American Standard Version
Numbers 22:5
5And he sent messengers unto Balaam the son of Beor, to Pethor, which is by the River, to the land of the children of his people, to call him, saying, Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt: behold, they cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against me.
Numbers 22:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)He sent messengers therefore unto Balaam the son of Beor to Pethor, which is by the river of the land of the children of his people, to call him, saying, Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt: behold, they cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against me:
- New International Version (NIV)sent messengers to summon Balaam son of Beor, who was at Pethor, near the Euphrates River, in his native land. Balak said: “A people has come out of Egypt; they cover the face of the land and have settled next to me.
- English Standard Version (ESV)sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is near the River in the land of the people of Amaw, to call him, saying, "Behold, a people has come out of Egypt. They cover the face of the earth, and they are dwelling opposite me.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then he sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is near the River in the land of the sons of his people, to call him, saying: “Look, a people has come from Egypt. See, they cover the face of the earth, and are settling next to me!
Context of Numbers 22:5
3And Moab was sore afraid of the people, because they were many: and Moab was distressed because of the children of Israel. 4And Moab said unto the elders of Midian, Now will this multitude lick up all that is round about us, as the ox licketh up the grass of the field. And Balak the son of Zippor was king of Moab at that time. And he sent messengers unto Balaam the son of Beor, to Pethor, which is by the River, to the land of the children of his people, to call him, saying, Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt: behold, they cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against me. 6Come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people; for they are too mighty for me: peradventure I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land; for I know that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed. 7And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the rewards of divination in their hand; and they came unto Balaam, and spake unto him the words of Balak.
Read all of Numbers 22Numbers 22:5 word by word
וַיִּשְׁלַ֨ח מַלְאָכִ֜ים אֶל־בִּלְעָ֣ם בֶּן־בְּע֗וֹר פְּ֠תוֹרָה אֲשֶׁ֧ר עַל־הַנָּהָ֛ר אֶ֥רֶץ בְּנֵי־עַמּ֖וֹ לִקְרֹא־ל֑וֹ לֵאמֹ֗ר הִ֠נֵּה עַ֣ם יָצָ֤א מִמִּצְרַ֙יִם֙ הִנֵּ֤ה כִסָּה֙ אֶת־עֵ֣ין הָאָ֔רֶץ וְה֥וּא יֹשֵׁ֖ב מִמֻּלִֽי׃Read the interlinear
- sentשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
- messengersמַלְאָךְmal'âk · messengerH4397
- Balaamבִּלְעָםbil‛âm · BalaamH1109
- sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- Beorבְּעוֹרbe‛ôr · BeorH1160
- Riverנָהָרnâhâr · RiverH5104
- landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
- callקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call toH7121
- sayingאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- comeיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
- Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
- coverכָּסָהkâsâh · to coverH3680
Cross-references for Numbers 22:5
- Deuteronomy 23:4because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt, and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee.
- Joshua 13:22Balaam also the son of Beor, the soothsayer, did the children of Israel slay with the sword among the rest of their slain.
- Joshua 24:9Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel: and he sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you;
- Nehemiah 13:1On that day they read in the book of Moses in the audience of the people; and therein was found written, that an Ammonite and a Moabite should not enter into the assembly of God for ever,
- Micah 6:5O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him; remember from Shittim unto Gilgal, that ye may know the righteous acts of Jehovah.
- 2 Peter 2:15forsaking the right way, they went astray, having followed the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the hire of wrong-doing;
- Jude 1:11Woe unto them! for they went in the way of Cain, and ran riotously in the error of Balaam for hire, and perished in the gainsaying of Korah.
- Revelation 2:14But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there some that hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit fornication.
- Numbers 23:7And he took up his parable, and said, From Aram hath Balak brought me, The king of Moab from the mountains of the East: Come, curse me Jacob, And come, defy Israel.
- Genesis 13:16And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then may thy seed also be numbered.
- Exodus 1:7And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.
- Psalms 105:24And he increased his people greatly, And made them stronger than their adversaries.
Commentaries on Numbers 22:5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5To Pethor, which is by the river of the land of the children of his people - Dr. Kennicott justly remarks, that "the description now given of Balaam's residence, instead of being particular, agrees with any place in any country where there is a river; for he lived by Pethor, which is by the river of the land of the children of his people. But was Pethor then near the Nile in Egypt? Or in Canaan, near Jordan? Or in Mesopotamia, near the Euphrates, and…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5Balaam the son of Beor was from the first a worshipper in some sort of the true God; and had learned some elements of pure and true religion in his home in the far East, the cradle of the ancestors of Israel. But though prophesying, doubtless even before the ambassadors of Balak came to him, in the name of the true God, yet prophecy was still to him as before a mere business, not a religion. The summons of Balak proved to be a crisis in his career: and he…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5-6Balaam was a pagan religious specialist called a diviner. A diviner was someone who claimed to receive messages from the spiritual world and predict the future. Balaam came from northwest Mesopotamia (see “Balaam” Profile). Like many ancient peoples, the nations of Moab and Midian believed that spoken words had power. They believed that a blessing or a curse spoken by a skilled diviner could shape future events. Diviners claimed they had special power to…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. He sent messengers therefore unto Balaam--that is, "lord" or "devourer" of people, a famous soothsayer (Jos 13:22). son of Beor--or, in the Chaldee form, Bosor--that is, "destruction." Pethor--a city of Mesopotamia, situated on the Euphrates.Read the comment
Topics related to Numbers 22:5
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Numbers 22
- 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
American Standard Version — 1901 — Public Domain
Commentaries