Numbers 24:13

If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the LORD, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; but what the LORD saith, that will I speak?

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
Balak	בָלָ֜ק va.Lak	H1111	Balak · proper noun, a man's name
give	יִתֶּן yi.ten-	H5414	to give · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
house	בֵיתוֹ֮ vei.To	H1004	a house (in the greatest variation of applications · noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
full	מְלֹ֣א me.Lo'	H4393	fulness (literally or figuratively) · noun, common masculine singular construct
silver	כֶּ֣סֶף Ke.sef	H3701	silver (from its pale color) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
gold	וְזָהָב֒ ve.za.Hav	H2091	gold · conjunction + noun, common masculine singular absolute
cannot	אוּכַ֗ל 'u.Khal	H3201	to be able · verb, qal imperfect, 1st person common singular
beyond	לַעֲבֹר֙ la.'a.Vor	H5674	to cross over · preposition + verb, qal infinitive construct
commandment	פִּ֣י pi	H6310	the mouth (as the means of blowing) · noun, common masculine singular construct
LORD	יְהוָ֔ה Yah.weh	H3068	Jehovah · proper noun, a title
do	לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת la.'a.Sot	H6213	to do or make · preposition + verb, qal infinitive construct
good	טוֹבָ֛ה to.Vah	H2896	good (as an adjective) in the widest sense · noun, common feminine singular absolute
bad	רָעָ֖ה ra.'Ah	H7451	bad or (as noun) evil (natural or moral) · noun, common feminine singular absolute
mind	מִלִּבִּ֑י mi.li.Bi	H3820	the heart · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix
LORD	יְהוָ֖ה Yah.weh	H3068	Jehovah · proper noun, a title
saith	יְדַבֵּ֥ר ye.da.Ber	H1696	perhaps properly · verb, piel imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
speak	אֲדַבֵּֽר 'a.da.Ber	H1696	perhaps properly · verb, piel imperfect, 1st person common singular

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Numbers 16:28 And Moses said, Hereby ye shall know that the LORD hath sent me to do all these works; for I have not done them of mine own mind.
Numbers 22:18 And Balaam answered and said unto the servants of Balak, If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the wo…
Numbers 22:20 And God came unto Balaam at night, and said unto him, If the men come to call thee, rise up, and go with them; but yet the word which I shal…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Numbers 24:10-14

We have here the conclusion of this vain attempt to curse Israel, and the total abandonment of it. 1. Balak made the worst of it. He broke out into a rage against Balaam (Num 24:10), expressed both in words and gesture the highest degree of vexation at the disappointment; he smote his hands together, for indignation, to see all his measures thus broken, and his project baffled. He charged Balaam with putting upon him the basest affront and cheat imaginable: "I called thee to curse my enemies, and thou hast shown thyself in league with them, and in their interests, for thou hast blessed them these three times, though, by appointing the altars to be built and sacrifices to be offered, thou mad…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Numbers 24:10

Balak's anger was kindled against Balaam, and he smote his hands together--The "smiting of the hands together" is, among Oriental people, an indication of the most violent rage (see Eze 21:17; Eze 22:13) and ignominious dismissal.

John Gill on Numbers 24:13

If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold,.... Which are the very words he said to the princes of Moab, Numbers 22:18, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the Lord, to do either good or bad; for though here it is the "commandment", and there the "word" of the Lord, yet it is the same word in both places in the original text: indeed, here he omits the relation to the Lord he there claims, saying "my God"; and instead of "little or great", here it is "good or bad", but the sense is the same: and he adds, for explanation sake: of mine own mind: or out of my heart, which was disposed well enough to serve Balak, but was laid under a restraint by the Lord: but what the Lord sai…

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John Calvin on Numbers 24:12-13

And Balaam said unto Balak. Balaam speaks the truth, indeed, yet in a bad spirit, as we have seen: for he excuses himself with servility [171] to Balak, that it did not depend on himself that he did not comply with his wishes, but that God had stood in the way. For he grieves at the loss of his reward; and however grandly he may declaim on the supremacy of God, he still signifies that he has rather acted upon compulsion than willingly executed what was enjoined upon him. By "the word (sermonem) of Jehovah," [172] he means not only His decree, but what had been dictated to him, and which he would have still greatly desired to alter; but he indicates that he was bound by the power of the Spiri…

Numbers 24:13

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Numbers 24:10-14

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Numbers 24:10

John Gill on Numbers 24:13

John Calvin on Numbers 24:12-13

Numbers 24:13

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Numbers 24:10-14

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Numbers 24:10

John Gill on Numbers 24:13

John Calvin on Numbers 24:12-13

Keil & Delitzsch on Numbers 24:12-14

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Numbers 24:10

Rashi on Numbers 24:13