Old/New Testament

23 And Balaam said to Balak, Build thou here to me seven altars, and make thou ready so many calves, and rams of the same number. (And Balaam said to Balak, Build thou here seven altars for me, and prepare seven calves, and the same number of rams.)

² And when Balak had done by the word of Balaam, they putted a calf and a ram together on the altar. (And when Balak had done what Balaam had asked, they offered a calf and a ram on each altar.)

³ And (then) Balaam said to Balak, Stand thou (here) a little while beside thy burnt sacrifice, while I go, if in hap the Lord (shall) meet (with) me; and I shall tell thee whatever thing he shall command. And when he had gone [away] swiftly (And when he had quickly gone away by himself),

⁴ God came to him; and Balaam spake to him, and said, I have raised up seven altars, and I have put a calf and a ram above each of them (and I have put a calf and a ram on each of them).

⁵ Forsooth the Lord putted a word in his mouth, and said, Turn again to Balak, and thou shalt speak these things. (And the Lord put a word in his mouth, and said, Return to Balak, and thou shalt say these things to him.)

⁶ He turned again, and found Balak standing beside his burnt sacrifice, and all the princes of Moabites. (And he returned, and found Balak standing beside his burnt sacrifice, he and all the leaders of the Moabites.)

⁷ And when his parable was taken, he said, Balak, the king of Moabites, brought me from Aram, from the hills of the east; and he said, Come thou, and curse Jacob; haste thou, and curse Israel. (And when he had received his prophecy, he said, Balak, the king of the Moabites, brought me from Syria, yea, from the hills of the east; and he said, Come thou, and curse Jacob; hurry thou, and curse Israel.)

⁸ How shall I curse, whom God hath cursed not? (But how can I curse, whom God hath not cursed?) by what reason shall I loathe, whom God loatheth not?

⁹ From the highest flints I shall see him, and from the little hills I shall behold him; the people shall dwell alone, and it shall not be reckoned among heathen men. (From the highest rocks I shall see them, and from the little hills I shall behold them; these people shall live alone, and they shall not be counted among the heathen.)

¹⁰ Who may number the dust, that is, the kindred, of Jacob, and who may know the number of the generation of Israel? My life die in the death of just men, and my last things be made like them! (O let me die like the righteous die, and let my ending be made like theirs!)

¹¹ And Balak said to Balaam, What is this that thou doest? I called thee, that thou shouldest curse mine enemies, and on the contrary, thou blessest them.

¹² To whom Balaam answered, Whether I may speak (any) other thing, no but that that the Lord commandeth?

¹³ Therefore Balak said to Balaam, Come with me into another place, from whence thou mayest see a part of Israel, and thou mayest not see all; from thence curse thou him. (And so Balak said to Balaam, Come with me to another place, from where thou can see a part of the Israelites, but thou cannot see all of them; and curse thou them from there.)

¹⁴ And when he had led Balaam into an high place, on the top of the hill of Pisgah, he builded there seven altars to Balaam, and when calves and rams were put above them, (And so when he had led Balaam to the Field of Zophim, that is, to the Field of the Watchers, on top of Mount Pisgah, he built seven altars for Balaam, and when a calf and a ram were offered on each altar,)

¹⁵ Balaam said to Balak, Stand here beside thy burnt sacrifice, while I go to meet with the Lord.

¹⁶ And when the Lord had met with Balaam, and had put a word in his mouth, he said, Turn again to Balak (Return to Balak), and thou shalt say these things to him.

¹⁷ He turned again, and found Balak standing beside his burnt sacrifice, and the princes of Moabites with him. To whom Balak said, What hath spoken the Lord? (And he returned, and found Balak standing beside his burnt sacrifice, and the leaders of the Moabites with him. And Balak said to him, What hath the Lord said?)

¹⁸ And when his parable was taken (And when he had received his prophecy), he said, Stand thou (up), Balak, and harken; hear, thou son of Zippor.

¹⁹ God is not a man, that he (can) lie, neither he is as the son of a man, that he (can) be changed; therefore he hath said, and shall he not do it? he hath spoken, and shall he not fulfill it?

²⁰ I am brought hither by the Lord to bless; (and) I may not forbid, or hinder, (the) blessing.

²¹ None idol is in Jacob, neither simulacrum is seen in Israel; his Lord God is with him, and the sound of the victory of a king is in him. (There is no idolatry in Jacob, no false god is seen in Israel; the Lord their God is with them, and they hear the shout of the victory of their King.)

²² The Lord God led him out of Egypt, whose strength is like an unicorn; (The Lord God led them out of Egypt, whose strength is like a wild ox;)

²³ false divining by (the) chittering of birds is not in Jacob, neither false divining is in Israel. In his times, (that is,) when, where, and how God will, it shall be said to Jacob and to Israel, What the Lord hath wrought! (false divining by the twittering of birds is not in Jacob, yea, false divining is not in Israel. In his own timing, that is, when, where, and how God desireth it, it shall be said of Jacob, and of Israel, What the Lord hath wrought!/Yea, at this time, it can be said of Jacob, and of Israel, What the Lord hath wrought!)

