Numbers 22:8-18

8 "Stay here for the night," Balaam said. "In the morning I'll deliver the answer that God gives me." The Moabite nobles stayed with him.

9 Then God came to Balaam. He asked, "So who are these men here with you?"

10 Balaam answered, "Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, sent them with a message:

11 'Look, the people that came up out of Egypt are all over the place! Come and curse them for me. Maybe then I'll be able to attack and drive them out of the country.'"

12 God said to Balaam, "Don't go with them. And don't curse the others - they are a blessed people."

13 The next morning Balaam got up and told Balak's nobles, "Go back home; God refuses to give me permission to go with you."

14 So the Moabite nobles left, came back to Balak, and said, "Balaam wouldn't come with us."

15 Balak sent another group of nobles, higher ranking and more distinguished.

16 They came to Balaam and said, "Balak son of Zippor says, 'Please, don't refuse to come to me.

17 I will honor and reward you lavishly - anything you tell me to do, I'll do; I'll pay anything - only come and curse this people.'"

18 Balaam answered Balak's servants: "Even if Balak gave me his house stuffed with silver and gold, I wouldn't be able to defy the orders of my God to do anything, whether big or little.

Numbers 22:8-18 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO NUMBERS 22

The children of Israel being come into the plains of Moab, put the king of Moab into a panic, who expressed his fears to the elders of Midian, Nu 22:1-4 and sent for Balaam the soothsayer to curse the people of Israel, but he, upon consulting the Lord refused to come, Nu 22:5-14, on which the king of Moab sent to him a second time, making large promises of preferment to him, and who at this time got leave from the Lord to go with the messengers, Nu 22:15-21, but was met with in the way by an angel of the Lord, who would have slain him had it not been for his ass, of which a very wonderful revelation is given, Nu 22:22-35, and the chapter is closed with the interview between Balak king of Moab and Balaam, and an account of what passed between them, and what was done by them, Nu 22:36-41.