New English Translation
Numbers 23:20
20Indeed, I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot reverse it.
Numbers 23:20 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it.
- New International Version (NIV)I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Behold, I received a command to bless: he has blessed, and I cannot revoke it.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Behold, I have received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it.
Context of Numbers 23:20
18Balaam uttered his oracle, and said, “Rise up, Balak, and hear; Listen to me, son of Zippor: 19God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a human being, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not make it happen? Indeed, I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot reverse it. 21He has not looked on iniquity in Jacob, nor has he seen trouble in Israel. The Lord their God is with them; his acclamation as king is among them. 22God brought them out of Egypt. They have, as it were, the strength of a wild bull.
Read all of Numbers 23Numbers 23:20 word by word
הִנֵּ֥ה בָרֵ֖ךְ לָקָ֑חְתִּי וּבֵרֵ֖ךְ וְלֹ֥א אֲשִׁיבֶֽנָּה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Numbers 23:20
- Numbers 22:12But God said to Balaam, “You must not go with them; you must not curse the people, for they are blessed.”
- Genesis 12:2Then I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you, and I will make your name great, so that you will exemplify divine blessing.
- Genesis 22:17I will indeed bless you, and I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they will be as countless as the stars in the sky or the grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the strongholds of their enemies.
- Numbers 22:18Balaam replied to the servants of Balak, “Even if Balak would give me his palace full of silver and gold, I could not transgress the commandment of the Lord my God to do less or more.
- John 10:27My sheep listen to my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.
- Romans 8:38For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor heavenly rulers, nor things that are present, nor things to come, nor powers,
- 1 Peter 1:5who by God’s power are protected through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
Commentaries on Numbers 23:20
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20I have received commandment to bless - literally, “I have received to bless.” The reason of his blessing lay in the augury which he acknowledged, and in the divine overruling impulse which he could not resist, not in any “commandment” in words.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. 20-21The Lord kept his promises to bless his people, bringing them no misfortune or trouble. Balaam could not change God's plans. God punished the Hebrews for disobedience. Yet, he supported Israel's cause ever since he freed them from Egypt.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 23:20
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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