Amplified Bible
Numbers 23:7
7Balaam took up his [first] discourse (oracle) and said: “Balak, the king of Moab, has brought me from Aram (Syria), from the mountains of the east, [saying,] ‘Come, curse [the descendants of] Jacob for me; And come, [violently] denounce Israel.’
Numbers 23:7 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)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 me Jacob, and come, defy Israel.
- New International Version (NIV)Then Balaam spoke his message: “Balak brought me from Aram, the king of Moab from the eastern mountains. ‘Come,’ he said, ‘curse Jacob for me; come, denounce Israel.’
- English Standard Version (ESV)And Balaam took up his discourse and said, "From Aram Balak has brought me, the king of Moab from the eastern mountains: 'Come, curse Jacob for me, and come, denounce Israel!'
- New King James Version (NKJV)And he took up his oracle and said: “Balak the king of Moab has brought me from Aram, From the mountains of the east. ‘Come, curse Jacob for me, And come, denounce Israel!’
Context of Numbers 23:7
5Then the Lord put a speech in Balaam’s mouth, and said, “Return to Balak, and you shall speak thus.” 6Balaam returned to Balak, and behold, he was standing by his burnt sacrifice, he and all the leaders of Moab. Balaam took up his [first] discourse (oracle) and said: “Balak, the king of Moab, has brought me from Aram (Syria), from the mountains of the east, [saying,] ‘Come, curse [the descendants of] Jacob for me; And come, [violently] denounce Israel.’ 8How shall I curse those whom God has not cursed? Or how can I [violently] denounce those the Lord has not denounced? 9For from the top of the rocks I see Israel, And from the hills I look at him. Behold, the people [of Israel] shall dwell alone And will not be reckoned among the nations.
Read all of Numbers 23Numbers 23:7 word by word
וַיִּשָּׂ֥א מְשָׁל֖וֹ וַיֹּאמַ֑ר מִן־אֲ֠רָם יַנְחֵ֨נִי בָלָ֤ק מֶֽלֶךְ־מוֹאָב֙ מֵֽהַרְרֵי־קֶ֔דֶם לְכָה֙ אָֽרָה־לִּ֣י יַעֲקֹ֔ב וּלְכָ֖ה זֹעֲמָ֥ה יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And he took upנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: loudH5375
- his parableמָשָׁלmâshâl · proverbH4912
- and saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Balakבָּלָקbâlâq · BalakH1111
- the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- of Moabמוֹאָבmô'âb · MoabH4124
- hath broughtנָחָהnâchâh · to leadH5148
- me from Aramאֲרָם'ărâm · (Paddan)-aramH758
- out of the mountainsהָרָרhârâr · mountainH2042
- of the eastקֶ֫דֶםqedem qêdmâh · front: eastH6924
- Comeיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
- curseאָרַר'ârar · to curseH779
- me Jacobיַעֲקֹבya‛ăqôb · JacobH3290
- defyזָעַםzâ‛am · be indignantH2194
- Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
Cross-references for Numbers 23:7
- Numbers 23:18Balaam took up his [second] discourse (oracle) and said: “Rise up, O Balak, and hear; Listen [closely] to me, son of Zippor.
- Numbers 24:3He took up his [third] discourse (oracle) and said: “The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor, And the oracle of the man whose eye is opened [at last, to see clearly the purpose and will of God],
- Job 27:1Job continued his discourse and said,
- Job 29:1And Job again took up his discussion and said,
- Psalms 78:2I will open my mouth in a parable [to instruct using examples]; I will utter dark and puzzling sayings of old [that contain important truth]—
- Ezekiel 17:2“Son of man, ask a riddle and tell a parable to the house of Israel,
- Ezekiel 20:49Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! They are saying of me, ‘Is he not [just] speaking in parables and making allegories?’ ”
- Micah 2:4On that day they shall take up a [taunting, deriding] parable against you And wail with a doleful and bitter song of mourning and say, ‘We are completely destroyed! God exchanges the inheritance of my people; How He removes it from me! He divides our fields to the rebellious [our captors].’
- Habakkuk 2:6“Will all these [victims of his greed] not take up a taunting song against him, And in mocking derision against him Say, ‘Woe (judgment is coming) to him who increases that which is not his— How long [will he possess it]? And [woe to him who] makes himself wealthy with loans.’
- Matthew 13:33He told them another parable, “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and worked into three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”
- Mark 12:12And they were looking for a way to seize Him, but they were afraid of the crowd; for they knew that He spoke this parable in reference to [and as a charge against] them. And so they left Him and went away.
- Numbers 24:2And Balaam raised his eyes and he saw Israel living in their tents tribe by tribe; and the Spirit of God came on him.
- Numbers 22:5So he sent messengers to Balaam [a famous prophet-diviner] the son of Beor at Pethor, which is by the [Euphrates] River, in the land of the descendants of his people, to call for him, saying, “There is a people who have come out of Egypt; behold, they cover the surface of the land, and they are living opposite me.
- Genesis 10:22The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud and Aram;
- Genesis 28:2Arise, go to Paddan-aram, to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father; and take from there as a wife for yourself one of the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother.
- Deuteronomy 23:4because they did not meet you with bread (food) and water on the road as you came out of Egypt, and because they hired [to act] against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you.
Commentaries on Numbers 23:7
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7And he took up his parable - משלו meshalo, see on Numbers 21:27; (note). All these oracular speeches of Balaam are in hemistich metre in the original. They are highly dignified, and may be considered as immediate poetic productions of the Spirit of God; for it is expressly said, Numbers 23:5, that God put the word in Balaam's mouth, and that the Spirit of God came upon him, Numbers 24:2.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7Aram - Or, “highland.” This term denotes the whole elevated region, from the northeastern frontier of Palestine to the Euphrates and the Tigris. The country between these streams was especially designated “Aram-naharaim,” or “Aram of the two rivers:” the Greeks called it Mesopotamia; and here, according to Deuteronomy 23:4, was Balaam‘s home. Compare Numbers 22:5 note.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7-8Instead of cursing Israel, Balaam spoke about their special status (compare Exodus 19:5–6; Deuteronomy 7:6–9). He recognized that God's blessing had transformed a humble people into a great nation (compare Genesis 12:2–3; 13:16; 28:14). Balaam hoped for similar good fortune for himself (Numbers 23:10).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. took up his parable--that is, spoke under the influence of inspiration, and in the highly poetical, figurative, and oracular style of a prophet. brought me from Aram--This word joined with "the mountains of the East," denotes the upper portion of Mesopotamia, lying on the east of Moab. The East enjoyed an infamous notoriety for magicians and soothsayers (Is 2:6).Read the comment
Topics related to Numbers 23:7
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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