Bilangan 22:38

22:38 Balaam said to Balak, “Look, I have come to you. Now, am I able ¹  to speak ²  just anything? I must speak ³  only the word that God puts in my mouth.”

Bilangan 23:8

23:8 How ⁴  can I curse ⁵  one whom God has not cursed,

or how can I denounce one whom the Lord has not denounced?

[22:38]  ¹ tn The verb is אוּכַל (’ukhal) in a question – “am I able?” But emphasizing this is the infinitive absolute before it. So Balaam is saying something like, “Can I really say anything?”

[22:38]  ² tn The Piel infinitive construct (without the preposition) serves as the object of the verb “to be able.” The whole question is rhetorical – he is saying that he will not be able to say anything God does not allow him to say.

[22:38]  ³ tn The imperfect tense is here taken as an obligatory imperfect.

[23:8]  ⁴ tn The figure is erotesis, a rhetorical question. He is actually saying he cannot curse them because God has not cursed them.

[23:8]  ⁵ tn The imperfect tense should here be classified as a potential imperfect.