²⁴ Lo! the people shall rise together as a lioness, and it shall be raised as a lion (Lo! the people shall rise up like a lioness, and they shall be raised up like a lion); the lion shall not rest, till he devour [the] prey, and drink the blood of them that be slain.

²⁵ And Balak said to Balaam, Neither curse thou, neither bless thou him. (And Balak said to Balaam, If thou wilt not curse them, at least do not thou bless them!)

²⁶ And Balaam said, Whether I said not to thee, that whatever thing God commanded to me, I would do that?

²⁷ And Balak said to him, Come, and I shall lead thee to another place, if in hap it pleaseth God that from thence thou curse him (perhaps it shall please God that thou curse them from there).

²⁸ And when Balak had led him out on(to) the top of the hill of Peor, that beholdeth the wilderness, (And when Balak had led Balaam to the top of Mount Peor, that overlooketh Jeshimon, that is, the wilderness,)

²⁹ Balaam said to Balak, Build here seven altars to me, and make ready so many calves, and rams of the same number. (Balaam said to Balak, Now also build seven altars here for me, and prepare seven calves, and the same number of rams.)

³⁰ Balak did as Balaam said, and he put the calves and the rams, by all the altars. (And Balak did as Balaam said, and he put a calf and a ram on each of the altars.)

24 And when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord that he should bless Israel, he went not as he had gone before, that he should seek false divining by chittering of birds, but he (ad)dressed his face against the desert, (And when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord when he blessed Israel, he went not as he had gone before, to seek out false divining by the twittering of birds, but he directed his face towards the wilderness,)

² and he raised up his eyes, and he saw Israel dwelling in tents by his lineages (and he raised up his eyes, and he saw the Israelites living in their tents, tribe by tribe). And when the Spirit of God fell upon him,

³ and when the parable was taken (and when he had received his prophecy), he said, Balaam, the son of Beor, said, (yea,) a man, whose eye is stopped, said,

⁴ the hearer of God’s words said, which beheld the revelation of Almighty God, which falleth down, and his eyes be opened so, (yea, the hearer of God’s words said, who beheld the revelation of Almighty God, and who falleth down, but his eyes still be open,)

⁵ How fair be thy tabernacles, Jacob, and thy tents, Israel!

⁶ as valleys full of trees, and moist gardens beside floods, as tabernacles which the Lord hath set (up), as cedar trees beside waters; (like valleys full of trees, and watered gardens beside the river, like aloes planted by the Lord, and cedar trees beside the water;)

⁷ water shall flow (out) of his bucket, and his seed shall be into many waters, that is, peoples. The king of him shall be taken away for Agag, and the realm of him shall be done away. (water shall flow out of his bucket, and his descendants shall be like many waters, that is, they shall become many people. His king shall be greater than Agag, and his kingdom shall prevail.)

⁸ God led him out of Egypt, whose strength is like an unicorn; the sons of Israel shall waste, or devour, (the) heathen men, their enemies; and they shall break the bones of them, and pierce (them through) with (their) arrows.

⁹ He rested, and slept as a lion, and as a lioness, whom no man shall dare raise. He that blesseth thee, shall be blessed; and he that curseth, shall be areckoned into cursing. (He rested, and slept like a lion, and like a lioness, whom no man shall dare raise up. He who blesseth thee, shall be blessed; and he who curseth thee, shall be cursed.)

¹⁰ And Balak was wroth against Balaam, and he said, when his hands were wrung together, I called thee to curse mine enemies, whom, on the contrary, thou hast blessed thrice (but who, instead, thou hast now blessed three times!).

¹¹ Turn again to thy place; forsooth I deemed to honour thee greatly, but the Lord deprived thee from [thine] honour (that was) disposed. (Return to thy place; I had intended to greatly reward thee, but the Lord hath now deprived thee of the reward which I had ordained for thee.)

¹² Balaam answered to Balak, Whether I said not to thy messengers, which thou sentest to me, (Balaam answered to Balak, Did I not say to thy messengers, whom thou sentest to me,)

¹³ Though Balak shall give to me his house full of silver and of gold, I shall not be able to pass [over] the word of my Lord God, that I bring forth of mine heart anything, either of good or of evil, but whatever thing the Lord shall say, I shall speak that? (Even if Balak shall give me all the gold and silver in his house, I shall not change the word of the Lord my God, so that I bring forth something out of my own heart, either good or bad, nay, but whatever thing the Lord shall say, that I shall speak?)

