Numbers 23:9

Numbers 23:9 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him: lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations.
• New International Version (NIV)From the rocky peaks I see them, from the heights I view them. I see a people who live apart and do not consider themselves one of the nations.
• English Standard Version (ESV)For from the top of the crags I see him, from the hills I behold him; behold, a people dwelling alone, and not counting itself among the nations!
• New Living Translation (NLT)I see them from the cliff tops; I watch them from the hills. I see a people who live by themselves, set apart from other nations.

Context of Numbers 23:9

7And 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!’ 8“How shall I curse whom God has not cursed? And how shall I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced? For from the top of the rocks I see him, And from the hills I behold him; There! A people dwelling alone, Not reckoning itself among the nations. 10“Who can count the dust of Jacob, Or number one-fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, And let my end be like his!” 11Then Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, and look, you have blessed them bountifully!”

Numbers 23:9 word by word

כִּֽי־מֵרֹ֤אשׁ צֻרִים֙ אֶרְאֶ֔נּוּ וּמִגְּבָע֖וֹת אֲשׁוּרֶ֑נּוּ הֶן־עָם֙ לְבָדָ֣ד יִשְׁכֹּ֔ן וּבַגּוֹיִ֖ם לֹ֥א יִתְחַשָּֽׁב׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• For from the topרֹאשׁrô'sh · head: topH7218
• of the rocksצוּרtsûr tsûr · rockH6697
• I seeרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• him, and from the hillsגִּבְעָהgib‛âh · hillH1389
• I beholdשׁוּרshûr · to seeH7789
• him: lo, the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• shall dwellשָׁכַןshâkan · to dwellH7931
• aloneבָּדָדbâdâd · isolationH910
• and shall not be reckonedחָשַׁבchâshab · to devise: countH2803
• among the nationsגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471

Cross-references for Numbers 23:9

• Exodus 19:5Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine.
• Exodus 33:16For how then will it be known that Your people and I have found grace in Your sight, except You go with us? So we shall be separate, Your people and I, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth.”
• Deuteronomy 33:28Then Israel shall dwell in safety, The fountain of Jacob alone, In a land of grain and new wine; His heavens shall also drop dew.
• Esther 3:8Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of your kingdom; their laws are different from all other people’s, and they do not keep the king’s laws. Therefore it is not fitting for the king to let them remain.
• 2 Corinthians 6:17Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.”
• 1 Peter 2:9But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
• Deuteronomy 32:8When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations, When He separated the sons of Adam, He set the boundaries of the peoples According to the number of the children of Israel.
• Ezra 9:2For they have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the holy seed is mixed with the peoples of those lands. Indeed, the hand of the leaders and rulers has been foremost in this trespass.”
• Jeremiah 46:28Do not fear, O Jacob My servant,” says the Lord, “For I am with you; For I will make a complete end of all the nations To which I have driven you, But I will not make a complete end of you. I will rightly correct you, For I will not leave you wholly unpunished.”
• Amos 9:9“For surely I will command, And will sift the house of Israel among all nations, As grain is sifted in a sieve; Yet not the smallest grain shall fall to the ground.
• Romans 15:8Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers,
• Ephesians 2:12that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

Commentaries on Numbers 23:9

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9From the top of the rocks I see him - That is, from the high places of Baal where he went, Numbers 22:41, that he might the more advantageously see the whole camp of Israel. The people shall dwell alone - They shall ever be preserved as a distinct nation. This prophecy has been literally fulfilled through a period of 3300 years to the present day. This is truly astonishing.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9For from the top of the rocks … - The “for” indicates the constraint under which Balaam felt himself. He had been met by God in his own way; from the cliff he had watched for the expected augury; and by the light of this he here interprets, according to the rules of his art, the destiny of Israel. Dwell alone - i. e., apart from others, undisturbed by their tumults, and therefore in safety and just security. Compare the same idea in marginal reference…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7-10In his first message from God, Balaam reviewed why he had come to Moab (23:5, 16). He explained how Balak had called him. He also stressed that God had a special relationship with Israel. Balaam made clear that he could not harm Israel because God was protecting them. These messages are written as poetry. Hebrew poetry often uses parallelism. Parallelism places two similar lines together. The second line repeats or strengthens the first line in a clear…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. from the top--literally, "a bare place" on the rocks, to which Balak had taken him, for it was deemed necessary to see the people who were to be devoted to destruction. But that commanding prospect could contribute nothing to the accomplishment of the king's object, for the destiny of Israel was to be a distinct, peculiar people, separated from the rest of the nations in government, religion, customs, and divine protection (De 33:28). So that although…Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• Count
• Abel-Shittim
• Balaam
• Balak
• Bless
• Charm
• Divination
• Genealogy
• Magic; Magician
• Numbers, Book of

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