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Numbers Chapter 23

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¹ And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven oxen and seven rams.

² And Balak did as Balaam had spoken; and Balak and Balaam offered on every altar a bullock and a ram.

³ And Balaam said unto Balak, Stand by thy burnt offering, and I will go: peradventure the LORD will come to meet me: and whatsoever he sheweth me I will tell thee. And he went to an high place.

⁴ And God met Balaam: and he said unto him, I have prepared seven altars, and I have offered upon every altar a bullock and a ram.

⁵ And the LORD put a word in Balaam's mouth, and said, Return unto Balak, and thus thou shalt speak.

⁶ And he returned unto him, and, lo, he stood by his burnt sacrifice, he, and all the princes of Moab.

⁷ And he took up his parable, and said, Balak the king of Moab hath brought me from Aram, out of the mountains of the east, saying, Come, curse me Jacob, and come, defy Israel.

⁸ How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? or how shall I defy, whom the LORD hath not defied?

⁹ 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.

¹⁰ Who can count the dust of Jacob, and the number of the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!

¹¹ And Balak said unto Balaam, What hast thou done unto me? I took thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast blessed them altogether.

¹² And he answered and said, Must I not take heed to speak that which the LORD hath put in my mouth?

¹³ And Balak said unto him, Come, I pray thee, with me unto another place, from whence thou mayest see them: thou shalt see but the utmost part of them, and shalt not see them all: and curse me them from thence.

¹⁴ And he brought him into the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, and offered a bullock and a ram on every altar.

¹⁵ And he said unto Balak, Stand here by thy burnt offering, while I meet the LORD yonder.

¹⁶ And the LORD met Balaam, and put a word in his mouth, and said, Go again unto Balak, and say thus.

¹⁷ And when he came to him, behold, he stood by his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab with him. And Balak said unto him, What hath the LORD spoken?

¹⁸ And he took up his parable, and said, Rise up, Balak, and hear; hearken unto me, thou son of Zippor:

¹⁹ God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

²⁰ Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it.

²¹ 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.

²² God brought them out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn.

²³ Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel: according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought!

²⁴ Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain.

²⁵ And Balak said unto Balaam, Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all.

²⁶ But Balaam answered and said unto Balak, Told not I thee, saying, All that the LORD speaketh, that I must do?

²⁷ And Balak said unto Balaam, Come, I pray thee, I will bring thee unto another place; peradventure it will please God that thou mayest curse me them from thence.

²⁸ And Balak brought Balaam unto the top of Peor, that looketh toward Jeshimon.

²⁹ And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams.

³⁰ And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bullock and a ram on every altar.

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View All Numbers Chapter 23 Comments...

GiGi's Numbers Chapter 23 comment about verse 23 on 7/02/2023, 7:29pm...

NUM. CH. 23

Balak must have acknowledged that YHWH had the authority in this situation, even above himself.

Balaam's parable was that God cannot lie, for He is not a man, a created being, and He never sins, like all humans. Vs. 19 goes on to say that Balaam says that God is true to His word. Whatever He has spoken, He will do it.

Vs. 20-21 Balaam tells Balak that he has received a commandment from God to bless Israel, and He hath blessed Israel. This blessing cannot be reversed. God does not hold Jacob's sin against him because He has given Israel the means to have their sins forgiven and that the LORD is with Israel, bot against him. Balaam also says that the shout of a king is among them. I think that this is prophetic, concerning the Messiah King to come (Jesus Christ) who will bring salvation and forgiveness to Israel.

Balaam attests to the fact that it was the LORD who brought the Israelites out of Egypt, saying that he has the strength of an unicorn. Is Balaam speaking of Israel having this strength or the LORD?

Vs, 23 Israel does not possess any of these blessings through enchantment or from divination. but all has been wrought by YHWH and this is what will be proclaimed about the Jacob/Israel.

Balaam then goes on to say that Israel will drink the blood of the slain like a lion. This does not mean that the Israelites will actually drink blood as they are prohibited in the Law from doing so. It is just saying that, like a lion, Israel will totally destroy the enemies.

Balak tells Balaam to either curse Israel nor not bless them at all. Balaam answers, reminding Balak that he told Balak that he must only say all that the LORD tells him to speak concerning Israel.

So Balak again, takes Balaam to another mountain top, Peor. Balaam again says to build seven altars to sacrifice seven bulls and seven rams. Balak thinks that perhaps this time. YHWH will allow Balaam to curse Israel. So now this is the fourth mountain (high place of Baal). cont. pt. 4

GiGi's Numbers Chapter 23 comment on 7/02/2023, 7:08pm...

NUM. 23

Oops I meant to say that Balaam went to a place to be alone.

YHWH put in Balaam's mouth the words He willed for Balaam to speak. And then Balaam left to see Balak. Whether God spoke the words He wanted Balaam to say or if He placed them in Balaam's mind, we just don't know.

When Balaam came before Balak and the princes of Moab, he spoke the words that God put in him. He used his office as a prophet of YHWH to pronounce a blessing upon Israel.

"How can I curse, whom God has not cursed? or defile those God has not defiled?

Vs. 9 is a bit confusing: "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."

Is Balaam speaking of the LORD as to whom he sees or the Israel? The rest of the verse is definitely about Israel. As God's chosen people, Israel will be set apart as "holy unto the LORD" and not mingle with the other nations of the land promised to them.

Vs. 10 Balaam hopes to die a righteous death like Jacob did. In this verse, Balaam definitely desires to have the favor of God as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob did, so he must have had knowledge of them and their faith and that it was counted to them as righteousness.

Balak questions why Balaam did not curse Israel. Balaam's reply was that he must take heed of and speak what the LORD had put in him to speak.

So Balak takes Balaam to another mountain, a high place of Baal, so that Balaam can see the encampment of Israel, most of it except the utmost part of it. So some of the people were out of the sight of the place where they went, Mt. Pisgah. Again, seven altars are built and seven bulls and seven rams are sacrificed there. Again Balaam tells Balak to stay by the sacrifice as he goes off to meet the LORD off yonder. And again the LORD meets Balaam and gives him the words he is to say to Balak. Balak asks:

What has the LORD spoken?" So, it seems that Balak acknowledges the God of Balaam. cont. Pt 3

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