Feb 9 - Numbers 23-26
Numbers
1Balaam said, "Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me."2Balak did as Balaam said, and the two of them offered a bull and a ram on each altar.3Then Balaam said to Balak, "Stay here beside your offering while I go aside. Perhaps the LORD will come to meet with me. Whatever he reveals to me I will tell you." Then he went off to a barren height.4God met with him, and Balaam said, "I have prepared seven altars, and on each altar I have offered a bull and a ram."5The LORD put a message in Balaam's mouth and said, "Go back to Balak and give him this message."6So he went back to him and found him standing beside his offering, with all the princes of Moab.7Then Balaam uttered his oracle: "Balak brought me from Aram, the king of Moab from the eastern mountains. 'Come,' he said, 'curse Jacob for me; come, denounce Israel.'8How can I curse those whom God has not cursed? How can I denounce those whom the LORD has not denounced?9From the rocky peaks I see them, from the heights I view them. I see a people who live apart and do not consider themselves one of the nations.10Who can count the dust of Jacob or number the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my end be like theirs!"11Balak said to Balaam, "What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies, but you have done nothing but bless them!"12He answered, "Must I not speak what the LORD puts in my mouth?"13Then Balak said to him, "Come with me to another place where you can see them; you will see only a part but not all of them. And from there, curse them for me."14So he took him to the field of Zophim on the top of Pisgah, and there he built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.15Balaam said to Balak, "Stay here beside your offering while I meet with him over there."16The LORD met with Balaam and put a message in his mouth and said, "Go back to Balak and give him this message."17So he went to him and found him standing beside his offering, with the princes of Moab. Balak asked him, "What did the LORD say?"18Then he uttered his oracle: "Arise, Balak, and listen; hear me, son of Zippor.19God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?20I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it.21"No misfortune is seen in Jacob, no misery observed in Israel. The LORD their God is with them; the shout of the King is among them.22God brought them out of Egypt; they have the strength of a wild ox.23There is no sorcery against Jacob, no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and of Israel, 'See what God has done!'24The people rise like a lioness; they rouse themselves like a lion that does not rest till he devours his prey and drinks the blood of his victims."25Then Balak said to Balaam, "Neither curse them at all nor bless them at all!"26Balaam answered, "Did I not tell you I must do whatever the LORD says?"27Then Balak said to Balaam, "Come, let me take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God to let you curse them for me from there."28And Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, overlooking the wasteland.29Balaam said, "Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me."30Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
1Now when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he did not resort to sorcery as at other times, but turned his face toward the desert.2When Balaam looked out and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came upon him3and he uttered his oracle: "The oracle of Balaam son of Beor, the oracle of one whose eye sees clearly,4the oracle of one who hears the words of God, who sees a vision from the Almighty, who falls prostrate, and whose eyes are opened:5"How beautiful are your tents, O Jacob, your dwelling places, O Israel!6"Like valleys they spread out, like gardens beside a river, like aloes planted by the LORD, like cedars beside the waters.7Water will flow from their buckets; their seed will have abundant water. "Their king will be greater than Agag; their kingdom will be exalted.8"God brought them out of Egypt; they have the strength of a wild ox. They devour hostile nations and break their bones in pieces; with their arrows they pierce them.9Like a lion they crouch and lie down, like a lioness-who dares to rouse them? "May those who bless you be blessed and those who curse you be cursed!"10Then Balak's anger burned against Balaam. He struck his hands together and said to him, "I summoned you to curse my enemies, but you have blessed them these three times.11Now leave at once and go home! I said I would reward you handsomely, but the LORD has kept you from being rewarded."12Balaam answered Balak, "Did I not tell the messengers you sent me,13'Even if Balak gave me his palace filled with silver and gold, I could not do anything of my own accord, good or bad, to go beyond the command of the LORD -and I must say only what the LORD says'?14Now I am going back to my people, but come, let me warn you of what this people will do to your people in days to come."15Then he uttered his oracle: "The oracle of Balaam son of Beor, the oracle of one whose eye sees clearly,16the oracle of one who hears the words of God, who has knowledge from the Most High, who sees a vision from the Almighty, who falls prostrate, and whose eyes are opened:17"I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the sons of Sheth.18Edom will be conquered; Seir, his enemy, will be conquered, but Israel will grow strong.19A ruler will come out of Jacob and destroy the survivors of the city."20Then Balaam saw Amalek and uttered his oracle: "Amalek was first among the nations, but he will come to ruin at last."21Then he saw the Kenites and uttered his oracle: "Your dwelling place is secure, your nest is set in a rock;22yet you Kenites will be destroyed when Asshur takes you captive."23Then he uttered his oracle: "Ah, who can live when God does this?24Ships will come from the shores of Kittim; they will subdue Asshur and Eber, but they too will come to ruin."25Then Balaam got up and returned home and Balak went his own way.
