¹sn The fifth section of the book (22:1-33:56) traces the Israelite activities in Transjordan. It is hard to determine how long they were in Transjordan, but a good amount of time must have elapsed for the number of moves they made and the wars they fought. There is a considerable amount of information available on this section of the book. Some of the most helpful works include: H. C. Brichto, The Problem of “Curse” in the Hebrew Bible (JBLMS 13); E. Burrows, The Oracles of Jacob and Balaam (London: Burns, Oates, and Washbourne, 1938); G. W. Coats, “Balaam, Sinner or Saint?” BR 18 (1973): 21-29; P. C. Craigie, “The Conquest and Early Hebrew Poetry,” TynBul 20 (1969): 76-94; I. Parker, “The Way of God and the Way of Balaam,” ExpTim 17 (1905): 45; and J. A. Wharton, “The Command to Bless: An Exposition of Numbers 22:41-23:25,” Int 13 (1959): 37-48. This first part introduces the characters and sets the stage for the oracles. It can be divided into four sections: the invitation declined (vv. 1-14), the second invitation extended (vv. 15-21), God opposes Balaam (vv. 22-35), and Balaam meets Balak (vv. 36-41).
²tn The verse begins with the vav consecutive.
³tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
⁴map For the location of Jericho see Map5-B2; Map6-E1; Map7-E1; Map8-E3; Map10-A2; Map11-A1.
⁵tn The word is simply “company,” but in the context he must mean a vast company—a horde of people.
⁶sn There is much literature on pagan diviners and especially prophecy in places in the east like Mari (see, for example, H. B. Huffmon, “Prophecy in the Mari Letters,” BA 31 [1968]: 101-24). Balaam appears to be a pagan diviner who was of some reputation; he was called to curse the Israelites, but God intervened and gave him blessings only. The passage forms a nice complement to texts that deal with blessings and curses. It shows that no one can curse someone whom God has blessed.
⁷tn Heb “by the river in the land of the sons of his people.” The Greek translation has “by the river of the land.”
⁸tn Heb “eye.” So also in v. 11.
⁹tn The two lines before this verse begin with the particle hinneh (hN}h!), and so they lay the foundation for these imperatives. In view of those circumstances, this is what should happen.
¹⁰tn Heb “people.” So also in vv. 10, 17, 41.
¹¹tn The construction uses the imperfect tense ’ukal (lk^Wa), “I will be able,” followed by the imperfect tense nakkeh (hK#n~), “we will smite/attack/defeat.” The second verb is clearly the purpose or the result of the first, even though there is no conjunction or particle.
¹²tn The verb is the Piel imperfect of barak (ErB), with the nuance of possibility: “whomever you may bless.” The Pual participle m^eorak (Er`b)m=) serves as the predicate.
¹³tn Heb “spoke.”
¹⁴tn The verb lin (/yl!) means “to lodge, spend the night.” The related noun is “a lodge”—a hotel of sorts. Balaam needed to consider the offer. And after darkness was considered the best time for diviners to consult with their deities. Balaam apparently knows of the Lord; he testifies to this effect in 22:18.
¹⁵tn In this passage the text differs slightly; here it is “the nation that comes out,” using the article on the noun, and the active participle in the attributive adjective usage.
¹⁶tn Here the infinitive construct is used to express the object or complement of the verb “to be able” (it answers the question of what he will be able to do).
¹⁷tn The verb is the Piel perfect with vav consecutive. It either carries the force of an imperfect tense, or it may be subordinated to the preceding verbs.
¹⁸tn The two verbs are negated imperfects; they have the nuance of prohibition: you must not go and you must not curse.
¹⁹tn The word baruk (EWrB*) is the Qal passive participle, serving here as the predicate adjective after the supplied verb “to be.” The verb means “enrich,” in any way, materially, spiritually, physically. But the indication here is that the blessing includes the promised blessing of the patriarchs, a blessing that gave Israel the land. See further, C. Westermann, Blessing in the Bible and the Life of the Church (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1978).
²⁰tc The Greek translation adds “to your lord.”
²¹tn The main verb is the Piel perfect, “he has refused.” This is followed by two infinitives. The first, l^etitti (yT!t!l=), serves as a complement or direct object of the verb, answering the question of what he refused to do—“to give me.” The second infinitive, lahalok (EOh&l^), provides the object for the preceding infinitive: “to grant me to go.”
²²tn Heb “rose up.”
