Numbers 20:18

20:18 But Edom said to him, “You will not pass through me, ¹  or I will come out against ²  you with the sword.”

Numbers 14:3

14:3 Why has the Lord brought us into this land only to be killed by the sword, that our wives and our children should become plunder? Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?”

Numbers 14:43

14:43 For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and you will fall by the sword. Because you have turned away from the Lord, the Lord will not be with you.”

Numbers 19:16

19:16 And whoever touches the body of someone killed with a sword in the open fields, ³  or the body of someone who died of natural causes, ⁴  or a human bone, or a grave, will be unclean seven days. ⁵ 

Numbers 21:24

21:24 But the Israelites ⁶  defeated him in battle ⁷  and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as the Ammonites, for the border of the Ammonites was strongly defended.

Numbers 22:29

22:29 And Balaam said to the donkey, “You have made me look stupid; I wish ⁸  there were a sword in my hand, for I would kill you right now.”

Numbers 22:31

22:31 Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way with his sword drawn in his hand; so he bowed his head and threw himself down with his face to the ground. ⁹ 

Numbers 22:23

22:23 And the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with ¹⁰  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 31:8

31:8 They killed the kings of Midian in addition to those slain – Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba – five Midianite kings. ¹¹  They also killed Balaam son of Beor with the sword. ¹² 

[20:18]  ¹ tn The imperfect tense here has the nuance of prohibition.

[20:18]  ² tn Heb “to meet.”

[19:16]  ³ tn The expression for “in the open field” is literally “upon the face of the field” (עַל־פְּנֵי הַשָּׂדֶה, ’al pÿne hassadeh). This ruling is in contrast now to what was contacted in the tent.

[19:16]  ⁴ tn Heb “a dead body”; but in contrast to the person killed with a sword, this must refer to someone who died of natural causes.

[19:16]  ⁵ sn See Matt 23:27 and Acts 23:3 for application of this by the time of Jesus.

[21:24]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew text has “Israel,” but the verb is plural.

[21:24]  ⁶ tn Heb “with the edge of the sword.”

[22:29]  ⁷ tn The optative clause is introduced with the particle לוּ (lu).

[22:31]  ⁹ tn The Hishtaphel verb חָוָה (khavah) – שָׁחָה (shakhah) with metathesis – has a basic idea of “bow oneself low to the ground,” and perhaps in some cases the idea of “coil up.” This is the normal posture of prayer and of deep humility in the ancient religious world.

[22:23]  ¹¹ tn The word has the conjunction “and” on the noun, indicating this is a disjunctive vav (ו), here serving as a circumstantial clause.

[31:8]  ¹³ sn Here again we see that there was no unified empire, but Midianite tribal groups.

[31:8]  ¹⁴ sn And what was Balaam doing among the Midianites? The implication is strong. This pagan diviner had to submit to the revealed will of God in the oracles, but he nonetheless could be hired. He had been a part of the attempt to destroy Israel that failed; he then apparently became part of the plan, if not the adviser, to destroy them with sexual immorality and pagan ritual.