Feb 5 - Numbers 22-26
Numbers
1And they set out and made camp in the plains of Moab, across the Jordan, where Jericho is situated2Then Balak, the son of Zippor, seeing all that Israel had done to the Amorite3and that the Moabites had great fear of him, and that they were not able to bear his assault4said to those greater by birth of Midian: "So will this people wipe away all those who are dwelling within our borders, in the same way that the ox is accustomed to tear out grass, all the way to the roots." At that time, he was king of Moab5Therefore, he sent messengers to Balaam, the son of Beor, a seer who lived above the river of the land of the sons of Ammon, to call him, and to say: "Behold, a people has gone forth from Egypt, which has covered the face of the earth. They are encamped opposite me6Therefore, come and curse this people, for they are stronger than I am. If only, in some way, I might be able to strike them and to drive them from my land. For I know that he whom you bless shall be blessed, and he whom you curse shall be cursed.7And the elders of Moab, and those greater by birth of Midian, continued on, holding the price of divination in their hands. And when they had come to Balaam, and had explained to him all the words of Balak8he responded, "Remain for this night, and I will answer with whatever the Lord will say to me." And while they stayed with Balaam, God came and said to him9"What do these men want with you?10He responded, "Balak, the son of Zippor, the king of the Moabites has sent to me11saying: ‘Behold, a people, which has gone forth from Egypt, has covered the face of the earth. Come and curse them, so that, in some way, I may be able to fight them and drive them away.’ 12And God said to Balaam, "Do not go with them, and do not curse the people, for they are blessed.13And he, rising up in the morning, said to the leaders, "Go into your own land, for the Lord has prohibited me from going with you.14Returning, the leaders said to Balak, "Balaam was not willing to come with us.15Again, he sent many more persons, and these were more noble than those he had sent before16And when these had come to Balaam, they said: "So says Balak, the son of Zippor. Do not hesitate to come to me17For I am ready to honor you, and whatever you would want, I shall give to you. Come and curse this people.18Balaam responded: "Even if Balak were to give to me his own house, filled with silver and gold, I still would not be able to change the word of the Lord my God, neither to say more, nor to say less19I beg you to remain for this night also, so that I may know what the Lord will answer me again.20Therefore, God came to Balaam in the night, and said to him: "If these men have arrived to call you, then rise up and go with them; yet only in so far as you shall do what I will command you.21Balaam rose up in the morning, and saddling his donkey, he set out with them22And God was angry. And an Angel of the Lord stood in the way opposite Balaam, who was sitting on the donkey, and he had two servants with him23The donkey, discerning that the Angel was standing in the way with a drawn sword, turned herself from the road and went through a field. And when Balaam beat her and intended to return her to the path24the Angel stood in a narrow place between the two walls, with which the vineyards were enclosed25And the donkey, seeing this, drew herself close to the wall and scraped the foot of the rider. So he beat her again26And, nevertheless, the Angel passing on to a narrow place, where one would not be able to deviate either to the right or to the left, stood to meet him27And when the donkey had seen the Angel standing there, she fell under the feet of the rider, who, being angry, struck her sides more vehemently with a club28And the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said: "What have I done to you? Why do strike you me, behold now, for the third time?29Balaam responded, "Because you have deserved it, and you have mistreated me. If only I had a sword, so that I might pierce you.30The donkey said: "Am not I your animal, on which you have always been accustomed to sit, even until this present day? Tell me, when did I ever do the same thing to you." But he said, "Never.31Immediately, the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the Angel standing in the way with a drawn sword, and he reverenced him prone on the ground32And the Angel said to him: "Why did you beat your donkey three times? I have come to be an adversary to you, because your way is perverse and contrary to me33And unless the donkey had turned aside from the way, allowing a place for my opposition, I would have killed you, and she would have lived.34Balaam said: "I have sinned, not knowing that you stood against me. And now, if it displeases you for me to continue on, I will return.35The Angel said, "Go with them, but be careful not to speak anything other than what I shall instruct you." And so, he went with the leaders36And when Balak had heard it, he went out to meet him in a town of the Moabites, which is situated at the furthest borders of Arnon37And he said to Balaam: "I sent messengers to call you. Why did you not come to me immediately? Was it because I am not able to pay the cost for your arrival?38He answered him: "Behold, here I am. Am I able to speak anything other than what God will put into my mouth?39Therefore, they continued on together, and they arrived at a city, which was at the furthest borders of his kingdom40And after Balak had killed oxen and sheep, he sent the gifts to Balaam, and to the leaders who were with him41Then, when morning arrived, he led him to the heights of Baal, and he gazed upon the most distant portions of the population