²³tn The construction is a verbal hendiadys. It uses the Hiphil preterite of the verb “to add” followed by the Qal infinitive “to send.” The infinitive becomes the main verb, and the preterite an adverb: “he added to send” means “he sent again.”
²⁴tn Heb “than these.”
²⁵tn The infinitive construct is the object of the preposition.
²⁶tn The construction uses the Piel infinitive kabbed (dB@k^) to intensify the verb, which is the Piel imperfect/cohortative ’akabbedka (;d+B#k^a&). The great honor could have been wealth, prestige, or position.
²⁷tn Heb “answered and said.”
²⁸tn Heb “mouth.”
²⁹sn In the light of subsequent events one should not take too seriously that Balaam referred to Yahweh as his God. He is referring properly to the deity for which he is acting as the agent.
³⁰tn In this case “lodge” is not used, but “remain, reside” (s^ebu [Wbv=]).
³¹tn This clause is also a verbal hendiadys: “what the Lord might add to speak,” meaning, “what more the Lord might say.”
³²sn God’s anger now seems to contradict the permission he gave Balaam just before this. Some commentators argue that God’s anger is a response to Balaam’s character in setting out—which the Bible does not explain. God saw in him greed and pleasure for the riches, which is why he was so willing to go.
³³tn The word is satan (/F*c*), “to be an adversary,” “to oppose.”
³⁴tn The word has the conjunction “and” on the noun, indicating this is a disjunctive vav, here serving as a circumstantial clause.
³⁵tn The word means a “narrow place,” having the root meaning “to be deep.” The Greek thought it was in a field in a narrow furrow.
³⁶tn Heb “a wall on this side, and a wall on that side.”
³⁷tn Heb “he added to beat her,” another verbal hendiadys.
³⁸tn The optative clause is introduced with the particle lu (Wl).
³⁹tn Here the Hiphil perfect is preceded by the Hiphil infinitive absolute for emphasis in the sentence.
⁴⁰tn Heb “to do thus to you.”
⁴¹tn The Hishtaphel verb hawah (hwj)—sahah (hjv) with metathesis according to BDB—has a basic idea of “bow oneself low to the ground,” and perhaps in some cases the idea of “coil up.” This is the normal posture of prayer and of deep humility in the ancient religious world.
⁴²tn Heb “your way.”
⁴³tn The verb yarat (Fry) occurs only here and in Job 16:11. Balaam is embarking on a foolish mission with base motives. The old rendering “perverse” is still acceptable.
⁴⁴tc Many commentators consider ’ulay (yl^Wa), “perhaps,” to be a misspelling in the MT in place of lule (yl@Wl), “if not.”
⁴⁵sn Balaam is not here making a general confession of sin. What he is admitting to is a procedural mistake. The basic meaning of the word is “to miss the mark.” He now knows he took the wrong way, i.e., in coming to curse Israel.
⁴⁶sn The reference is to Balaam’s way. He is saying that if his way, if what he is doing is so perverse, so evil, he will turn around and go home. Of course, it did not appear that he had much of a chance of going forward.
⁴⁷tn The verb is the cohortative from “return”: I will return [me].
⁴⁸tn The imperfect tense here can be given the nuance of permission.
⁴⁹tn The Hebrew word order is a little more emphatic than this: “but only the word which I speak to you, it you shall speak.”
⁵⁰tn The emphatic construction is made of the infinitive absolute and the perfect tense from the verb salah (jlv), “to send.” The idea must be more intense than something like, “Did I not certainly send.” Balak is showing frustration with Balaam for refusing him.
⁵¹sn Balak again refers to his ability to “honor” the seer. This certainly meant payment for his service, usually gold ornaments, rings and jewelry, as well as some animals.
⁵²tn The verb is ‘ukal (lk^Wa) in a question—“am I able?” But emphasizing this is the infinitive absolute before it. So Balaam is saying something like, “Can I really say anything?”
⁵³tn The Piel infinitive construct (without the preposition) serves as the object of the verb “to be able.” The whole question is rhetorical—he is saying that he will not be able to say anything God does not allow him to say.
⁵⁴tn The imperfect tense is here taken as an obligatory imperfect.
⁵⁵sn The understanding is that Balak was making a sacrifice for a covenant relationship, and so he gave some of the meat to the men and to the seer.
⁵⁶sn The name Bamoth Baal means “the high places of Baal.”