NúmerosCapítulo 23

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Balaam said to Balak, "Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me here."

Balak did as Balaam had said, and Balak and Balaam offered up a bull and a ram on each altar.

Then Balaam said to Balak, "Stay here beside your burnt offering while I go aside. Perhaps the LORD will come to meet me, and whatever he shows me I will tell you." So he went off to a barren height.

God met Balaam, and Balaam said to him, "I have set up seven altars, and on each altar I have offered a bull and a ram."

The LORD put a word in Balaam's mouth and said, "Go back to Balak and speak this."

So he returned to him, and there he was, standing beside his burnt offering, he and all the officials of Moab.

Then Balaam took up his oracle and said: "From Aram Balak brought me, the king of Moab, from the eastern mountains: 'Come, curse Jacob for me; come, denounce Israel.'

How can I curse those whom God has not cursed? How can I denounce those whom the LORD has not denounced?

From the rocky peaks I see them, from the heights I behold them: a people living apart, not reckoning themselves among the nations.

Who can count the dust of Jacob or number even a fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the upright, and let my end be like theirs!"

Then Balak said to Balaam, "What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies, and instead you have blessed them—blessed them completely!"

He answered, "Must I not say only what the LORD puts in my mouth?"

Then Balak said to him, "Come with me to another place, where you can see them. You will see only part of them, not all of them—curse them for me from there."

So he took him to the field of Zophim, on the top of Pisgah. There he built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.

Balaam said to Balak, "Stay here beside your burnt offering while I go over there to meet the LORD."

The LORD met Balaam and put a word in his mouth, saying, "Go back to Balak and speak this."

So he came to him, and there he was, standing beside his burnt offering with the officials of Moab. Balak asked him, "What did the LORD say?"

Then Balaam took up his oracle and said: "Rise, Balak, and listen; hear me, son of Zippor.

God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?

I have been given a word of blessing; he has blessed, and I cannot revoke it.

He has seen no iniquity in Jacob, and observed no trouble in Israel. The LORD their God is with them; the shout of a king is among them.

God brought them out of Egypt; they have the strength of a wild ox.

There is no sorcery against Jacob, no divination against Israel. Now it will be said of Jacob and of Israel: 'See what God has done!'

Look, a people rises like a lioness; like a lion it rears itself up. It does not lie down until it has devoured its prey and drunk the blood of the slain."

Then Balak said to Balaam, "Do not curse them at all, then—but do not bless them either!"

Balaam answered Balak, "Did I not tell you that I must do whatever the LORD says?"

Then Balak said to Balaam, "Come, let me take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God to let you curse them for me from there."

So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, which overlooks the wasteland.

Balaam said to Balak, "Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me here."

Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.

Consulta

Resumen2

Capítulo 23

Main Theme: God transforms Balaam's planned curses into blessings over Israel through two prophetic oracles.

Content: King Balak takes Balaam to two different high places to curse Israel, but both times God puts words of blessing in Balaam's mouth. In the first oracle, Balaam declares that he cannot curse those whom God has not cursed and describes Israel as a people who dwell alone, countless as the dust. In the second oracle, he proclaims that God is not a human being who lies and that the Lord is with Israel as a king. The chapter concludes with Balak taking Balaam to a third place at Peor for yet another attempt.

Key Words/Images:

Seven altars and sacrificial animals: Balaam requests seven altars with bulls and rams—a pagan sacrificial practice that cannot bind or influence Israel's God.
God is not a human (v.19): God's word stands firm and cannot be reversed—a contrast to human unreliability.
The trumpet blast of a king (v.21): The Lord is present in Israel as king and warrior—an image of God's protective presence.
The lion that rises up (v.24): Israel is compared to a lion that does not lie down until it has devoured its prey—an image of invincible strength.

Contexto histórico

Historical and Cultural Context for Numbers 23

People

Balaam (בִּלְעָם) appears in this chapter as the messenger of God's word to Balak. Despite his background as a professional diviner, he must speak the words that YHWH puts into his mouth (vv. 5, 12, 16). His role shows that God has sovereignty even over non-Israelite prophets.

