Bilangan 23:7

23:7 Then Balaam ¹  uttered ²  his oracle, saying,

“Balak, the king of Moab, brought me ³  from Aram,

out of the mountains of the east, saying,

‘Come, pronounce a curse on Jacob for me;

come, denounce Israel.’ ⁴ 

Ulangan 23:4

23:4 for they did not meet you with food and water on the way as you came from Egypt, and furthermore, they hired ⁵  Balaam son of Beor of Pethor in Aram Naharaim to curse you.

Hakim-hakim 3:8

3:8 The Lord was furious with Israel ⁶  and turned them over to ⁷  King Cushan-Rishathaim ⁸  of Aram-Naharaim. They were Cushan-Rishathaim’s subjects ⁹  for eight years.

[23:7]  ¹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Balaam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:7]  ² tn Heb “took up.”

[23:7]  ³ 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]  ⁴ 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.

[23:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “hired against you.”

[3:8]  ⁶ tn Or “The Lord’s anger burned (or raged) against Israel.”

[3:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “sold them into the hands of.”

[3:8]  ⁸ tn Or “Cushan the Doubly Wicked.”

[3:8]  ⁹ tn Or “they served Cushan-Rishathaim.”