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Today's Bible Reading :: Numbers 23 - 25 (ESV)

Numbers 23Listen to the passage

Numbers 24Listen to the passage

Numbers 25Listen to the passage

Numbers 23

Balaam’s First Oracle

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:1

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:1 - And Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me here seven altars, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:2

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:2 - Balak did as Balaam had said. And Balak and Balaam offered on each altar a bull and a ram.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:3

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:3 - And Balaam said to Balak, “Stand beside your burnt offering, and I will go. Perhaps the LORD will come to meet me, and whatever he shows me I will tell you.” And he went to a bare height,

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:4

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:4 - and God met Balaam. And Balaam said to him, “I have arranged the seven altars and I have offered on each altar a bull and a ram.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:5

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:5 - And the LORD put a word in Balaam’s mouth and said, “Return to Balak, and thus you shall speak.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:6

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:6 - And he returned to him, and behold, he and all the princes of Moab were standing beside his burnt offering.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:7

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:7 - And Balaam took up his discourse and said,
“From Aram Balak has brought me,
the king of Moab from the eastern mountains:
‘Come, curse Jacob for me,
and come, denounce Israel!’

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:8

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:8 - How can I curse whom God has not cursed?
How can I denounce whom the LORD has not denounced?

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:9

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:9 - For from the top of the crags I see him,
from the hills I behold him;
behold, a people dwelling alone,
and not counting itself among the nations!

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:10

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:10 - Who can count the dust of Jacob
or number the fourth part[fn] of Israel?
Let me die the death of the upright,
and let my end be like his!”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:11

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:11 - And Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, and behold, you have done nothing but bless them.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:12

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:12 - And he answered and said, “Must I not take care to speak what the LORD puts in my mouth?”

Balaam’s Second Oracle

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:13

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:13 - And Balak said to him, “Please come with me to another place, from which you may see them. You shall see only a fraction of them and shall not see them all. Then curse them for me from there.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:14

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:14 - And he took him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:15

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:15 - Balaam said to Balak, “Stand here beside your burnt offering, while I meet the LORD over there.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:16

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:16 - And the LORD met Balaam and put a word in his mouth and said, “Return to Balak, and thus shall you speak.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:17

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:17 - And he came to him, and behold, he was standing beside his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab with him. And Balak said to him, “What has the LORD spoken?”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:18

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:18 - And Balaam took up his discourse and said,
“Rise, Balak, and hear;
give ear to me, O son of Zippor:

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:19

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:19 - God is not man, that he should lie,
or a son of man, that he should change his mind.
Has he said, and will he not do it?
Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:20

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:20 - Behold, I received a command to bless:
he has blessed, and I cannot revoke it.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:21

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:21 - He has not beheld misfortune in Jacob,
nor has he seen trouble in Israel.
The LORD their God is with them,
and the shout of a king is among them.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:22

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:22 - God brings them out of Egypt
and is for them like the horns of the wild ox.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:23

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:23 - For there is no enchantment against Jacob,
no divination against Israel;
now it shall be said of Jacob and Israel,
‘What has God wrought!’

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:24

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:24 - Behold, a people! As a lioness it rises up
and as a lion it lifts itself;
it does not lie down until it has devoured the prey
and drunk the blood of the slain.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:25

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:25 - And Balak said to Balaam, “Do not curse them at all, and do not bless them at all.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:26

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:26 - But Balaam answered Balak, “Did I not tell you, ‘All that the LORD says, that I must do’?”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:27

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:27 - And Balak said to Balaam, “Come now, I will take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God that you may curse them for me from there.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:28

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:28 - So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, which overlooks the desert.[fn]

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:29

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:29 - And Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me here seven altars and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 23:30

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 23:30 - And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
ESV Footnotes
Or dust clouds
Or Jeshimon

Numbers 24

Balaam’s Third Oracle

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:1

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:1 - When Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he did not go, as at other times, to look for omens, but set his face toward the wilderness.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:2

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:2 - And Balaam lifted up his eyes and saw Israel camping tribe by tribe. And the Spirit of God came upon him,

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:3

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:3 - and he took up his discourse and said,
“The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor,
the oracle of the man whose eye is opened,[fn]

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:4

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:4 - the oracle of him who hears the words of God,
who sees the vision of the Almighty,
falling down with his eyes uncovered:

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:5

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:5 - How lovely are your tents, O Jacob,
your encampments, O Israel!

