Numbers 23
1 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me seven altars here, and prepare for me seven bulls and seven rams.”
And Balaam seide to Balaach, Bilde thou here to me seuene auteris, and make redi so many caluys, and rammes of the same noumbre.
2 So Balak did as Balaam had instructed, and Balak and Balaam offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
And whanne he hadde do bi the word of Balaam, thei puttiden a calf and a ram to gidere on the auter.
3 “Stay here by your burnt offering while I am gone,” Balaam said to Balak. “Perhaps the LORD will meet with me. And whatever He reveals to me, I will tell you.” So Balaam went off to a barren height,
And Balaam seide to Balaach, Stond thou a litil while bisidis thi brent sacrifice, while Y go, if in hap the Lord meete me; and Y schal `speke to thee what euer thing he schal comaunde.
4 and God met with him. “I have set up seven altars,” Balaam said, “and on each altar I have offered a bull and a ram.”
And whanne he hadde go swiftli, God cam to hym; and Balaam spak to hym, and seide, Y reiside seuene auteris, and Y puttide a calf and a ram aboue.
5 Then the LORD put a message in Balaam’s mouth, saying, “Return to Balak and give him this message.”
Forsothe the Lord `puttide a word in his mouth, and seide, Turne ayen to Balaach, and thou schalt speke these thingis.
6 So he returned to Balak, who was standing there beside his burnt offering, with all the princes of Moab.
He turnede ayen, and fond Balach stondynge bisidis his brent sacrifice, and alle the princes of Moabitis.
7 And Balaam lifted up an oracle, saying: “Balak brought me from Aram, the king of Moab from the mountains of the east. ‘Come,’ he said, ‘put a curse on Jacob for me; come and denounce Israel!’
And whanne his parable `was takun, he seide, Balaach, the kyng of Moabitis, brouyte me fro Aran, fro the `hillis of the eest; and he seide, Come thou and curse Jacob; haaste thou, and greetli curse thou Israel.
8 How can I curse what God has not cursed? How can I denounce what the LORD has not denounced?
How schal Y curse whom God cursid not? bi what resoun schal Y `haue abhomynable whom God `hath not abhomynable?
9 For I see them from atop the rocky cliffs, and I watch them from the hills. Behold, a people dwelling apart, not reckoning themselves among the nations.
Fro the hiyeste flyntis Y schal se hym, and fro litle hillis Y schal biholde hym; the puple schal dwelle aloone, and it schal not be arettid among hethene men.
10 Who can count the dust of Jacob or number even a fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous; let my end be like theirs!”
Who may noumbre the dust, that is, kynrede, of Jacob, and knowe the noumbre of the generacioun of Israel? My lijf die in the deeth of iust men, and my laste thingis be maad lijk hem!
11 Then Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I brought you here to curse my enemies, and behold, you have only blessed them!”
And Balaach seide to Balaam, What is this that thou doist? Y clepide thee, that thou schuldist curse myn enemyes, and ayenward thou blessist hem.
12 But Balaam replied, “Should I not speak exactly what the LORD puts in my mouth?”
To whom Balaam answeride, Whether Y may speke othir thing no but that that the Lord comaundith?
13 Then Balak said to him, “Please come with me to another place where you can see them. You will only see the outskirts of their camp—not all of them. And from there, curse them for me.”
Therfor Balaach seide to Balaam, Come with me in to anothir place, fro whennus thou se a part of Israel, and mayst not se al; fro thennus curse thou hym.
14 So Balak took him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, where he built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
And whanne he hadde led Balaam in to an hiy place, on the cop of the hil of Phasga, he bildide seuene auteris to Balaam, and whanne calues and rammes weren put aboue,
15 Balaam said to Balak, “Stay here beside your burnt offering while I meet the LORD over there.”
he seide to Balaach, Stonde here bisidis thi brent sacrifice, while Y go.
16 And the LORD met with Balaam and put a message in his mouth, saying, “Return to Balak and speak what I tell you.”
And whanne the Lord hadde `come to him, and hadde put `a word in his mouth, he seide, Turne ayen to Balach, and thou schalt seie these thingis to hym.
17 So he returned to Balak, who was standing there by his burnt offering with the princes of Moab. “What did the LORD say?” Balak asked.
He turnyde ayen, and foond Balach stondynge bisidis his brent sacrifice, and the princis of Moabitis with hym. To whom Balach seide, What spak the Lord?
18 Then Balaam lifted up an oracle, saying: “Arise, O Balak, and listen; give ear to me, O son of Zippor.
And whanne his parable `was takun, he seide, Stonde, Balach, and herkene; here, thou sone of Sephor. God is not `as a man,
19 God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?
that he lye, nethir he is as the sone of a man, that he be chaungid; therfor he seide, and schal he not do? he spak, and schal he not fulfille?
20 I have indeed received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot change it.
Y am brouyt to blesse, Y may not forbede blessyng.
21 He considers no disaster for Jacob; He sees no trouble for Israel. The LORD their God is with them, and the shout of the King is among them.
Noon idol is in Jacob, nethir symylacre is seyn in Israel; his Lord God is with hym, and the sown of victorie of kyng is in hym.
22 God brought them out of Egypt with strength like a wild ox.
The Lord God ledde hym out of Egipt, whos strengthe is lijk an vnicorn;
23 For there is no spell against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and Israel, ‘What great things God has done!’
fals tellyng bi chiteryng of bryddis, `ethir idolatrie, is not in Jacob, nethir fals dyuynyng is in Israel. In his tymes it schal be seide to Jacob and Israel, What the Lord hath wrought!
24 Behold, the people rise like a lioness; they rouse themselves like a lion, not resting until they devour their prey and drink the blood of the slain.”
Lo! the puple schal rise to gidere as a lionesse, and schal be reisid as a lioun; the lioun schal not reste, til he deuoure prey, and drynke the blood of hem that ben slayn.
25 Now Balak said to Balaam, “Then neither curse them at all nor bless them at all!”
And Balach seide to Balaam, Nether curse thou, nether blesse thou hym.
26 But Balaam replied, “Did I not tell you that whatever the LORD says, I must do?”
And he seide, Whether Y seide not to thee, that what euer thing that God comaundide to me, Y wolde do this?
27 “Please come,” said Balak, “I will take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God that you curse them for me from there.”
And Balach seide to hym, Come, and Y schal lede thee to an other place, if in hap it plesith God that fro thennus thou curse hym.
28 And Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, which overlooks the wasteland.
And whanne Balaach hadde led hym out on the `cop of the hil of Phegor, that biholdith the wildirnesse,
29 Then Balaam said, “Build for me seven altars here, and prepare for me seven bulls and seven rams.”
Balaam seide to hym, Bilde here seuene auteris to me, and make redi so many caluys, and rammes of the same noumbre.
30 So Balak did as Balaam had instructed, and he offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
Balaach dide as Balaam seide, and he puttide caluys and rammes, bi alle auteris.