Balak son of Zippor (בָּלָק בֶּן־צִפֹּר) – the king of Moab who in this chapter repeatedly tries to get Balaam to curse Israel by moving to new locations (vv. 13, 27), but each time must hear blessings instead of curses.

The officials of Moab (שָׂרֵי מוֹאָב) (vv. 6, 17) are present as witnesses at the sacrifices and oracles, which underscores the political and public nature of the ritual.

Places

The field of Zophim (שְׂדֵה צֹפִים) on top of Pisgah (v. 14) was a high point in the Abarim mountain range east of the Jordan Valley. Pisgah is likely identical to or near Mount Nebo, with a view over the northern Dead Sea and the Jordan plain. The place was chosen because it provided a view over parts of Israel's camp.

The top of Peor (רֹאשׁ הַפְּעוֹר) (v. 28) was a high point overlooking Jeshimon (הַיְשִׁימֹן, "the wilderness"). Peor was likely connected with the cult of Baal-Peor.

Events and Customs

The sacrifice rituals described in the chapter follow a pattern common in ancient Near Eastern divination practices. Balaam instructs Balak to build seven altars and offer seven bulls and seven rams – the number seven had sacred significance throughout the ancient Middle East as a number of completeness. The fact that the king personally participated in the sacrifices emphasizes the importance of the ritual. In Mesopotamian tradition, such offerings prepared the gods to give favorable oracles, but here the text shows that YHWH cannot be manipulated.

The three oracle locations – The chapter describes how Balak moves Balaam to three different places in hopes that a change in position will produce a different result. This reflects ancient Near Eastern belief that geographical location could influence the outcome of divination.

The mashal form (מָשָׁל, "proverb" or "oracle speech") in which Balaam's prophecies are presented (vv. 7, 18) was a well-known literary genre in the ancient Orient. These poetic oracles have parallels to Mesopotamian prophetic texts, but their content – blessing instead of cursing – turns the expected situation upside down.

Key Terms

Shaphi (שֶׁפִי) in verse 3 is a rare Hebrew word traditionally translated as "bare height" or "solitary place". Balaam went to such a place to meet God, which reflects the idea that revelations could more easily be received on remote, high places.

Nachash and qesem (נַחַשׁ וְקֶסֶם) in verse 23 refer to specific divination practices: nachash was snake-omen interpretation or omen reading, while qesem was a broader term for divination art, possibly including arrow-casting. The verse declares that Israel is not dependent on such pagan practices because God speaks directly to them.

Teruah (תְּרוּעָה) in verse 21, "royal shout" or "war cry", is a cultic and military term describing the powerful shout that accompanied God's presence among his people, often associated with the sound of the ram's horn (shofar).

Lavi and ari (לָבִיא וַאֲרִי) in verse 24 are two Hebrew words for lion, where lavi often refers to the lioness and ari to the male lion. The lion metaphor for Israel emphasizes the people's strength and invincibility.

Chapter-Specific Findings

The Deir Alla inscription, discovered in 1967 at Tell Deir Alla in the Jordan Valley (near Sukkot), is the most direct archaeological parallel to the Balaam narrative. Dated to approximately 840–760 BCE, this text contains a prophecy attributed to "Balaam son of Beor, seer of the gods". The inscription describes Balaam as a seer who receives nightly visions and delivers divine messages. Although the text is several centuries younger than the setting of the Balaam narrative, it confirms that traditions about Balaam as a well-known seer were widespread in the Transjordan region.

Personas5

Balaam14 Balak (King of Moab)17 Zippor1 Moab (Lot's son)1 Jacob4

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Palabras clave6

Balaam — A pagan prophet who was hired by Balak, the king of Moab, to curse the people of Israel, but ended up blessing them instead.
Balak — The king of Moab who hired Balaam to curse Israel, but failed in his attempt.
Blessing — A positive statement or action from God or humans that brings happiness, success, and prosperity to the recipient.
Curse — A negative statement or action from God or humans that brings misfortune, defeat, and suffering to the recipient.
Sacrifice — A holy act in which animals, food, or other items are offered to God as a form of worship, gratitude, or atonement for sins.
The people of Israel — Descendants of the patriarch Jacob (also called Israel) and his twelve sons, who formed the twelve tribes of Israel.