Numbers 23:18

18 Then he spoke his message: “Arise, Balak, and listen; hear me, son of Zippor.

Numbers 23:18 in Other Translations

KJV
18 And he took up his parable, and said, Rise up, Balak, and hear; hearken unto me, thou son of Zippor:
ESV
18 And Balaam took up his discourse and said, "Rise, Balak, and hear; give ear to me, O son of Zippor:
NLT
18 This was the message Balaam delivered: “Rise up, Balak, and listen! Hear me, son of Zippor.
MSG
18 Then Balaam spoke his message-oracle: On your feet, Balak. Listen, listen carefully son of Zippor:
CSB
18 Balaam proclaimed his poem: Balak, get up and listen; son of Zippor, pay attention to what I say!

Numbers 23:18 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 23:18

And he took up his parable
Pronounced the word put into his mouth,

and said, rise up Balak, and hear;
not from his seat, as Eglon a successor of his did, ( Judges 3:20 ) for he was now standing by his burnt offering; but the sense is, that he would raise his attention, and stir up himself with all diligence to hear what he was about to say:

hearken unto me, thou son of Zippor;
or to his word, as the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan, which follow.

Numbers 23:18 In-Context

16 The LORD met with Balaam and put a word in his mouth and said, “Go back to Balak and give him this word.”
17 So he went to him and found him standing beside his offering, with the Moabite officials. Balak asked him, “What did the LORD say?”
18 Then he spoke his message: “Arise, Balak, and listen; hear me, son of Zippor.
19 God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?
20 I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it.

Cross References 2

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