Numbers 24

Ἀριθμοί

1 ΚΑΙ ἰδὼν Βαλαὰμ ὅτι καλόν ἐστιν ἐναντίον Κυρίου εὐλογεῖν τὸν Ἰσραήλ, οὐκ ἐπορεύθη κατὰ τὸ εἰωθὸς εἰς συνάντησιν τοῖς οἰωνοῖς καὶ ἀπέστρεψε τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ εἰς τὴν ἔρημον.

And when Balaam saw that it pleased God to bless Israel, he did not go according to his custom to meet the omens, but turned his face towards the wilderness.

2 καὶ ἐξάρας Βαλαὰμ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ καθορᾷ τὸν Ἰσραὴλ ἐστρατοπεδευκότα κατὰ φυλάς, καὶ ἐγένετο πνεῦμα Θεοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ,

And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and sees Israel encamped by their tribes; and the Spirit of God came upon him.

3 καὶ ἀναλαβὼν τὴν παραβολὴν αὐτοῦ εἶπε· φησὶ Βαλαὰμ υἱὸς Βεώρ, φησὶν ὁ ἄνθρωπος ὁ ἀληθινῶς ὁρῶν,

And he took up his parable and said, Balaam son of Beor says, the man who sees truly says,

4 φησὶν ἀκούων λόγια ἰσχυροῦ, ὅστις ὅρασιν Θεοῦ εἶδεν ἐν ὕπνῳ, ἀποκεκαλυμμένοι οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ αὐτοῦ·

he says who hears the oracle of the Mighty One, who saw a vision of God in sleep; his eyes were opened:

5 ὡς καλοὶ οἱ οἶκοί σου Ἰακώβ, αἱ σκηναί σου Ἰσραήλ!

How goodly [are] your habitations, Jacob, and your tents, Israel!

6 ὡσεὶ νάπαι σκιάζουσαι καὶ ὡσεὶ παράδεισοι ἐπὶ ποταμῷ καὶ ὡσεὶ σκηναί, ἃς ἔπηξε Κύριος, καὶ ὡσεὶ κέδροι παρ' ὕδατα.

as shady groves, and as gardens by a river, and as tents which God pitched, and as cedars by the waters.

7 ἐξελεύσεται ἄνθρωπος ἐκ τοῦ σπέρματος αὐτοῦ καὶ κυριεύσει ἐθνῶν πολλῶν, καὶ ὑψωθήσεται ἢ Γὼγ βασιλεία αὐτοῦ, καὶ αὐξηθήσεται βασιλεία αὐτοῦ.

There shall come a man out of his seed, and he shall rule over many nations; and the kingdom of Gog shall be exalted, and his kingdom shall be increased.

8 Θεὸς ὡδήγησεν αὐτὸν ἐξ Αἰγύπτου, ὡς δόξα μονοκέρωτος αὐτῷ· ἔδεται ἔθνη ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ καὶ τὰ πάχη αὐτῶν ἐκμυελιεῖ καὶ ταῖς βολίσιν αὐτοῦ κατατοξεύσει ἐχθρόν·

God led him out of Egypt; he has as it were the glory of a unicorn: he shall consume the nations of his enemies, and he shall drain their marrow, and with his darts he shall shoot through the enemy.

9 κατακλιθεὶς ἀνεπαύσατο ὡς λέων καὶ ὡς σκύμνος· τίς ἀναστήσει αὐτόν; οἱ εὐλογοῦντές σε εὐλόγηνται, καὶ οἱ καταρώμενοί σε κεκατήρανται.

He lay down, he rested as a lion, and as a young lion; who shall stir him up? they that bless you are blessed, and they that curse you are cursed.

10 καὶ ἐθυμώθη Βαλὰκ ἐπὶ Βαλαὰμ καὶ συνεκρότησε ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτοῦ, καὶ εἶπε Βαλὰκ πρὸς Βαλαάμ· καταρᾶσθαι τὸν ἐχθρόν μου κέκληκά σε, καὶ ἰδοὺ εὐλογῶν εὐλόγησας τρίτον τοῦτο·

And Balac was angry with Balaam, and clapped his hands together; and Balac said to Balaam, I called you to curse my enemy, and behold you have decidedly blessed [him] this third time.

11 νῦν οὖν φεῦγε εἰς τὸν τόπον σου· εἶπα, τιμήσω σε, καὶ νῦν ἐστέρησέ σε Κύριος τῆς δόξης.

Now therefore flee to your place: I said, I will honour you, but now the Lord has deprived you of glory.

12 καὶ εἶπε Βαλαὰμ πρὸς Βαλάκ· οὐχὶ καὶ τοῖς ἀγγέλοις σου, οὓς ἀπέστειλας πρός με, ἐλάλησα λέγων·

And Balaam said to Balac, Did I not speak to your messengers also whom you sent to me, saying,

13 ἐάν μοι δῷ Βαλὰκ πλήρη τὸν οἶκον αὐτοῦ ἀργυρίου καὶ χρυσίου, οὐ δυνήσομαι παραβῆναι τὸ ρῆμα Κυρίου ποιῆσαι αὐτὸ καλὸν ἢ πονηρὸν παρ' ἐμαυτοῦ· ὅσα ἐὰν εἴπῃ ὁ Θεός, ταῦτα ἐρῶ.