1While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women,2who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods. The people ate and bowed down before these gods.3So Israel joined in worshiping the Baal of Peor. And the LORD's anger burned against them.4The LORD said to Moses, "Take all the leaders of these people, kill them and expose them in broad daylight before the LORD, so that the LORD's fierce anger may turn away from Israel."5So Moses said to Israel's judges, "Each of you must put to death those of your men who have joined in worshiping the Baal of Peor."6Then an Israelite man brought to his family a Midianite woman right before the eyes of Moses and the whole assembly of Israel while they were weeping at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.7When Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, saw this, he left the assembly, took a spear in his hand8and followed the Israelite into the tent. He drove the spear through both of them-through the Israelite and into the woman's body. Then the plague against the Israelites was stopped;9but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.10The LORD said to Moses,11"Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, has turned my anger away from the Israelites; for he was as zealous as I am for my honor among them, so that in my zeal I did not put an end to them.12Therefore tell him I am making my covenant of peace with him.13He and his descendants will have a covenant of a lasting priesthood, because he was zealous for the honor of his God and made atonement for the Israelites."14The name of the Israelite who was killed with the Midianite woman was Zimri son of Salu, the leader of a Simeonite family.15And the name of the Midianite woman who was put to death was Cozbi daughter of Zur, a tribal chief of a Midianite family.16The LORD said to Moses,17"Treat the Midianites as enemies and kill them,18because they treated you as enemies when they deceived you in the affair of Peor and their sister Cozbi, the daughter of a Midianite leader, the woman who was killed when the plague came as a result of Peor."
1After the plague the LORD said to Moses and Eleazar son of Aaron, the priest,2"Take a census of the whole Israelite community by families-all those twenty years old or more who are able to serve in the army of Israel."3So on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho, Moses and Eleazar the priest spoke with them and said,4"Take a census of the men twenty years old or more, as the LORD commanded Moses." These were the Israelites who came out of Egypt:5The descendants of Reuben, the firstborn son of Israel, were: through Hanoch, the Hanochite clan; through Pallu, the Palluite clan;6through Hezron, the Hezronite clan; through Carmi, the Carmite clan.7These were the clans of Reuben; those numbered were 43,730.8The son of Pallu was Eliab,9and the sons of Eliab were Nemuel, Dathan and Abiram. The same Dathan and Abiram were the community officials who rebelled against Moses and Aaron and were among Korah's followers when they rebelled against the LORD.10The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them along with Korah, whose followers died when the fire devoured the 250 men. And they served as a warning sign.11The line of Korah, however, did not die out.12The descendants of Simeon by their clans were: through Nemuel, the Nemuelite clan; through Jamin, the Jaminite clan; through Jakin, the Jakinite clan;13through Zerah, the Zerahite clan; through Shaul, the Shaulite clan.14These were the clans of Simeon; there were 22,200 men.15The descendants of Gad by their clans were: through Zephon, the Zephonite clan; through Haggi, the Haggite clan; through Shuni, the Shunite clan;16through Ozni, the Oznite clan; through Eri, the Erite clan;17through Arodi, the Arodite clan; through Areli, the Arelite clan.18These were the clans of Gad; those numbered were 40,500.19Er and Onan were sons of Judah, but they died in Canaan.20The descendants of Judah by their clans were: through Shelah, the Shelanite clan; through Perez, the Perezite clan; through Zerah, the Zerahite clan.21The descendants of Perez were: through Hezron, the Hezronite clan; through Hamul, the Hamulite clan.22These were the clans of Judah; those numbered were 76,500.23The descendants of Issachar by their clans were: through Tola, the Tolaite clan; through