Bilangan 13:29

13:29 The Amalekites live in the land of the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live by the sea and along the banks ¹  of the Jordan.” ² 

Bilangan 23:7

23:7 Then Balaam ³  uttered ⁴  his oracle, saying,

“Balak, the king of Moab, brought me ⁵  from Aram,

out of the mountains of the east, saying,

‘Come, pronounce a curse on Jacob for me;

come, denounce Israel.’ ⁶ 

[13:29]  ¹ tn Heb “by the side [hand] of.”

[13:29]  ² sn For more discussion on these people groups, see D. J. Wiseman, ed., Peoples of Old Testament Times.

[23:7]  ³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Balaam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:7]  ⁴ tn Heb “took up.”

[23:7]  ⁵ 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.

[23:7]  ⁶ 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.