Numbers 23:12
in Numbers 23But Balaam replied, “Should I not speak exactly what the LORD puts in my mouth?”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he answered and said, Must I not take heed to speak that which Jehovah putteth in my mouth?
KJV
And he answered and said, Must I not take heed to speak that which the Lord hath put in my mouth?
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This verse in Numbers 23
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
I brought you here to curse my enemies
on Numbers 23:11-12
Balak paid for a curse and heard a blessing, and his question is that of a man who thought he had bought an outcome. Balaam's reply is true, and he had said it at 22:38 before he left home. Still he took the fee and came.
This site's exposition
speak exactly what the LORD puts
John Wesley hears a plea to be excused: was it not his duty, and could Balak blame him for it? Matthew Henry calls it a confession of God's power forced from a wicked prophet, to the greater confusion of a wicked prince. Yet Balaam follows Balak to the next hill.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
23 Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel: according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought! 24 Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
And he answered and said,.... By reply to Balak: must I not take heed to speak that which the Lord hath put in my mouth? pretending a great regard to the word of God, and to great carefulness to speak it, exactly and punctually as he received it, whereas he was forced to it, and could not do otherwise.
The words behind it
11 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיַּ֖עַן | vaiyaan | and he answered | H6030 → | 331 times |
| וַיֹּאמַ֑ר | vaiyomar | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| הֲלֹ֗א | halo' | ¿ not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| אֵת֩ | ʾet | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֨ר | ʾasher | [that] which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יָשִׂ֤ים | yasim | he will put | H7760 → | 584 times |
| יְהוָה֙ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| בְּפִ֔י | befi | in mouth my | H6310 → | 498 times |
| אֹת֥וֹ | ʾoto | <obj.> it | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֶשְׁמֹ֖ר | ʾeshmor | will I take care | H8104 → | 468 times |
| לְדַבֵּֽר׃ | ledaber | to speak | H1696 → | 1141 times |
וַיַּ֖עַןand he answered
vaiyaanH6030 →331 times
וַיֹּאמַ֑רand he said
vaiyomarH559 →5305 times
הֲלֹ֗א¿ not
halo'H3808 →5168 times
אֵת֩<obj.>
ʾetH853 →10935 times
אֲשֶׁ֨ר[that] which
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
יָשִׂ֤יםhe will put
yasimH7760 →584 times
יְהוָה֙Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
בְּפִ֔יin mouth my
befiH6310 →498 times
אֹת֥וֹ<obj.> it
ʾotoH853 →10935 times
אֶשְׁמֹ֖רwill I take care
ʾeshmorH8104 →468 times
לְדַבֵּֽר׃to speak
ledaberH1696 →1141 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Proverbs 26:25When he speaks graciously, do not believe him, for seven abominations fill his heart.
it leads to
- Proverbs 6:16–19
There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to Him:
- Psalms 28:3
Do not drag me away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, who speak peace to their neighbors while malice is in their hearts.
- Proverbs 6:16–19
Through
Numbers 23:20I have indeed received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot change it.
it leads to
- John 10:27–29
My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me.
- Numbers 22:12
But God said to Balaam, “Do not go with them. You are not to curse this people, for they are blessed.”
- Genesis 12:2
I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
- Genesis 22:17
I will surely bless you, and I will multiply your descendants like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the gates of their enemies.
- Isaiah 43:13
Even from eternity I am He, and none can deliver out of My hand. When I act, who can reverse it?”
- John 10:27–29
Through
Numbers 23:26But Balaam replied, “Did I not tell you that whatever the LORD says, I must do?”
it leads to
- Numbers 22:18
But Balaam replied to the servants of Balak, “If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not do anything small or great to go beyond the command…
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Numbers 22:18
Where this verse is studied
About Numbers
This page draws on John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Notes on the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.