< Numbers 22 >
1 And the children of Israel set forward, and encamped in the plains of Moab, on this side of the Jordan, opposite Jericho.
Derefter brød Israeliterne op derfra og slog Lejer paa Moabs Sletter hinsides Jordan over for Jeriko.
2 And Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Emorites.
Da Balak, Zippors Søn, saa alt, hvad Israel havde gjort ved Amoriterne,
3 And Moab was greatly afraid of the people, because it was numerous; and Moab was horrified because of the children of Israel.
grebes Moab af Rædsel for Folket, fordi det var saa talrigt, og Moab gruede for Israeliterne.
4 And Moab said unto the elders of Midian, Now will this assemblage devour all that is round about us, as the ox devoureth the grass of the field; and Balak the son of Zippor was king of Moab at that time.
Da sagde Moab til Midjaniternes Ældste: »Nu vil denne Menneskemasse opæde alt, hvad der er rundt omkring os, som Okserne opæder Græsset paa Marken!« Paa den Tid var Balak, Zippors Søn, Konge over Moab.
5 And he sent messengers unto Bil'am the son of Beor to Pethor, which is by the river, in the land of the children of his people, to have him called; saying, Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt; behold, it covereth the surface of the earth, and it is abiding opposite to me:
Han sendte nu Sendebud til Bileam, Beors Søn, i Petor, der ligger ved Floden, til Ammoniternes Land, og bad ham komme til sig, idet han lod sige: »Se, et Folk er udvandret fra Ægypten; se, det har oversvømmet Landet og slaaet sig ned lige over for mig.
6 And now do but come, curse me this people; for it is too mighty for me; peradventure I may be able to smite it, that I may drive it out of the land; for I know that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed.
Kom nu og forband mig det Folk, thi det er mig for mægtigt: maaske jeg da kan slaa det og jage det ud af Landet. Thi jeg ved, at den, du velsigner, er velsignet, og den, du forbander, forbandet!«
7 And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the rewards of divination in their hand; and they came unto Bil'am, and spoke unto him the words of Balak.
Da gav Moabs og Midjans Ældste sig paa Vej, forsynede med Spaamandsløn, og da de kom til Bileam, overbragte de ham Balaks Ord.
8 And he said unto them, Remain you here this night, and I will bring you word again, as the Lord may speak unto me; and the princes of Moab abode with Bil'am.
Han sagde til dem: »Bliv her Natten over, saa skal jeg give eder Svar, efter som HERREN vil tale til mig!« Moabs Høvdinger blev da hos Bileam.
9 And God came unto Bil'am, and said, Who are these men with thee?
Men Gud kom til Bileam og spurgte: »Hvem er de Mænd, som er hos dig?«
10 And Bil'am said unto God, Balak the son of Zippor, the king of Moab, hath sent unto me, [saying, ]
Men Bileam svarede Gud: »Zippors Søn, Kong Balak af Moab, har sendt mig det Bud:
11 Behold, there is the people that is come out of Egypt, and covereth the face of the earth: now come, denounce it for me; peradventure I shall be able to fight against it, and drive it away.
Se, et Folk er udvandret fra Ægypten og har oversvømmet Landet! Kom nu og forband mig det, maaske jeg da kan overvinde det og jage det bort!«
12 And God said unto Bil'am, Thou shalt not go with them: thou shalt not curse the people; for it is blessed.
Men Gud sagde til Bileam: »Du maa ikke gaa med dem, du maa ikke forbande det Folk, thi det er velsignet!«
13 And Bil'am rose up in the morning, and said unto the princes of Balak, Go back to your land; for the Lord refuseth to give me leave to go with you.
