Numbers 22:12

12 and God saith unto Balaam, `Thou dost not go with them; thou dost not curse the people; for it [is] blessed.'

Numbers 22:12 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 22:12

And God said unto Balaam, thou shalt not go with them
Which is a denial of the first thing Balak requested, "come now, therefore" ( Numbers 22:6 )

thou shall not curse the people;
which was the principal thing desired, and in order to which he was solicited to go with the messengers; but this is absolutely forbidden:

for they are blessed;
by the Lord himself, with an irrevocable blessing, and therefore it would be vain and fruitless, as well as dangerous for him to attempt to curse them, ( Genesis 12:3 ) this may have a special respect to the blessing of Jacob by Isaac, which could not be reversed by the solicitations of Esau, and which descended to Jacob's posterity, the Israelites, ( Genesis 27:33 ) .

Numbers 22:12 In-Context

10 And Balaam saith unto God, `Balak, son of Zippor, king of Moab, hath sent unto me:

11 Lo, the people that is coming out from Egypt and covereth the eye of the land, -- now come, pierce it for me; it may be I am able to fight against it, and have cast it out;'

12 and God saith unto Balaam, `Thou dost not go with them; thou dost not curse the people; for it [is] blessed.'

13 And Balaam riseth in the morning, and saith unto the princes of Balak, `Go unto your land, for Jehovah is refusing to suffer me to go with you;'

14 and the princes of Moab rise, and come in unto Balak, and say, `Balaam is refusing to come with us.'