¹⁴ Nevertheless I shall go to my people, and I shall give counsel to thee, what thy people shall do in the last time to this people. (Nevertheless, I shall now return to my people, but first I shall give thee counsel, what these people shall do to thy people in the days to come.)

¹⁵ Therefore when a parable was taken (And so when he had received his prophecy), he said again, Balaam, the son of Beor, said, (yea,) a man, whose eye is stopped, said,

¹⁶ the hearer of God’s words said, which knoweth the doctrine of the Highest, and seeth the revelation of Almighty God, which falleth down, and hath open eyes (yea, the hearer of God’s words said, who knoweth the doctrine of the Highest, and seeth the revelation of Almighty God, and who falleth down, but his eyes still be open,)

¹⁷ I shall see him, but not now; I shall behold him, but not nigh; a star shall be born of Jacob, and a rod shall rise (out) of Israel; and he shall smite the dukes of Moab, and he shall waste all the sons of Seth; (I shall see him, but not now; I shall behold him, but not near; a star shall be born in Jacob, and a sceptre shall rise up out of Israel; and he shall strike down Moab’s leaders, and he shall destroy all the sons of strife;)

¹⁸ and Idumea shall be his possession, the heritage of Seir shall befall to his enemies; soothly Israel shall do strongly, (and Edom shall become his possession, yea, the inheritance of Seir shall befall to their enemies; and Israel shall be victorious,)

¹⁹ of Jacob shall be he that shall be lord, and shall lose the relics, or (the) remnants, of the city. (for out of Jacob shall come he who shall be their lord, and he shall destroy those who last remain in the city of Ar.)

²⁰ And when he had seen Amalek, he took a parable, and said, Amalek is the beginning of heathen men, whose last things shall be lost. (And in a vision he saw the Amalekites, and when he had received his prophecy, he said, Amalek was the first in all the heathen, but its end shall be utter destruction.)

²¹ Also he saw Kenites, and when a parable was taken, he said, Soothly thy dwelling place is strong, but if thou shalt set thy nest in a stone, (And he also saw the Kenites, and when he had received his prophecy, he said, Thy dwelling place is strong, and thou shalt set thy nest in a stone,)

²² and shalt be chosen of the generation of Kenites, how long shalt thou be able to dwell? soothly Assur shall take thee. (and shalt be the chosen of the generation of Kenites, but how long shalt thou be able to live there? for Assyria shall take thee captive.)

²³ And when a parable was taken, or showed to him, he said again (And when he had received his prophecy, he said), Alas! who shall live, when the Lord shall do these things?

²⁴ They shall come in great ships from Italy (They shall come in great ships from Chittim), (and) they shall overcome Assyria, and they shall destroy Eber, and at the last also they themselves shall perish.

²⁵ And Balaam rose, and turned again into his place; and Balak went again by the way in which he came. (And then Balaam rose up, and returned to his home; and Balak returned by the way by which he came.)

25 Soothly in that time Israel dwelled in Shittim (And so the Israelites lived in Shittim); and the people did fornication with the daughters of Moab;

² which daughters called them to their sacrifices, and they ate (the sacrificial food), and worshipped the gods of those daughters;

³ and Israel made sacrifice to Baalpeor. And the Lord was wroth, (and the Israelites sacrificed to Baal of Peor. And the Lord was angry against them,)

⁴ and said to Moses, Take thou all the princes of the people, and hang them against the sun in gibbets, that my strong vengeance be turned away from Israel. (and said to Moses, Take thou all the leaders of the people, and hang them up on gallows out in the sun, so that my strong vengeance be turned away from Israel.)

⁵ And Moses said to the judges of Israel, Each man slay his neighbours, that made sacrifice to Baalpeor. (And Moses said to the judges of Israel, Each one of you kill his neighbours, yea, they who sacrificed to Baal of Peor.)

⁶ And lo! one of the sons of Israel entered before his brethren to an whore of Midian, in the sight of Moses, and of all the company of the sons of Israel, which wept before the gates of the tabernacle. (And lo! one of the Israelites brought a woman of Midian into his tent, in the sight of Moses, and all the congregation of the Israelites, who were mourning at the entrance to the Tabernacle.)

⁷ And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, had seen this unshamefast doing (had seen this shameful thing), he rose (up) from the midst of the multitude; and when he had taken a sword,

⁸ he entered after the man of Israel into the whorehouse, and sticked through both together, that is, the man and the woman, in the places of engendering. And the vengeance ceased from the sons of Israel, (he went into that bawdy house, after the man of Israel, and stuck his sword through both of them together, that is, the man and the woman, in their places of begetting. And so the plague that had attacked the Israelites was stopped,)

⁹ and four and twenty thousand of men were slain. (but by then, twenty-four thousand people had already died.)

