strong as a wild ox.
They destroy nations at war with them.
They break their bones in pieces.
They wound them with their arrows.
9Like a male lion they lie down and sleep.
They are like a female lion.
Who dares to wake them up?
“May those who bless you be blessed!
May those who curse you be cursed!”
10Then Balak became very angry with Balaam. He slapped his hands together. He said to Balaam, “I sent for you to put a curse on my enemies. But you have given them a blessing three times. 11Get out of here right away! Go home! I said I’d make you very rich. But the Lord has kept you from getting rich.”
12Balaam answered Balak, “Here is what I told the messengers you sent me. 13I said, ‘Balak could give me all the silver and gold in his palace. Even if I wanted to, I still couldn’t do anything at all that goes beyond what the Lord commands. I must say only what the Lord tells me to say.’ 14Now I’m going back to my people. But come. Let me warn you about what these people will do to your people in days to come.”
Balaam’s Fourth Message From God
15Then Balaam spoke the message he had received from God. He said,
“Here is the message God gave Balaam, the son of Beor.
It’s the message God gave to the one who sees clearly.
16It’s the message God gave to the one who hears the words of God.
The Most High God has given him knowledge.
He sees a vision from the Mighty One.
He falls down flat with his face toward the ground.
His eyes have been opened by the Lord.
17“I see him, but I don’t see him now.
I view him, but he isn’t near.
A star will come from among the people of Jacob.
A king will rise up out of Israel.
He’ll crush the foreheads of the people of Moab.
He’ll crush the heads of all the people of Sheth.
18He’ll win the battle over Edom.
He’ll win the battle over his enemy Seir.
But Israel will grow strong.
19A ruler will come from among the people of Jacob.
He’ll destroy those from the city who are still alive.”
Balaam’s Fifth Message From God
20Then Balaam saw the Amalekites. He spoke the message he had received from God. He said,
“Amalek was the first nation to attack Israel.
But their end will be total destruction.”
Balaam’s Sixth Message From God
21Then Balaam saw the Kenites. He spoke the message he had received from God. He said,
“The place where you live is safe.
Your nest is on a high cliff.
22But you Kenites will be destroyed.
Ashur will take you as prisoners.”
Balaam’s Seventh Message From God
23Then Balaam spoke the message he had received from God. He said,
“Who can live when God does this?
24Ships will come from the shores of Cyprus.
They will bring Ashur and Eber under their control.
But they themselves will also be destroyed.”
25Then Balaam got up and returned home. And Balak went on his way.
