Bilangan 22:11

22:11 “Look, a nation has come out ¹  of Egypt, and it covers the face of the earth. Come now and put a curse on them for me; perhaps I will be able to defeat them ²  and drive them out.” ³ 

Bilangan 23:7

23:7 Then Balaam ⁴  uttered ⁵  his oracle, saying,

“Balak, the king of Moab, brought me ⁶  from Aram,

out of the mountains of the east, saying,

‘Come, pronounce a curse on Jacob for me;

come, denounce Israel.’ ⁷ 

[22:11]  ¹ tn In this passage the text differs slightly; here it is “the nation that comes out,” using the article on the noun, and the active participle in the attributive adjective usage.

[22:11]  ² tn Here the infinitive construct is used to express the object or complement of the verb “to be able” (it answers the question of what he will be able to do).

[22:11]  ³ tn The verb is the Piel perfect with vav (ו) consecutive. It either carries the force of an imperfect tense, or it may be subordinated to the preceding verbs.

[23:7]  ⁴ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Balaam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “took up.”

[23:7]  ⁶ 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]  ⁷ 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.