1And Balaam said to Balak, "Build seven altars here for me, and prepare as many calves, and the same number of rams.2And when he had acted according to the words of Balaam, they placed a calf and a ram together on each altar3And Balaam said to Balak: "Stand for a little while next to your holocaust, until I go, to see if perhaps the Lord will meet with me. And whatever he will command, I shall speak to you.4And after he had quickly departed, God met with him. And Balaam, speaking to him, said: "I have set up seven altars, and I have placed a calf and a ram on each.5Then the Lord placed the word in his mouth, and he said: "Return to Balak, and you shall say this.6Returning, he found Balak standing next to his holocaust, with all the leaders of the Moabites7And taking up his parable, he said: "Balak, king of the Moabites, has led me from Aram, from the mountains of the east. ‘Come forth,’ he said, ‘and curse Jacob. Hurry and condemn Israel.8How shall I curse him, whom God has not cursed? For what reason would I condemn him, whom the Lord does not condemn9I will look upon him from the tops of the stones, and I will consider him from the hills. This people shall dwell alone, and they shall not be counted among the nations10Who can number the dust that is Jacob, and who can know the number of the stock of Israel? May my soul die a just death, and may my end be like theirs.11And Balak said to Balaam: "What is this that you are doing? I called for you, in order to curse my enemies, and to the contrary, you bless them.12He answered him, "How can I say anything other than what the Lord orders?13Therefore, Balak said: "Come with me to another place, from where you may see a portion of Israel, though you cannot see them all. Curse them from there.14And when he had led him to a lofty place, on the top of mount Pisgah, Balaam built seven altars, and placing upon each a calf and a ram15he said to Balak, "Stand here next to your holocaust, while I continue on to meet him.16And when the Lord had met him, and had put the word in his mouth, he said, "Return to Balak, and you shall say this to him.17Returning, he found him standing next to his holocaust, and the leaders of the Moabites were with him. And Balak said to him, "What has the Lord spoken?18But, taking up his parable, he said: "Stand, Balak, and pay attention. Listen, you son of Zippor19God is not like a man, so that he would lie, nor is he like a son of man, so that he would be changed. Therefore, having spoken, will he not act? Has he ever spoken, and not fulfilled20I was led here to bless, and I have no strength to hinder the blessing21There is no idol in Jacob; neither is there a false image to be seen in Israel. The Lord his God is with him, and the resound of royal victory is in him22God has led him away from Egypt; his strength is like that of the rhinoceros23There is no soothsaying in Jacob, nor any divination in Israel. In their times, it shall be told to Jacob and to Israel what God has wrought24Behold, the people will rise up like a lioness, and lie down like a lion. But they will not lie down until they devour the prey and drink the blood of the slain.25And Balak said to Balaam, "Neither curse him, nor bless him.26And he said, "Have I not told you that whatever God would command of me, I would do?27And Balak said to him: "Come and I will lead you to another place. If perhaps it may please God, then you may curse them from there.28And when he had led him on to the top of mount Peor, which looks out toward the wilderness29Balaam said to him, "Build seven altars here for me, and prepare as many calves, and the same number of rams.30Balak did as Balaam had said, and he placed on each altar a calf and a ram
1And when Balaam had seen that it was pleasing to the Lord that he should bless Israel, he by no means went out as he had gone before, to seek divination. But directing his face opposite the desert2and lifting up his eyes, he saw Israel dwelling in tents by their tribes. And with the Spirit of God rushing into him3taking up his parable, he said: "Balaam, the son of Beor, the man whose eye has been obstructed4the hearer of the sermon of God, he who has gazed upon a vision of the Almighty, he who falls down and so his eyes are opened, has declared5‘How beautiful are your tabernacles, O Jacob, and your tents, O Israel6They are like forested valleys, like gardens irrigated next to rivers, like tabernacles which the Lord has fixed, like cedars close to waters7Water shall flow from his jar, and his offspring