Numbers 22:37

37 And Balak said to Balaam, "Did I not urgently send to meet with you? Why did you not come to me? Am I really not able to honor you?"

Numbers 22:37 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 22:37

And Balak said unto Balaam
Upon their meeting together:

did I not earnestly send unto thee to call thee?
or "in sending send" {u}; the first messengers in a very pressing manner, with great importunity, to give thee an invitation to come to me, and those men of rank and quality, with rewards of divination in their hands, and yet the invitation was rejected; and after them other messengers, more in number and greater in dignity, with larger offers and promises; and now indeed thou art come, but with much ado, what is the meaning of all this?

wherefore camest thou not unto me?
at first, without showing so much indifference and reluctance, and which obliged me to send another message to thee:

am I not able to promote thee to honour?
to give thee wealth and riches, and put thee into high places of honour and profit? hadst thou any doubt in thy mind about it, either concerning my ability or will to do it?

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FOOTNOTES:

F21 (ytxlv xlv) "mittendo misi", Pagninus, Montanus.

Numbers 22:37 In-Context

35 The angel of Yahweh said to Balaam, "Go with the men, but speak only the word that I will speak to you." So Balaam went with the princes of Balak.

36 When Balak heard that Balaam was coming, he went out to meet him by the city of Moab, which [was] on the boundary of Aaron at the end of the territory.

37 And Balak said to Balaam, "Did I not urgently send to meet with you? Why did you not come to me? Am I really not able to honor you?"

38 Balaam said to Balak, "Look, I came to you now. Am I really able to speak anything at all? I speak the word that God puts in my mouth."

39 Balaam went with Balak, and they came [to] Kiriath-Huzoth.