¹⁰ And the Lord said to Moses,

¹¹ Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, (the) priest, hath turned away my wrath from the sons of Israel; for he was moved against them by my fervent love, (and so for) that, I myself (did) not do away the sons of Israel in my great ferventness of vengeance. (Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, hath turned away my anger from the Israelites; for he was moved against them by his fervent love for me, and because of that, I did not do away all the Israelites in my great fervour for vengeance.)

¹² Therefore speak thou to him, Lo! I give to him the peace of my covenant, (And so tell thou him, that lo! I now give him my covenant of peace,)

¹³ and it shall be an everlasting covenant of priesthood, as well to himself as to his seed; for he loved fervently for his God, and he hath cleansed the great trespass of the sons of Israel. (and it shall be an everlasting covenant of priesthood, with him as well as with his descendants; because he fervently loved for his God, and he made amends for the great trespass of the Israelites.)

¹⁴ Forsooth the name of the man of Israel, that was slain with the woman of Midian, was Zimri, the son of Salu, duke, of the kindred and lineage of Simeon (a leader, of the kindred and the tribe of Simeon).

¹⁵ Soothly the woman of Midian that was slain together with the whoreling, was called Cozbi, the daughter of Zur, the noblest prince of (the) Midianites.

¹⁶ And the Lord spake to Moses, and said,

¹⁷ Midianites feel you enemies, and smite ye them; (Regard ye the Midianites as your enemies, and strike ye them down;)

¹⁸ for also they have done enemy-like against you, and deceived you by treasons, by the idol of Peor, and by their sister Cozbi, daughter of the duke of Midian, which daughter was slain in the day of vengeance, for the sacrilege of Peor. (for they were like an enemy to you, and they deceived you with treasons, first in the matter at Peor, and then with their sister Cozbi, the daughter of a leader of Midian, which daughter was killed during the plague, on the day of vengeance for the sacrilege at Peor.)

¹⁴ And he again called the people, and said to them, Ye all hear me, and understand.

¹⁵ Nothing that is without a man, that entereth into him, may defoul him [Nothing without man is entering into him, that may defoul him]; but those things that come forth of a man, those it be that defoul a man.

¹⁶ If any man have ears of hearing [Forsooth if any man have ears to hear], hear he.

¹⁷ And when he was entered into an house, from the people, his disciples asked him the parable.

¹⁸ And he said to them [And he saith to them], [So] Ye be unwise also. Understand ye not, that all thing withoutforth that entereth into a man, may not defoul him?

¹⁹ for it hath not entered into his heart, but into the womb, and beneath it goeth out, purging all meats.

²⁰ But he said, The things that go out of a man, those defoul a man.

²¹ For from within, of the heart of men come forth evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, manslayings,

²² thefts, avarices [covetousness, or over-hard keeping of goods], wickednesses, guile, unchastity, [an] evil eye, blasphemies [blasphemy], pride, folly.

²³ All these evils come forth from within, and defoul a man,

²⁴ And Jesus rose up from thence, and went into the coasts [the ends] of Tyre and Sidon. And he went into an house, and would that no man knew [And he gone into an house, would that no man know]; and he might not be hid.

²⁵ For a woman, at once [anon] as she heard of him, whose daughter had an unclean spirit, entered, and fell down at his feet.

²⁶ And the woman was heathen, of the generation of Syrophenician. And she prayed him, that he would cast out a devil from her daughter [that he would cast out a devil of her daughter].

²⁷ And he said to her, Suffer thou, that the children be fulfilled first [Suffer thou, that the sons be filled first]; for it is not good to take the bread of children, and give [it] to hounds.

²⁸ And she answered, and said to him, Yes, Lord; for little whelps eat under the board, of the crumbs of children.

²⁹ And Jesus said to her, Go thou, for this word the fiend went out of thy daughter.^[a]

³⁰ And when she was gone into her house home, she found the damsel lying on the bed^[b], and the devil gone out from her.

³¹ And again Jesus went out from the coasts of Tyre, and came through Sidon to the sea of Galilee [And again Jesus going out from the ends, or coasts, of Tyre, came through Sidon to the sea of Galilee], between the middle of the coasts of Decapolis.

³² And they bring to him a man deaf and dumb, and prayed him to lay his hand on him [and prayed him, that he put to him the hand].

³³ And he took him aside from the people, and put his fingers into his ears^[c]; and he spat, and touched his tongue.

³⁴ And he beheld into heaven, and sorrowed within, and said [And he beholding into heaven, sorrowed within, and saith to him], Ephphatha, that is, Be thou opened.

³⁵ And at once [And anon] his ears were opened, and the band of his tongue was unbound, and he spake rightly.

³⁶ And he commanded to them, that they should say to no man; but how much he commanded to them, so much the more they preached [more],

³⁷ and by so much the more they wondered, and said [saying], He did well all things, both he hath made deaf men to hear, and dumb men to speak.