shall be amid many waters, because Agag, his king, shall be taken, and his kingdom shall be removed8Away from Egypt, God has led him, whose strength is like the rhinoceros. They shall devour the nations that are his enemies, and break their bones, and pierce them with arrows9Lying down, he has slept like a lion, and like a lioness, whom no one would dare to awaken. He who blesses you, shall himself also be blessed. He who curses you, shall be considered cursed.10And Balak, being angry against Balaam, clapped his hands together and said: "I called you to curse my enemies, and, to the contrary, you have blessed them three times11Return to your place. I had decided, indeed, to honor you greatly, but the Lord has deprived you of the designated honor.12Balaam responded to Balak: "Did I not say to your messengers, whom you sent to me13Even if Balak would give me his house, filled with silver and gold, I still could not go away from the word of the Lord my God, so as to offer anything, either good or evil, from my own heart; but whatever the Lord will speak, this, too, I shall speak14Yet truly, as I continue on to my own people, I will give you counsel as to what this people shall do to your people in the end times.15Therefore, taking up his parable, he again spoke: "Balaam the son of Beor, the man whose eye has been obstructed16the hearer of the sermon of God, he who knows the doctrine of the Most High, and who sees the visions of the Almighty, who, falling down, has his eyes opened, has declared17I shall see him, but not presently. I shall gaze upon him, but not soon. A star shall rise out of Jacob, and a rod shall spring up from Israel. And he shall strike down the commanders of Moab, and he shall devastate all the sons of Seth18And he shall possess Idumea; the inheritance of Seir shall fall to their enemies. Yet truly, Israel shall act with strength19From Jacob will be he who shall be ruler. And he shall perish the remnants of the city.20And when he saw Amalek, taking up his parable, he said: "Amalek, first among the Gentiles, whose very end shall be perdition.21Likewise, he saw the Kainites, and taking up his parable, he said: "Robust, indeed, is your habitation. But though you will set your nest in a rock22and you will be elect among the stock of Kain, how long will you be able to remain? For Assur shall take you captive.23And taking up his parable once more he said: "Alas! Who will be able to survive, when God will do these things24They shall arrive in Greek warships from Italy. They shall overcome the Assyrians, and they shall devastate the Hebrews, and yet, at the very end, even they themselves shall perish.25And Balaam rose up, and he returned to his place. Likewise, Balak went back, along the way by which he had arrived
1Now Israel, at that time, dwelt in Shittim, and the people were fornicating with the daughters of Moab2who called them to their sacrifices. And they ate, and they adored their gods3And Israel was initiated into Baal of Peor. And so the Lord, being angry4said to Moses, "Take all the leaders of the people, and hang them on gallows against the sun, so that my fury may be averted from Israel.5And Moses said to the judges of Israel, "Let each one kill his neighbors, who have been initiated into Baal of Peor.6And behold, one of the sons of Israel entered, in the sight of his brothers, to a prostitute of Midian, within view of Moses and of all the crowd of the sons of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle7And when Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, had seen it, he rose up from the midst of the multitude, and, seizing a dagger8he entered after the Israelite man, into the brothel, and he pierced both of them at the same time, specifically, the man and the woman at the location of their genitals. And the scourge ceased from among the sons of Israel9And there were slain twenty-four thousand men10And the Lord said to Moses11"Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has averted my wrath from the sons of Israel. For he was moved against them by my zeal, so that I myself, in my zeal, might not wipe away the sons of Israel12Because of this, say to him: Behold, I give to him the peace of my covenant13And the covenant of the everlasting priesthood shall be as much for him as for his offspring. For he was zealous on behalf of his God, and he has made expiation for the wickedness of the sons of Israel.14Now the name of the Israelite man, who was killed with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, a leader from the kinship and tribe of Simeon15Moreover, the Midianite woman, who was put to death together with him, was called Cozbi the daughter of Zur, a most noble leader among the Midianites16And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying17"Let the Midianites perceive you as enemies, and strike them down18for they, too, have behaved with hostility against you, and they have deceived you insidiously by means of the idol Peor, and by Cozbi, the daughter of a commander of Midian, their sister, who was struck down in the day of the scourge because of the sacrilege of Peor.
