Numbers 24:24
in Numbers 24Ships will come from the coasts of Cyprus; they will subdue Asshur and Eber, but they too will perish forever.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
But ships shall come from the coast of Kittim, And they shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber; And he also shall come to destruction.
KJV
And ships shall come from the coast of Chittim, and shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber, and he also shall perish for ever.
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This verse in Numbers 24
Commentary
7 notes on this verseShips shall come from the coast of Chittim - Some think by Chittim the Romans, others the Macedonians under Alexander the Great, are meant. It is certain that the Romans did conquer the Assyrians, including all the people of Syria, Mesopotamia, etc., but Calmet strongly contends that by Chittim Macedonia is meant, and that the prophecy refers to the conquests of Alexander. Chittim was one of the sons of Javan, the son of Japheth, the son of Noah, Gen 10:4; and his posterity, according to Josephus, Antiq., 1. iii., c.
This site's exposition
who can live unless God has ordained it
on Numbers 24:23-25
The last oracle names nobody for the ships, only the coasts of Cyprus, which the Hebrew calls Kittim, as at Daniel 11:30. Balaam arose and returned to his homeland, and next appears at 31:8.
This site's exposition
they too will perish forever
Jamieson, Fausset and Brown read the ships as the Greeks under Alexander and then the Romans. They take the last line of those conquerors themselves. John Wesley remarks on the whole series: Balaam, hired to curse Israel, ends by cursing Amalek, its first enemy, and Rome, its last.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Eber - The posterity of Eber, the Hebrew, who were the chief and flower of Eber's children. He also - Not the Hebrew: they shall have a better end; all Israel shall be saved; but the afflicter or scourge of Ashur and Eber, namely, the Grecian and Roman empire.
And ships shall come from the coast of Chittim,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
The Assyrians were themselves to be overthrown--first, by the Greeks under Alexander the Great and his successors; secondly, by the Romans. Eber--the posterity of the Hebrews (Ge 10:24). he also shall perish--that is, the conqueror of Asher and Eber, namely, the Greek and Roman empires.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Chittim - i. e., Cyprus, the nearest of the western islands, the only one visible from Palestine, and so the representative to Balsam and to Israel of all those unknown western regions across the Mediterranean Sea, from which were at length to come the conquerors of the mighty empires of the East. Compare Isa 23:1, Isa 23:12; Jer 2:10. Eber - i. e., the descendants of Shem. Of these Asshur was one (compare marginal references), and is here specified by name, since the Assyrians attained, in the empires of Babylon and Nineveh, to an extraordinary grandeur, and were destined to a most signal and irretrievable fall. He also - i. e., the conqueror of Asshur and Eber who should come across the sea. It is not revealed from where the blow should come that should overthrow in its turn the power that prevailed over the great monarchies of the East.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְצִים֙ | vetzim | and ships | H6716 → | |
| מִיַּ֣ד | miyad | [will be] from [the] hand of | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| כִּתִּ֔ים | kitim | Kittim | H3794 → | |
| וְעִנּ֥וּ | veinu | and they will afflict | H6031 → | 82 times |
| אַשּׁ֖וּר | ʾashur | Asshur | H804 → | |
| וְעִנּוּ־ | veinu- | and they will afflict | H6031 → | 82 times |
| עֵ֑בֶר | ʾever | Eber | H5677 → | |
| וְגַם־ | vegam- | and also | H1571 → | 769 times |
| ה֖וּא | hu' | it | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| עֲדֵ֥י | ʾadei | [will be] to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| אֹבֵֽד׃ | ʾoved | destruction | H8 → |
וְצִים֙and ships
vetzimH6716 →
מִיַּ֣ד[will be] from [the] hand of
miyadH3027 →1618 times
כִּתִּ֔יםKittim
kitimH3794 →
וְעִנּ֥וּand they will afflict
veinuH6031 →82 times
אַשּׁ֖וּרAsshur
ʾashurH804 →
וְעִנּוּ־and they will afflict
veinu-H6031 →82 times
עֵ֑בֶרEber
ʾeverH5677 →
וְגַם־and also
vegam-H1571 →769 times
ה֖וּאit
hu'H1931 →1879 times
עֲדֵ֥י[will be] to
ʾadeiH5704 →1261 times
אֹבֵֽד׃destruction
ʾovedH8 →
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
Daniel 11:30Ships of Kittim will come against him, and he will lose heart. Then he will turn back and rage against the holy covenant and do damage. So he will return and show favor to…
it leads to
- Isaiah 23:12
He said, “You shall rejoice no more, O oppressed Virgin Daughter of Sidon. Get up and cross over to Cyprus—even there you will find no rest.”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Genesis 10:4
And the sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittites, and the Rodanites.
- Daniel 11:28
The king of the North will return to his land with great wealth, but his heart will be set against the holy covenant; so he will do damage and return to his own land.
- Jeremiah 2:10
Cross over to the coasts of Cyprus and take a look; send to Kedar and consider carefully; see if there has ever been anything like this:
- Isaiah 23:12
Through
Numbers 24:20Then Balaam saw Amalek and lifted up an oracle, saying: “Amalek was first among the nations, but his end is destruction.”
it leads to
- Exodus 17:14
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as a reminder and recite it to Joshua, because I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.”
- Exodus 17:14
Through
Daniel 10:20“Do you know why I have come to you?” he said. “I must return at once to fight against the prince of Persia, and when I have gone forth, behold, the prince of Greece…
it leads to
- Daniel 8:21
The shaggy goat represents the king of Greece, and the large horn between his eyes is the first king.
- Daniel 11:2–4
Now then, I will tell you the truth: Three more kings will arise in Persia, and then a fourth, who will be far richer than all the others. By the power of his wealth,…
- Daniel 8:21
Through
Genesis 10:4And the sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittites, and the Rodanites.
it leads to
- Isaiah 23:1
This is the burden against Tyre: Wail, O ships of Tarshish, for Tyre is laid waste, without house or harbor. Word has reached them from the land of Cyprus.
- Isaiah 23:1
Where this verse is studied
About Numbers
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Notes on the Old Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch.