Numbers 23:21

Numbers 23:21 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel: the Lord his God is with him, and the shout of a king is among them.
• New International Version (NIV)“No misfortune is seen in Jacob, no misery observed in Israel. The Lord their God is with them; the shout of the King is among them.
• English Standard Version (ESV)He has not beheld misfortune in Jacob, nor has he seen trouble in Israel. The Lord their God is with them, and the shout of a king is among them.
• New King James Version (NKJV)“He has not observed iniquity in Jacob, Nor has He seen wickedness in Israel. The Lord his God is with him, And the shout of a King is among them.

Context of Numbers 23:21

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? 20Indeed, I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot reverse it. He 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. 23For there is no spell against Jacob, nor is there any divination against Israel. At this time it must be said of Jacob and of Israel, ‘Look at what God has done!’

Numbers 23:21 word by word

לֹֽא־הִבִּ֥יט אָ֙וֶן֙ בְּיַעֲקֹ֔ב וְלֹא־רָאָ֥ה עָמָ֖ל בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהָיו֙ עִמּ֔וֹ וּתְרוּעַ֥ת מֶ֖לֶךְ בּֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• He hath not beheldנָבַטnâbaţ · to lookH5027
• iniquityאָ֫וֶן'âven · evil: troubleH205
• in Jacobיַעֲקֹבya‛ăqôb · JacobH3290
• neither hath he seenרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• perversenessעָמָל‛âmâl · troubleH5999
• in Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• his Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• with him, and the shoutתְּרוּעָהterû‛âh · shoutH8643
• of a kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428

Cross-references for Numbers 23:21

• Psalms 103:12As far as the eastern horizon is from the west, so he removes the guilt of our rebellious actions from us.
• Isaiah 1:18Come, let’s consider your options,” says the Lord. “Though your sins have stained you like the color red, you can become white like snow; though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet, you can become white like wool.
• Isaiah 38:17“Look, the grief I experienced was for my benefit. You delivered me from the pit of oblivion. For you removed all my sins from your sight.
• Jeremiah 50:20When that time comes, no guilt will be found in Israel. No sin will be found in Judah. For I will forgive those of them I have allowed to survive. I, the Lord, affirm it!’”
• Hosea 14:2Return to the Lord and repent! Say to him: “Completely forgive our iniquity; accept our penitential prayer, that we may offer the praise of our lips as sacrificial bulls.
• Micah 7:18There is no other God like you! You forgive sin and pardon the rebellion of those who remain among your people. You do not remain angry forever, but delight in showing loyal love.
• Romans 4:7“Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered;
• Romans 6:14For sin will have no mastery over you, because you are not under law but under grace.
• Romans 8:1There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
• 2 Corinthians 5:19In other words, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting people’s trespasses against them, and he has given us the message of reconciliation.
• Exodus 13:21Now the Lord was going before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them in the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel day or night.
• Exodus 29:45I will reside among the Israelites, and I will be their God,
• Exodus 33:14And the Lord said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
• Exodus 34:9and said, “If now I have found favor in your sight, O Lord, let my Lord go among us, for we are a stiff-necked people; pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for your inheritance.”
• Judges 6:13Gideon said to him, “Pardon me, but if the Lord is with us, why has such disaster overtaken us? Where are all his miraculous deeds our ancestors told us about? They said, ‘Did the Lord not bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to Midian.”
• 2 Chronicles 13:12Now look, God is with us as our leader. His priests are ready to blow the trumpets to signal the attack against you. You Israelites, don’t fight against the Lord God of your ancestors, for you will not win!”

Commentaries on Numbers 23:21

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel - This is a difficult passage; for if we take the words as spoken of the people Israel, as their iniquity and their perverseness were almost unparalleled, such words cannot be spoken of them with strict truth. If we consider them as spoken of the patriarch Jacob and Israel, or of Jacob after he became Israel, they are most strictly true, as after that time a more unblemished…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21“Iniquity” and “perverseness” are found together again in the Hebrew of Psalm 10:7; Psalm 90:10, and elsewhere; and import wickedness together with that tribulation which is its proper result. The shout - The word is used (Leviticus 23:24 note) to describe the sound of the silver trumpets. The “shout of a king” will therefore refer to the jubilant sounds by which the presence of the Lord as their King among them was celebrated by Israel.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. 2121. He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob--Many sins were observed and punished in this people. But no such universal and hopeless apostasy had as yet appeared, to induce God to abandon or destroy them. the Lord his God is with him--has a favor for them. and the shout of a king is among them--such joyful acclamations as of a people rejoicing in the presence of a victorious prince.Read the comment

Topics related to Numbers 23:21

• God
• Perfection
• Pisgah

In the dictionaries

• God
• Israel
• Jacob
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Count
• Abel-Shittim
• Balaam
• Balak

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