Numbers 23
1 And Balaam sayd vnto Balak, Builde me here seuen altars, and prepare me here seuen bullockes, and seuen rammes.
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 And Balak did as Balaam sayd, and Balak and Balaam offred on euery altar a bullocke and a ramme.
And whanne he hadde do bi the word of Balaam, thei puttiden a calf and a ram to gidere on the auter.
3 Then Balaam sayde vnto Balak, Stande by the burnt offring, and I will goe, if so be that the Lord will come and meete me: and whatsoeuer he sheweth me, I will tell thee: so he went forth alone.
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 Balaam, and Balaam sayd vnto him, I haue prepared seuen altars, and haue offred vpon euery altar a bullocke and a ramme.
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 And the Lord put an answere in Balaams mouth, and sayde, Go againe to Balak, and say on this wise.
Forsothe the Lord `puttide a word in his mouth, and seide, Turne ayen to Balaach, and thou schalt speke these thingis.
6 So when he returned vnto him, loe, hee stoode by his burnt offering, he, and all the princes of Moab.
He turnede ayen, and fond Balach stondynge bisidis his brent sacrifice, and alle the princes of Moabitis.
7 Then he vttered his parable, and sayde, Balak the king of Moab hath brought mee from Aram out of the mountaines of the East, saying, Come, curse Iaakob for my sake: come, and detest 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 shall I curse, where God hath not cursed? or howe shall I detest, where the Lord hath not detested?
How schal Y curse whom God cursid not? bi what resoun schal Y `haue abhomynable whom God `hath not abhomynable?
9 For from the top of the rocks I did see him, and from the hils I did beholde him: lo, the people shall dwell by themselues, and shall not be reckened 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 tell the dust of Iaakob, and the nomber of the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last ende be like his.
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 saide vnto Balaam, What hast thou done vnto mee? I tooke thee to curse mine enemies, and beholde, thou hast blessed them altogether.
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 And he answered, and said, Must I not take heede to speake that, which the Lord hath put in my mouth?
To whom Balaam answeride, Whether Y may speke othir thing no but that that the Lord comaundith?
13 And Balak sayde vnto him, Come, I pray thee, with mee vnto another place, whence thou mayest see them, and thou shalt see but the vtmost part of them, and shalt not see them all: therefore curse them out of that place for my sake.
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 And he brought him into Sede-sophim to the top of Pisgah, and built seuen altars, and offred a bullocke, and a ramme on euery 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 After, he sayde vnto Balak, Stande here by thy burnt offring, and I wil meete the Lord yonder.
he seide to Balaach, Stonde here bisidis thi brent sacrifice, while Y go.
16 And the Lord mette Balaam, and put an answere in his mouth, and sayd, Goe againe vnto Balak, and say thus.
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 And when he came to him, beholde, hee stoode by his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab with him: so Balak sayde vnto him, What hath the Lord sayd?
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 And he vttered his parable, and sayde, Rise vp, Balak, and heare: hearken vnto me, thou sonne 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 as man, that he should lie, neither as the sonne of man that he shoulde repent: hath he sayde and shall he not do it? and hath he spoken, and shall he not accomplish it?
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 Behold, I haue receiued commandement to blesse: for he hath blessed, and I cannot alter it.
Y am brouyt to blesse, Y may not forbede blessyng.
21 Hee seeth none iniquitie in Iaakob, nor seeth no transgression in Israel: the Lord his God is with him, and the ioyfull shoute of a 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: their strength is as an vnicorne.
The Lord God ledde hym out of Egipt, whos strengthe is lijk an vnicorn;
23 For there is no sorcerie in Iaakob, nor soothsaying in Israel: according to this time it shalbe sayde of Iaakob and of Israel, What hath God wrought?
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 shall rise vp as a lyon, and lift vp himselfe as a yong lyon: hee shall not lye downe, till he eate of the pray, and till he drinke the blood of the slayne.
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 Then Balak sayde vnto Balaam, Neither curse, nor blesse them at all.
And Balach seide to Balaam, Nether curse thou, nether blesse thou hym.
26 But Balaam answered, and saide vnto Balak, Tolde not I thee, saying, All that the Lord speaketh, that must I do?
And he seide, Whether Y seide not to thee, that what euer thing that God comaundide to me, Y wolde do this?
27 Againe Balak sayd vnto Balaam, Come, I pray thee, I wil bring thee vnto another place, if so be it wil please God, that thou mayest thence curse them for my sake.
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 So Balak brought Balaam vnto the top of Peor, that looketh toward Ieshmon.
And whanne Balaach hadde led hym out on the `cop of the hil of Phegor, that biholdith the wildirnesse,
29 Then Balaam sayde vnto Balak, Make me here seuen altars, and prepare me here seuen bullocks, and seuen rammes.
Balaam seide to hym, Bilde here seuene auteris to me, and make redi so many caluys, and rammes of the same noumbre.
30 And Balak did as Balaam had sayd, and offred a bullocke and a ram on euery altar.
Balaach dide as Balaam seide, and he puttide caluys and rammes, bi alle auteris.