If Balac should give me his house full of silver and gold, I shall not be able to transgress the word of the Lord to make it good or bad by myself; whatever things God shall say, them will I speak.

14 καὶ νῦν ἰδοὺ ἀποτρέχω εἰς τὸν τόπον μου· δεῦρο συμβουλεύσω σοι, τί ποιήσει ὁ λαὸς οὗτος τὸν λαόν σου ἐπ' ἐσχάτου τῶν ἡμερῶν.

And now, behold, I return to my place; come, I will advise you of what this people shall do to your people in the last days.

15 καὶ ἀναλαβὼν τὴν παραβολὴν αὐτοῦ εἶπε· φυσὶ Βαλαὰμ υἱὸς Βεώρ, φησὶν ὁ ἄνθρωπος ὁ ἀληθινῶς ὁρῶν,

And he took up his parable and said, Balaam the son of Beor says, the man who sees truly says,

16 ἀκούων λόγια Θεοῦ, ἐπιστάμενος ἐπιστήμην παρὰ ὑψίστου καὶ ὅρασιν Θεοῦ ἰδὼν ἐν ὕπνῳ, ἀποκεκαλυμμένοι οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ αὐτοῦ·

hearing the oracles of God, receiving knowledge from the Most High, and having seen a vision of God in sleep; his eyes were opened.

17 δείξω αὐτῷ, καὶ οὐχὶ νῦν· μακαρίζω, καὶ οὐκ ἐγγίζει· ἀνατελεῖ ἄστρον ἐξ Ἰακώβ, ἀναστήσεται ἄνθρωπος ἐξ Ἰσραὴλ καὶ θραύσει τοὺς ἀρχηγοὺς Μωὰβ καὶ προνομεύσει πάντας υἱοὺς Σήθ.

I will point to him, but not now; I bless him, but he draws not near: a star shall rise out of Jacob, a man shall spring out of Israel; and shall crush the princes of Moab, and shall spoil all the sons of Seth.

18 καὶ ἔσται Ἐδὼμ κληρονομία, καὶ ἔσται κληρονομία Ἡσαῦ ὁ ἐχθρὸς αὐτοῦ· καὶ Ἰσραὴλ ἐποίησεν ἐν ἰσχύϊ.

And Edom shall be an inheritance, and Esau his enemy shall be an inheritance [of Israel], and Israel wrought valiantly.

19 καὶ ἐξεγερθήσεται ἐξ Ἰακὼβ καὶ ἀπολεῖ σῳζόμενον ἐκ πόλεως.

And [one] shall arise out of Jacob, and destroy out of the city him that escapes.

20 καὶ ἰδὼν τὸν Ἀμαλὴκ καὶ ἀναλαβὼν τὴν παραβολὴν αὐτοῦ εἶπεν· ἀρχὴ ἐθνῶν Ἀμαλήκ, καὶ τὸ σπέρμα αὐτῶν ἀπολεῖται.

And having seen Amalec, he took up his parable and said, Amalec [is] the first of the nations; yet his seed shall perish.

21 καὶ ἰδὼν τὸν Κεναῖον καὶ ἀναλαβὼν τὴν παραβολὴν αὐτοῦ εἶπεν· ἰσχυρὰ ἡ κατοικία σου· καὶ ἐὰν θῇς ἐν πέτρᾳ τὴν νοσσιάν σου,

And having seen the Kenite, he took up his parable and said, your dwelling-place [is] strong; yet though you should put your nest in a rock,

22 καὶ ἐὰν γένηται τῷ Βεὼρ νοσσιὰ πανουργίας, Ἀσσύριοι αἰχμαλωτεύσουσί σε.

and though Beor should have a skilfully contrived hiding-place, the Assyrians shall carry you away captive.

23 καὶ ἰδὼν τὸν Ὢγ καὶ ἀναλαβὼν τὴν παραβολὴν αὐτοῦ εἶπεν· ὦ ὦ, τίς ζήσεται, ὅταν θῇ ταῦτα ὁ Θεός;

And he looked upon Og, and took up his parable and said, Oh, oh, who shall live, when God shall do these things?

24 καὶ ἐξελεύσεται ἐκ χειρῶν Κιτιαίων καὶ κακώσουσιν Ἀσσοὺρ καὶ κακώσουσιν Ἑβραίους, καὶ αὐτοὶ ὁμοθυμαδὸν ἀπολοῦνται.

And one shall come forth from the hands of the Citians, and shall afflict Assur, and shall afflict the Hebrews, and they shall perish together.

25 καὶ ἀναστὰς Βαλαὰμ ἀπῆλθεν ἀποστραφεὶς εἰς τὸν τόπον αὐτοῦ, καὶ Βαλὰκ ἀπῆλθε πρὸς ἑαυτόν.

And Balaam rose up and departed and returned to his place, and Balac went to his own home.

Greek: the Septuagint as the Orthodox Media Network published it (Mount Athos); 2 Maccabees and the Prayer of Manasseh from Brenton's edition (1851). English: Brenton's translation (1851), its spelling updated by Michael Paul Johnson; public domain. About these texts.