Numbers 22:6

Numbers 22:6 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Come 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 wot that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed.
• New International Version (NIV)Now come and put a curse on these people, because they are too powerful for me. Perhaps then I will be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land. For I know that whoever you bless is blessed, and whoever you curse is cursed.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Come now, curse this people for me, since they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them from the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed."
• New King James Version (NKJV)Therefore please come at once, curse this people for me, for they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.”

Context of Numbers 22:6

4So the Moabites said to the leaders of the Midianites, ‘This large group of people will destroy everything round us. They will be like a bull that eats all the grass in a field!’ So Balak, the king of Moab, 5sent men to get Balaam, the son of Beor. Balaam was living near the Euphrates river at Pethor. Balak told the men to say to Balaam, ‘A large group of people has come here from Egypt. They cover all the ground, everywhere. They have put up their tents near our land. They are more powerful than I am. Come here and put a curse on them. If you do that, maybe I will win against them. Then I can chase them away from our land. I know that you have the authority to bless people or to curse them.’ 7The leaders of Moab and Midian went to find Balaam. They took the money to pay for Balaam's work. When they found him, they told him what Balak had said. 8Balaam said to them, ‘Stay here tonight. I will talk to the Lord. Tomorrow, I will tell you his answer.’ So the Moabite officers stayed with Balaam.

Numbers 22:6 word by word

וְעַתָּה֩ לְכָה־נָּ֨א אָֽרָה־לִּ֜י אֶת־הָעָ֣ם הַזֶּ֗ה כִּֽי־עָצ֥וּם הוּא֙ מִמֶּ֔נִּי אוּלַ֤י אוּכַל֙ נַכֶּה־בּ֔וֹ וַאֲגָרְשֶׁ֖נּוּ מִן־הָאָ֑רֶץ כִּ֣י יָדַ֗עְתִּי אֵ֤ת אֲשֶׁר־תְּבָרֵךְ֙ מְבֹרָ֔ךְ וַאֲשֶׁ֥ר תָּאֹ֖ר יוּאָֽר׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Comeיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
• now therefore, I pray thee, curseאָרַר'ârar · to curseH779
• me this peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• too mightyעָצוּם‛âtsûm ‛âtsûm · mightyH6099
• for me: peradventure I shall prevailיָכֹלyâkôl yâkôl · be ableH3201
• we may smiteנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
• I may drive them outגָּרַשׁgârash · to drive out: drive outH1644
• of the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• for I wotיָדַעyâda‛ · to knowH3045
• that he whom thou blessestבָּרַךְbârak · to blessH1288

Cross-references for Numbers 22:6

• Numbers 23:7Then Balaam started to speak his message from God. He said, ‘Balak, the king of Moab, has brought me from Syria. He brought me from the mountains in the east. He said “Come and curse Jacob's descendants for me. Say bad things against the Israelites!”
• Numbers 24:9The Israelites are like a lion. When it is asleep, nobody is brave enough to wake it. God blesses those who bless you, Israel. And those who curse you are truly cursed.’
• Genesis 12:3I will bless those people who bless you. But I will curse anyone who insults you. Through you, I will bless all the families of people on the earth.’
• Genesis 27:29May the people of many nations serve you. May they respect you as their master. You will rule over your brothers. Yes, your mother's sons will bend down to respect you. May God curse anyone who curses you. And may he bless anyone who blesses you.’
• Deuteronomy 23:4The people of those nations refused to help you when you were leaving Egypt. They did not give you food or water. Also, they paid Beor's son Balaam to curse you. He came from Pethor in Mesopotamia.
• Joshua 24:9The king of Moab, Zippor's son Balak, prepared to attack you. When he did this, he asked Balaam, son of Beor, to curse you.
• 1 Samuel 17:43He said to David, ‘Do you think that I am just a dog? Can you knock me down with a little stick?’ Then he prayed to his gods that they would curse David.
• Nehemiah 13:2This was because they had not given the Israelites food and water. Instead, they had paid Balaam to curse the Israelites. But God did not agree to curse them. He blessed them instead.
• Psalms 109:17He loved to curse people. Now may those curses happen to him! He never asked God to bless other people, so nobody will ask God to bless him!
• 1 Kings 22:6So the king of Israel brought together about 400 prophets. He asked them, ‘Should I attack Ramoth Gilead, or not?’ They answered, ‘Yes, go and attack it, because the Lord God will give it to you, our king.’
• Psalms 109:28They may curse me, but you will bless me. When they attack me, they will become ashamed. But I will be very happy, as your servant.
• Proverbs 26:2If someone curses you for no reason, it will not stay with you. Their words will be like birds that never stop to rest.
• Isaiah 47:12So continue with your magic, if you want to. Say your magic words. You have always used that magic, since you were young. Perhaps your magic will help you. Perhaps you will frighten your enemies!
• Ezekiel 13:6The visions that these prophets see are false. They tell lies about what will happen. They say, ‘The Lord says this,’ when I have not sent them with any message. But they still think that what they say will really happen.
• Acts 8:9A man called Simon lived in that city. For a long time, he had used magic to do great things. All the people who lived in Samaria were very surprised at what he did. Simon told everyone that he was a very important person.
• Acts 16:16One day, we were going to the place where people prayed to God. On the way there, we met a slave girl. A bad spirit was living inside her. This spirit told her what would happen soon. People gave her masters a lot of money when she told them about these future things.

Commentaries on Numbers 22:6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6Come now, therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people - Balaam, once a prophet of the true God, appears to have been one of the Moshelim, (see Numbers 21:27;), who had added to his poetic gift that of sorcery or divination. It was supposed that prophets and sorcerers had a power to curse persons and places so as to confound all their designs, frustrate their counsels, enervate their strength, and fill them with fear, terror, and dismay. See Genesis 9:25…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. 66. Come ... curse me this people--Among the heathen an opinion prevailed that prayers for evil or curses would be heard by the unseen powers as well as prayers for good, when offered by a prophet or priest and accompanied by the use of certain rites. Many examples are found in the histories of the Greeks and Romans of whole armies being devoted to destruction, and they occur among the natives of India and other heathen countries still. In the Burmese war…Read the comment

Topics related to Numbers 22:6

• Balaam
• Balak
• Curse
• Prayer
• Sorcery

In the dictionaries

• Crush
• Curse
• Lick
• Midianite
• Moab
• Promote
• Abel-Shittim
• Angel
• Ass
• Balaam

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