Amplified Bible
Numbers 23:24
24Behold, a people rises up like a lioness And lifts itself up like a lion; He will not lie down until he devours the prey And drinks the blood of the slain.”
Numbers 23:24 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)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 eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain.
- New International Version (NIV)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.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)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."
- New King James Version (NKJV)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.”
Context of Numbers 23:24
22God brought them out of Egypt; They have the strength of a wild ox. 23For there is no enchantment or omen against Jacob, Nor is there any divination against Israel. At the proper time it shall be said to Jacob And to Israel, what has God done! Behold, a people rises up like a lioness And lifts itself up like a lion; He will not lie down until he devours the prey And drinks the blood of the slain.” 25Then Balak said to Balaam, “Neither curse them at all nor bless them at all!” 26But Balaam answered Balak, “Did I not say to you, ‘All that the Lord speaks, that I must do?’ ”
Read all of Numbers 23Numbers 23:24 word by word
הֶן־עָם֙ כְּלָבִ֣יא יָק֔וּם וְכַאֲרִ֖י יִתְנַשָּׂ֑א לֹ֤א יִשְׁכַּב֙ עַד־יֹ֣אכַל טֶ֔רֶף וְדַם־חֲלָלִ֖ים יִשְׁתֶּֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Behold, the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
- shall rise upקוּםqûm · to arise: riseH6965
- as a great lionלָבִיאlâbîy' lebîyâ' lebâ'îym lebâ'ôth · lionH3833
- and lift upנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: raiseH5375
- himself as a young lionאֲרִי'ărîy 'aryêh · lionH738
- he shall not lie downשָׁכַבshâkab · to lie down: lay downH7901
- until he eatאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
- the preyטֶ֫רֶףţereph · preyH2964
- and drinkשָׁתָהshâthâh · to drinkH8354
- the bloodדָּםdâm · bloodH1818
- of the slainחָלָלchâlâl · slain: killedH2491
Cross-references for Numbers 23:24
- Numbers 24:8God brought Israel out of Egypt; Israel has strength like the wild ox; He will devour [Gentile] nations, his adversaries (enemies), And will crush their bones in pieces, And shatter them with his arrows.
- Genesis 49:9Judah, a lion’s cub; With the prey, my son, you have gone high up [the mountain]. He stooped down, he crouched like a lion, And like a lion—who dares rouse him?
- Deuteronomy 33:20Of Gad he said, “Blessed is the one who enlarges Gad; He lurks like a lioness, And tears the arm and the crown of the head.
- Psalms 17:12He is like a lion eager to tear [his prey], And like a young lion lurking in hiding places.
- Proverbs 30:30The lion, which is mighty among beasts And does not turn back before any;
- Isaiah 31:4For so the Lord says to me, “As the lion or the young lion growls over his prey, And though a large group of shepherds is called out against him He will not be terrified at their voice nor cringe at their noise, So the Lord of hosts will come down to wage war on Mount Zion and on its hill.”
- Amos 3:8The lion has roared! Who will not fear? The Lord God has spoken [to the prophets]! Who can but prophesy?
- Revelation 5:5Then one of the [twenty-four] elders said to me, “Stop weeping! Look closely, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome and conquered! He can open the scroll and [break] its seven seals.”
- Numbers 24:17I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near. A star shall come forth from [the descendants of] Jacob, A scepter shall rise out of [the descendants of] Israel And shall crush the forehead of Moab And destroy all the sons of Sheth.
- Genesis 49:27“Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; In the morning he devours the prey, And at night he divides the spoil.”
- Daniel 2:44In the days of those [final ten] kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will its sovereignty be left for another people; but it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, and it will stand forever.
- Micah 5:8The remnant of Jacob Shall be among the nations, In the midst of many peoples Like a lion among the beasts of the forest, Like a young lion [suddenly appearing] among the flocks of sheep Which, if he passes through, Tramples down and tears into pieces [the nations in judgment], And there is no one to rescue.
- Zechariah 10:4From them (Judah) shall come the Cornerstone, From them the tent peg, From them the bow of battle, From them every ruler, all of them together.
- Zechariah 12:6“In that day I will make the clans of Judah like a firepot in a woodpile, and like a flaming torch among sheaves [of grain]. They will devour all the surrounding peoples on the right hand and on the left; and the people of Jerusalem will again live [securely] in their own place, in Jerusalem.
- Revelation 19:11And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who was riding it is called Faithful and True (trustworthy, loyal, incorruptible, steady), and in righteousness He judges and wages war [on the rebellious nations].
Commentaries on Numbers 23:24
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 24Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion - לביא labi, the great, mighty, or old lion, the king of the forest, who is feared and respected by all the other beasts of the field; so shall Israel be the subduer and possessor of the whole land of Canaan. And as a young lion, ארי ari from ארה arah, to tear off, the predatory lion, or the lion in the act of seizing and tearing his prey; - the nations against whom the Israelites are now going shall be no…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 11-30Verses 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…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 23-24No curse could overpower Israel because God blessed them (Numbers 22:12; compare Genesis 12:2–3; 22:17–18). Israel was safe from the harm that Moab and Midian tried to cause through divination (compare Numbers 24:1). Israel would become famous because God protected them from harm (see Joshua 2:9–11; compare Numbers 14:13–19).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-301. Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars--Balak, being a heathen, would naturally suppose these altars were erected in honor of Baal, the patron deity of his country. It is evident, from Nu 23:4 that they were prepared for the worship of the true God; although in choosing the high places of Baal as their site and rearing a number of altars (2Ki 18:22; Is 17:8; Jr 11:13; Ho 8:11; 10:1), instead of one only, as God had appointed, Balaam blended…Read the comment
Topics related to Numbers 23:24
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Numbers 23
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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