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:6

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:6 - Like palm groves[fn] that stretch afar,
like gardens beside a river,
like aloes that the LORD has planted,
like cedar trees beside the waters.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:7

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:7 - Water shall flow from his buckets,
and his seed shall be in many waters;
his king shall be higher than Agag,
and his kingdom shall be exalted.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:8

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:8 - God brings him out of Egypt
and is for him like the horns of the wild ox;
he shall eat up the nations, his adversaries,
and shall break their bones in pieces
and pierce them through with his arrows.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:9

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:9 - He crouched, he lay down like a lion
and like a lioness; who will rouse him up?
Blessed are those who bless you,
and cursed are those who curse you.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:10

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:10 - And Balak’s anger was kindled against Balaam, and he struck his hands together. And Balak said to Balaam, “I called you to curse my enemies, and behold, you have blessed them these three times.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:11

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:11 - Therefore now flee to your own place. I said, ‘I will certainly honor you,’ but the LORD has held you back from honor.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:12

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:12 - And Balaam said to Balak, “Did I not tell your messengers whom you sent to me,

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:13

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:13 - ‘If Balak should give me his house full of silver and gold, I would not be able to go beyond the word of the LORD, to do either good or bad of my own will. What the LORD speaks, that will I speak’?

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:14

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:14 - And now, behold, I am going to my people. Come, I will let you know what this people will do to your people in the latter days.”

Balaam’s Final Oracle

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:15

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:15 - And he took up his discourse and said,
“The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor,
the oracle of the man whose eye is opened,

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:16

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:16 - the oracle of him who hears the words of God,
and knows the knowledge of the Most High,
who sees the vision of the Almighty,
falling down with his eyes uncovered:

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:17

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:17 - I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near:
a star shall come out of Jacob,
and a scepter shall rise out of Israel;
it shall crush the forehead[fn] of Moab
and break down all the sons of Sheth.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:18

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:18 - Edom shall be dispossessed;
Seir also, his enemies, shall be dispossessed.
Israel is doing valiantly.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:19

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:19 - And one from Jacob shall exercise dominion
and destroy the survivors of cities!”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:20

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:20 - Then he looked on Amalek and took up his discourse and said,
“Amalek was the first among the nations,
but its end is utter destruction.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:21

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:21 - And he looked on the Kenite, and took up his discourse and said,
“Enduring is your dwelling place,
and your nest is set in the rock.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:22

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:22 - Nevertheless, Kain shall be burned
when Asshur takes you away captive.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:23

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:23 - And he took up his discourse and said,
“Alas, who shall live when God does this?

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:24

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:24 - But ships shall come from Kittim
and shall afflict Asshur and Eber;
and he too shall come to utter destruction.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 24:25

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 24:25 - Then Balaam rose and went back to his place. And Balak also went his way.
ESV Footnotes
Or closed, or perfect; also verse 15
Or valleys
Hebrew corners [of the head]

Numbers 25

Baal Worship at Peor

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:1

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:1 - While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:2

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:2 - These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:3

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:3 - So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:4

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:4 - And the LORD said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the people and hang[fn] them in the sun before the LORD, that the fierce anger of the LORD may turn away from Israel.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:5

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:5 - And Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you kill those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor.”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:6

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:6 - And behold, one of the people of Israel came and brought a Midianite woman to his family, in the sight of Moses and in the sight of the whole congregation of the people of Israel, while they were weeping in the entrance of the tent of meeting.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:7

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:7 - When Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation and took a spear in his hand

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:8

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:8 - and went after the man of Israel into the chamber and pierced both of them, the man of Israel and the woman through her belly. Thus the plague on the people of Israel was stopped.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:9

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:9 - Nevertheless, those who died by the plague were twenty-four thousand.

The Zeal of Phinehas

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:10

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:10 - And the LORD said to Moses,

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:11

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:11 - “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:12

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:12 - Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace,

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:13

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:13 - and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood, because he was jealous for his God and made atonement for the people of Israel.’”

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:14

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:14 - The name of the slain man of Israel, who was killed with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, chief of a father’s house belonging to the Simeonites.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:15

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:15 - And the name of the Midianite woman who was killed was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, who was the tribal head of a father’s house in Midian.

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:16

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:16 - And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:17

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:17 - “Harass the Midianites and strike them down,

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Unchecked Copy Box Num 25:18

Unchecked Copy BoxNum 25:18 - for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the chief of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the plague on account of Peor.”
See the ESV Preface
ESV Footnotes
Or impale
ESV

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001, 2007, 2011, 2016, 2025 by Crossway Books and Bibles, a Publishing Ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

See detailed copyright information.

For more information on this translation, see the ESV Preface.

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