1After the blood of the guilty was shed, the Lord said to Moses, and to Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest2"Number the entire sum of the sons of Israel, from twenty years and above, by their houses and kinships, all who are able to go forth to war.3And so, Moses and Eleazar the priest, who were in the plains of Moab, above the Jordan, opposite Jericho, spoke to those who wer4from twenty years and above, just as the Lord had commanded. And this is their number5Ruben, the firstborn of Israel; his son, Hanoch, from whom is the family of the Hanochites; and Pallu, from whom is the family of the Palluites6and Hezron, from whom is the family of the Hezronites; and Carmi, from whom is the family of the Carmites7These are the families of the stock of Ruben, whose number was found to be forty-three thousand and seven hundred thirty8The son of Phallu: Eliab9his sons, Nemuel and Dathan and Abiram. These are Dathan and Abiram, the leaders of the people, who rose up against Moses and Aaron in the sedition at Korah, when they rebelled against the Lord10And the earth, opening its mouth, devoured Korah, with many others dying, when the fire burned two hundred fifty men. And a great miracle was wrought11so that, when Korah perished, his sons did not perish12The sons of Simeon, by their kinships: Nemuel, from him is the family of the Nemuelites; Jamin, from him is the family of the Jaminites; Jachin, from him is the family of the Jachinites13Sohar, from him is the family of the Soharites; Shaul, from him is the family of the Shaulites14These are the families of the stock of Simeon, whose entire number was twenty-two thousand two hundred15The sons of Gad, by their kinships: Zephon, from him is the family of the Zephonites; Haggi, from him is the family of the Haggites; Shuni, from him is the family of the Shunites16Ozni, from him is the family of the Oznites; Eri, from him is the family of the Erites17Arod, from him is the family of the Arodites; Areli, from him is the family of the Arelites18These are the families of Gad, whose entire number was forty thousand five hundred19The sons of Judah: Er and Onan, who both died in the land of Canaan20And these were the sons of Judah, by their kinships: Shelah, from whom is the family of the Shelahites; Perez, from whom is the family of the Perezites; Zerah, from whom is the family of the Zerahites21Moreover, the sons of Phares were: Hezron, from whom is the family of the Hezronites; and Hamul, from whom is the family of the Hamulites22These are the families of Judah, whose entire number was seventy-six thousand five hundred23The sons of Issachar, by their kinships: Tola from whom is the family of the Tolaites; Puvah, from whom is the family of the Puvahites24Jashub, from whom is the family of the Jashubites; Shimron, from whom is the family of the Shimronites25These are the kinships of Issachar, whose number was sixty-four thousand three hundred26The sons of Zebulon by their kinships: Sered, from whom is the family of the Seredites; Elon, from whom is the family of the Elonites; Jahleel, from whom is the family of the Jahleelites27These are the kinships of Zebulun, whose number was sixty thousand five hundred28The sons of Joseph by their kinships: Manasseh and Ephraim29From Manasseh was born Machir, from whom is the family of the Machirites. Machir conceived Gilead, from whom is the family of the Gileadites30Gilead had sons: Jezer, from whom is the family of the Jezerites; and Helek, from whom is the family of the Helekites31and Asriel, from whom is the family of the Asrielites; and Shechem, from whom is the family of the Shechemites32and Shemida, from whom is the family of the Shemidaites; and Hepher, from whom is the family of the Hepherites33Now Hepher was the father of Zelophehad, who had no sons, but only daughters, whose names are these: Mahlah, and Noa, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah34These are the families of Manasseh, and their number was