Næste Morgen stod Bileam op og sagde til Balaks Høvdinger: »Vend tilbage til eders Land, thi HERREN vægrer sig ved at give mig Tilladelse til at følge med eder!«
14 And the princes of Moab rose up, and they went unto Balak, and said, Bil'am refuseth to come with us.
Da brød Moabs Høvdinger op, og de kom til Balak og meldte: »Bileam vægrede sig ved at følge med os!«
15 And Balak sent yet again princes, more in number, and more honorable than those.
Men Balak sendte paa ny Høvdinger af Sted, flere og mere ansete end de forrige;
16 And they came to Bil'am, and said to him, Thus hath said Balak the son of Zippor, Do not suffer thyself, I pray thee, to be prevented from coming unto me;
og de kom til Bileam og sagde til ham: »Saaledes siger Balak, Zippors Søn: Undslaa dig ikke for at komme til mig!
17 For I will honor thee greatly, and whatsoever thou mayest say unto me will I do: and only come, I pray thee, denounce me this people.
Jeg vil lønne dig rigeligt og gøre alt, hvad du kræver af mig. Kom nu og forband mig det Folk!«
18 And Bil'am answered and said unto the servants of Balak, If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not transgress the order of the Lord my God, to do a small or a great thing.
Men Bileam svarede Balaks Folk: »Om Balak saa giver mig alt det Sølv og Guld, han har i sit Hus, formaar jeg dog hverken at gøre lidt eller meget imod HERREN min Guds Befaling;
19 And now, I pray you, tarry ye also here this night, that I may know what the Lord will farther speak with me.
bliv derfor ogsaa I her Natten over, for at jeg kan faa at vide, hvad HERREN yderligere vil tale til mig!«
20 And God came unto Bil'am at night, and said unto him, If to call thee the men have come, rise up, go with them; but only the word which I shall speak unto thee, that shalt thou do.
Da kom Gud om Natten til Bileam og sagde til ham: »Er disse Mænd kommet til dig for at hente dig, saa følg med dem; men du maa ikke gøre andet, end hvad jeg siger dig!«
21 And Bil'am rose up in the morning, and saddled his ass, and went with the princes of Moab.
Saa stod Bileam op næste Morgen og sadlede sit Æsel og fulgte med Moabs Høvdinger.
22 And the anger of God was kindled, because he went; and an angel of the Lord placed himself in the way to be a hindrance to him; and he was riding upon his ass, and his two servants were with him.
Men Guds Vrede blussede op, fordi han fulgte med, og HERRENS Engel stillede sig paa Vejen for at staa ham imod, da han kom ridende paa sit Æsel fulgt af sine to Tjenere.
23 And the ass saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, with his sword drawn in his hand; and the ass turned aside out of the way, and went into the field: and Bil'am smote the ass, to make her turn into the way.
Da nu Æselet saa HERRENS Engel staa paa Vejen med draget Sværd i Haanden, veg det ud fra Vejen og gik ind paa Marken; men Bileam slog Æselet for at tvinge det tilbage paa Vejen.
24 But the angel of the Lord stepped into a path between the vineyards, [with] a wall on this side, and a wall on that side.
Da stillede HERRENS Engel sig i Hulvejen mellem Vingaardene, hvor der var Mure paa begge Sider;
25 And when the ass saw the angel of the Lord, she forced herself against the wall, and pressed Bil'am's foot against the wall: and he smote her again.
og da Æselet saa HERRENS Engel, trykkede det sig op til Muren, saa det trykkede Bileams Fod op mod Muren, og han gav sig atter til at slaa det.
26 And the angel of the Lord went yet farther, and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn either to the right or to the left.
HERRENS Engel gik nu længere frem og stillede sig i en Snævring, hvor det ikke var muligt at komme til Siden, hverken til højre eller venstre.
27 And when the ass saw the angel of the Lord, she lay down under Bil'am: whereupon Bil'am's anger was kindled, and he smote the ass with a stick.
Da Æselet saa HERRENS Engel, lagde det sig ned med Bileam. Da blussede Bileams Vrede op, og han gav sig til at slaa Æselet med Stokken.
28 And the Lord opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Bil'am, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?
Men HERREN aabnede Æselets Mund, og det sagde til Bileam: »Hvad har jeg gjort dig, siden du nu har slaaet mig tre Gange?«
29 And Bil'am said unto the ass, Because thou hast mocked me: had I but a sword in my hand, I would assuredly have now killed thee.
