Numbers 22:23

22:23 And the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with ¹  his sword drawn in his hand, so the donkey turned aside from the road and went into the field. But Balaam beat the donkey, to make her turn back to the road.

Numbers 22:1

Balaam Refuses to Curse Israel

22:1 ² The Israelites traveled on ³  and camped in the plains of Moab on the side of the Jordan River ⁴  across from Jericho. ⁵ 

Numbers 21:16-17

21:16 And from there they traveled ⁶  to Beer; ⁷  that is the well where the Lord spoke to Moses, “Gather the people and I will give them water.” 21:17 Then Israel sang ⁸  this song:

“Spring up, O well, sing to it!

Numbers 21:27

21:27 That is why those who speak in proverbs ⁹  say,

“Come to Heshbon, let it be built.

Let the city of Sihon be established! ¹⁰ 

Numbers 21:30

21:30 We have overpowered them; ¹¹ 

Heshbon has perished as far as Dibon.

We have shattered them as far as Nophah,

which ¹²  reaches to Medeba.”

[22:23]  ¹ tn The word has the conjunction “and” on the noun, indicating this is a disjunctive vav (ו), here serving as a circumstantial clause.

[22:1]  ² sn The fifth section of the book (22:1-33:56) traces the Israelite activities in Transjordan. It is hard to determine how long they were in Transjordan, but a good amount of time must have elapsed for the number of moves they made and the wars they fought. There is a considerable amount of information available on this section of the book. Some of the most helpful works include: H. C. Brichto, The Problem of “Curse” in the Hebrew Bible (JBLMS); E. Burrows, The Oracles of Jacob and Balaam; G. W. Coats, “Balaam, Sinner or Saint?” BR 18 (1973): 21-29; P. C. Craigie, “The Conquest and Early Hebrew Poetry,” TynBul 20 (1969): 76-94; I. Parker, “The Way of God and the Way of Balaam,” ExpTim 17 (1905): 45; and J. A. Wharton, “The Command to Bless: An Exposition of Numbers 22:41–23:25,” Int 13 (1959): 37-48. This first part introduces the characters and sets the stage for the oracles. It can be divided into four sections: the invitation declined (vv. 1-14), the second invitation extended (vv. 15-21), God opposes Balaam (vv. 22-35), and Balaam meets Balak (vv. 36-41).

[22:1]  ³ tn The verse begins with the vav (ו) consecutive.

[22:1]  ⁴ tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[22:1]  ⁵ map For the location of Jericho see Map5 B2; Map6 E1; Map7 E1; Map8 E3; Map10 A2; Map11 A1.

[21:16]  ⁶ tn The words “they traveled” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied here because of English style. The same phrase is supplied at the end of v. 18.

[21:16]  ⁷ sn Isa 15:8 mentions a Moabite Beerelim, which Simons suggests is Wadi Ettemed.

[21:17]  ⁸ tn After the adverb “then” the prefixed conjugation has the preterite force. For the archaic constructions, see D. N. Freedman, “Archaic Forms in Early Hebrew Poetry,” ZAW 72 (1960): 101-7. The poem shows all the marks of being ancient.

[21:27]  ⁹ sn Proverbs of antiquity could include pithy sayings or longer songs, riddles, or poems composed to catch the significance or the irony of an event. This is a brief poem to remember the event, like an Egyptian victory song. It may have originated as an Amorite war taunt song; it was sung to commemorate this victory. It was cited later by Jeremiah (48:45-46). The composer invites his victorious people to rebuild the conquered city as a new capital for Sihon. He then turns to address the other cities which his God(s) has/have given to him. See P. D. Hanson, “The Song of Heshbon and David’s Nir,” HTR 61 (1968): 301.

[21:27]  ¹⁰ tn Meaning, “rebuilt and restored.”

[21:30]  ¹¹ tc The first verb is difficult. MT has “we shot at them.” The Greek has “their posterity perished” (see GKC 218 §76.f).

[21:30]  ¹² tc The relative pronoun “which” (אֲשֶׁר, ’asher) posed a problem for the ancient scribes here, as indicated by the so-called extraordinary point (punta extraordinaria) over the letter ר (resh) of אֲשֶׁר. Smr and the LXX have “fire” (אֵשׁ, ’esh) here (cf. NAB, NJB, RSV, NRSV). Some modern scholars emend the word to שֹׁאָה (sho’ah, “devastation”).