fifty-two thousand seven hundred35Now the sons of Ephraim by their kinships were these: Shuthelah, from whom is the family of the Shuthelahites; Becher, from whom is the family of the Becherites; Tahan, from whom is the family of the Tahanites36Furthermore, the son of Shuthelah was Eran, from whom is the family of the Eranites37These are the kinships of the sons of Ephraim, whose number was thirty-two thousand five hundred38These are the sons of Joseph by their families: the sons of Benjamin in their kinships: Bela, from whom is the family of the Belaites; Ashbel, from whom is the family of the Ashbelites; Ahiram, from whom is the family of the Ahiramites39Shupham, from whom is the family of the Shuphamites; Hupham, from whom is the family of the Huphamites40The sons of Bela: Arad and Naaman. From Arad, the family of the Aradites; from Naaman, the family of the Naamanites41These are the sons of Benjamin by their kinships, whose number was forty-five thousand six hundred42The sons of Dan by their kinships: Shuham, from whom is the family of the Shuhamites. These are the kinships of Dan by their families43All these were Shuhamites, whose number was sixty-four thousand four hundred44The sons of Asher by their kinships: Imnah, from whom is the family of the Imnahites; Ishvi, from whom is the family of the Ishvites; Beriah, from whom is the family of the Beriahites45The sons of Beriah: Heber, from whom is the family of the Heberites; and Malchiel, from whom is the family of the Malchielites46Now the name of the daughter of Asher was Serah47These are the kinships of the sons of Asher, and their number was fifty-three thousand four hundred48The sons of Naphtali by their kinships: Jahzeel, from whom is the family of the Jahzeelites; Guni, from whom is the family of the Gunites49Jezer, from whom is the family of the Jezerites; Shillem, from whom is the family of the Shillemites50These are the kinships of the sons of Naphtali by their families, whose number was forty-five thousand four hundred51This is the sum of the sons of Israel, who were counted: six hundred thousand and one thousand seven hundred thirty52And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying53"The land shall be divided to these, as their possessions, according to the number of their names54To the greater number you shall give a greater portion, and to the lesser number, a lesser portion. To each one, just as they have now been counted, a possession shall be delivered55Yet only in so far as the land is divided by lot to a tribe and to families56Whatever the lot will happen to be, it shall be accepted, either by the greater, or by the lesser57Likewise, this is the number of the sons of Levi by their families: Gershon, from whom is the family of the Gershonites; Kohath, from whom is the family of the Kohathites; Merari, from whom is the family of the Merarites58These are the families of Levi: The family of Libni, the family of Hebroni, the family of Mahli, the family of Mushi, the family of Korah. Yet truly, Kohath conceived Amram59who had a wife, Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, who was born to him in Egypt. She bore, to her husband Amram: sons, Aaron and Moses, as well as their sister, Miriam60From Aaron were born Nadab and Abihu, and Eleazar and Ithamar61Of these, Nadab and Abihu died, when they had offered strange fire before the Lord62And these were all who were numbered: twenty-three thousand of the male gender, from one month and above. For they were not counted among the sons of Israel, neither was a possession given to them with the others63This is the number of the sons of Israel, who were enrolled by Moses and by Eleazar the priest, in the plains of Moab, above the Jordan, opposite Jericho64Among these, not one of them was numbered before, by Moses and Aaron in the desert of Sinai65For the Lord had foretold that all would die in the wilderness. And not one of them remained, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun