Num 23:5-8, 20-24 | ESV | STEP | And the Lord put a word in Balaam’s mouth and said , Return to Balak , and thus you shall speak .

Numbers 23:5-8

5 And the Lord ^aput a word in Balaam’s mouth and said, “Return to Balak, and thus you shall speak.” 6 And he returned to him, and behold, he and all the princes of Moab were standing beside his burnt offering. 7 And Balaam ^btook up his discourse and said,

“From ^cAram Balak has brought me,
the king of Moab ^dfrom the eastern mountains:
‘Come, ^ecurse Jacob for me,
and come, denounce Israel!’
8 How can I curse whom God has not cursed?
How can I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?

Numbers 23:20-24

20 Behold, I received a command to bless:
^fhe has blessed, and ^gI cannot revoke it.
21 ^hHe 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.
22 ⁱGod brings them out of Egypt
and is for them like ^jthe horns of the wild ox.
23 For there is no enchantment against Jacob,
no ^kdivination against Israel;
now it shall be said of Jacob and Israel,
^l‘What has God wrought!’
24 Behold, a people! ^mAs a lioness it rises up
and as a lion it lifts itself;
ⁿit does not lie down until it has devoured the prey
and drunk the blood of the slain.”