Bileam svarede Æselet: »Du har drillet mig; havde jeg haft et Sværd i Haanden, havde jeg slaaet dig ihjel!«
30 And the ass said unto Bil'am, Am not I thy ass, upon which thou hast ridden from thy commencement unto this day? was I ever wont to do so unto thee? and he said, No.
Men Æselet sagde til Bileam: »Er jeg ikke dit eget Æsel, som du har redet al din Tid indtil i Dag? Har jeg ellers haft for Vane at bære mig saaledes ad over for dig?« Han svarede: »Nej!«
31 Then the Lord opened the eyes of Bil'am, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, with his sword drawn in his hand: and he bowed down his head and prostrated himself on his face.
Da aabnede HERREN Bileams Øjne, og han saa HERRENS Engel staa paa Vejen med draget Sværd i Haanden; og han bøjede sig og kastede sig ned paa sit Ansigt.
32 And the angel of the Lord said unto him, Wherefore hast thou smitten thy ass these three times? behold, I went out to be a hindrance; because the journey which is odious to me was too quickly begun.
Men HERRENS Engel sagde til ham: »Hvorfor slog du dit Æsel de tre Gange? Se, jeg er gaaet ud for at staa dig imod, thi du handlede overilet ved at rejse imod min Vilje.
33 And the ass saw me, and turned aside before me these three times; if she had not turned aside from me, I would surely now not only have slain thee, but saved her alive.
Æselet saa mig og veg tre Gange til Side for mig; og var det ikke veget til Side for mig, havde jeg slaaet dig ihjel, men skaanet dets Liv!«
34 And Bil'am said unto the angel of the Lord, I have sinned; for I knew not that thou wast standing against me in the way; but now, if it be evil in thy eyes, I will return home again.
Da sagde Bileam til HERRENS Engel: »Jeg har syndet, jeg vidste jo ikke, at det var dig, der traadte i Vejen for mig. Men hvis det er dig imod, vil jeg atter vende tilbage.«
35 And the angel of the Lord said unto Bil'am, Go with the men; however, only the word which I will speak unto thee, that shalt thou speak: and Bil'am went with the princes of Balak.
HERRENS Engel sagde til Bileam: »Følg blot med disse Mænd, men du maa kun sige de Ord, jeg siger dig!« Saa fulgte Bileam med Balaks Høvdinger.
36 And when Balak heard that Bil'am was come, he went out to meet him unto 'Ir-Moab, which is on the border of Arnon, which is at the outmost end of the boundary.
Da Balak nu hørte, at Bileam var undervejs, gik han ham i Møde til Ar Moab ved den Grænse, Arnon danner, den yderste Grænse.
37 And Balak said unto Bil'am, Did I not earnestly send unto thee to have thee called? wherefore camest thou not unto me? in truth, am I not able to honor thee?
Og Balak sagde til Bileam: »Sendte jeg dig ikke Bud og bad dig komme? Hvorfor kom du da ikke til mig? Skulde jeg virkelig være ude af Stand til at lønne dig?«
38 And Bil'am said unto Balak, Lo, I am come unto thee; have I now any power whatever to speak the least? the word that God may put in my mouth, that alone must I speak.
Bileam sagde til Balak: »Se, nu er jeg kommet til dig; men mon det staar i min Magt at sige noget? Det Ord, Gud lægger mig i Munden, maa jeg tale!«
39 And Bil'am went with Balak, and they came unto Kiryath-chuzoth.
Da fulgte Bileam med Balak, og de kom til Kirjat-Huzot.
40 And Balak slew oxen and sheep, and sent to Bil'am and to the princes that were with him.
Balak ofrede her Hornkvæg og Smaakvæg og sendte noget til Bileam og Høvdingerne, der var hos ham.
41 And it came to pass in the morning, that Balak took Bil'am, and brought him up into the high places of Baal, and he saw thence a portion of the people.
Næste Morgen tog Balak Bileam med sig og førte ham op til Bamot-Ba'al, hvorfra han kunde øjne den yderste Del af Folket.