Tyndale Open Study Notes on Numbers 23:1

A historical reference excerpt for this verse. Read it alongside the biblical text and other available sources.

Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Modern study notes
Source: BibleWord.ai's local reference edition of this named work.

23:1-30 As a diviner, Balaam performed rituals to interpret omens and ascertain Israel’s future (cp. 23:23; 24:1). Balak had summoned him to pronounce imprecations, but God repeatedly prohibited him from doing so. • It is possible that these sacrifices were connected with the practice of extispicy—the examination of animal livers or other organs for an omen concerning the future. According to ancient Near Eastern texts, this form of fortune-telling was a widely practiced and highly developed art. Such practices were banned from Israel (see Deut 18:9-14; cp. Ezek 21:21). 23:1 The number seven was a sacred symbol (also 23:4, 14, 29; cp. Job 42:8; see “Symbolic Numbers” Theme Note).

Read Numbers 23:1 →Read the full chapter →John Gill's Exposition →Jamieson, Fausset & Brown →Barnes' Notes →Wesley's Explanatory Notes →Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge →Keil & Delitzsch →

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