Puah, the Puite clan;24through Jashub, the Jashubite clan; through Shimron, the Shimronite clan.25These were the clans of Issachar; those numbered were 64,300.26The descendants of Zebulun by their clans were: through Sered, the Seredite clan; through Elon, the Elonite clan; through Jahleel, the Jahleelite clan.27These were the clans of Zebulun; those numbered were 60,500.28The descendants of Joseph by their clans through Manasseh and Ephraim were:29The descendants of Manasseh: through Makir, the Makirite clan (Makir was the father of Gilead); through Gilead, the Gileadite clan.30These were the descendants of Gilead: through Iezer, the Iezerite clan; through Helek, the Helekite clan;31through Asriel, the Asrielite clan; through Shechem, the Shechemite clan;32through Shemida, the Shemidaite clan; through Hepher, the Hepherite clan.33(Zelophehad son of Hepher had no sons; he had only daughters, whose names were Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah.)34These were the clans of Manasseh; those numbered were 52,700.35These were the descendants of Ephraim by their clans: through Shuthelah, the Shuthelahite clan; through Beker, the Bekerite clan; through Tahan, the Tahanite clan.36These were the descendants of Shuthelah: through Eran, the Eranite clan.37These were the clans of Ephraim; those numbered were 32,500. These were the descendants of Joseph by their clans.38The descendants of Benjamin by their clans were: through Bela, the Belaite clan; through Ashbel, the Ashbelite clan; through Ahiram, the Ahiramite clan;39through Shupham, the Shuphamite clan; through Hupham, the Huphamite clan.40The descendants of Bela through Ard and Naaman were: through Ard, the Ardite clan; through Naaman, the Naamite clan.41These were the clans of Benjamin; those numbered were 45,600.42These were the descendants of Dan by their clans: through Shuham, the Shuhamite clan. These were the clans of Dan:43All of them were Shuhamite clans; and those numbered were 64,400.44The descendants of Asher by their clans were: through Imnah, the Imnite clan; through Ishvi, the Ishvite clan; through Beriah, the Beriite clan;45and through the descendants of Beriah: through Heber, the Heberite clan; through Malkiel, the Malkielite clan.46(Asher had a daughter named Serah.)47These were the clans of Asher; those numbered were 53,400.48The descendants of Naphtali by their clans were: through Jahzeel, the Jahzeelite clan; through Guni, the Gunite clan;49through Jezer, the Jezerite clan; through Shillem, the Shillemite clan.50These were the clans of Naphtali; those numbered were 45,400.51The total number of the men of Israel was 601,730.52The LORD said to Moses,53"The land is to be allotted to them as an inheritance based on the number of names.54To a larger group give a larger inheritance, and to a smaller group a smaller one; each is to receive its inheritance according to the number of those listed.55Be sure that the land is distributed by lot. What each group inherits will be according to the names for its ancestral tribe.56Each inheritance is to be distributed by lot among the larger and smaller groups."57These were the Levites who were counted by their clans: through Gershon, the Gershonite clan; through Kohath, the Kohathite clan; through Merari, the Merarite clan.58These also were Levite clans: the Libnite clan, the Hebronite clan, the Mahlite clan, the Mushite clan, the Korahite clan. (Kohath was the forefather of Amram;59the name of Amram's wife was Jochebed, a descendant of Levi, who was born to the Levites in Egypt. To Amram she bore Aaron, Moses and their sister Miriam.60Aaron was the father of Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.61But Nadab and Abihu died when they made an offering before the LORD with unauthorized fire.)62All the male Levites a month old or more numbered 23,000. They were not counted along with the other Israelites because they received no inheritance among them.63These are the ones counted by Moses and Eleazar the priest when they counted the Israelites on the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho.64Not one of them was among those counted by Moses and Aaron the priest when they counted the Israelites in the Desert of Sinai.65For the LORD had told those Israelites they would surely die in the desert, and not one of them was left except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.