“Balak, the king of Moab, brought me 3 from Aram,
out of the mountains of the east, saying,
‘Come, pronounce a curse on Jacob for me;
come, denounce Israel.’ 4
23:8 How 5 can I curse 6 one whom God has not cursed,
or how can I denounce one whom the Lord has not denounced?
23:1 7 Balaam said to Balak, “Build me seven altars here, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.”
17:10 The Lord said to Moses, “Bring Aaron’s staff back before the testimony to be preserved for a sign to the rebels, so that you may bring their murmurings to an end 8 before me, that they will not die.” 9
17:1 10 The Lord spoke to Moses:
17:1 11 The Lord spoke to Moses:
17:1 12 The Lord spoke to Moses:
17:1 13 The Lord spoke to Moses:
1 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Balaam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 tn Heb “took up.”
3 tn The passage calls for a past tense translation; since the verb form is a prefixed conjugation, this tense should be classified as a preterite without the vav (ו). Such forms do occur, especially in the ancient poetic passages.
4 sn The opening lines seem to be a formula for the seer to identify himself and the occasion for the oracle. The tension is laid out early; Balaam knows that God has intended to bless Israel, but he has been paid to curse them.
5 tn The figure is erotesis, a rhetorical question. He is actually saying he cannot curse them because God has not cursed them.
6 tn The imperfect tense should here be classified as a potential imperfect.
7 sn The first part of Balaam’s activity ends in disaster for Balak – he blesses Israel. The chapter falls into four units: the first prophecy (vv. 1-10), the relocation (vv. 11-17), the second prophecy (vv. 18-24), and a further location (vv. 25-30).
8 tn The verb means “to finish; to complete” and here “to bring to an end.” It is the imperfect following the imperative, and so introduces a purpose clause (as a final imperfect).
9 tn This is another final imperfect in a purpose clause.
10 sn Num 17:1 in the English Bible is 17:16 in the Hebrew text (BHS). See also the note on 16:36.
11 sn Num 17:1 in the English Bible is 17:16 in the Hebrew text (BHS). See also the note on 16:36.
12 sn Num 17:1 in the English Bible is 17:16 in the Hebrew text (BHS). See also the note on 16:36.
13 sn Num 17:1 in the English Bible is 17:16 in the Hebrew text (BHS). See also the note on 16:36.