Balaam prophesied about the Israelis again

13 Then King Balak told Balaam, “Come with me to another place. There you will see only part of the Israeli people, and you will be able to curse those people for me.” 14 So Balak took Balaam to a field on the top of Pisgah Mountain. There, again he built seven altars and offered a young bull and a ram as a sacrifice on each altar.

15 Then Balaam said to the king, “Stand here close to your burned offerings, while I go and talk with Yahweh.”

16 So Balaam did that, and Yahweh appeared to Balaam again and gave him another message. Then he said, “Go back to Balak and tell him that message.”

17 So Balaam returned to where the king and the leaders from Moab were standing, next to the altar where Balak had burned the sacrifices. Balak asked him, “What did Yahweh say?”

18 Then Balaam told him this message:

“Balak, listen carefully;

hear what I have to say, you son of Zippor [DOU]!

19 God is not a human being.

Humans lie, but God never lies.

He never changes his mind/thoughts, as humans do.

Whatever he has said that he will do, he does.

20 He commanded me to request him to bless the Israelis,

So he has blessed them, and I cannot change that.

21 Yahweh their God is with/helping them;

they have declared that he is their true king.

So the descendants of Jacob will not be harmed;

they will not have any troubles [DOU].

22 God brought them out of Egypt where they were slaves;

he is as strong as a wild ox.

23 When people curse [PRS] the descendants of Jacob, they will not be harmed;

when people work sorcery on them, it will have no power.

So now people will say about the descendants of Jacob,

‘God has done wonderful things for the Israelis!’

24 They are very strong, like lionesses that are ready to attack other animals;

they stand firm like lions.

The lions refuse to rest until they have killed and eaten their prey,

and drunk the blood of the animals they slaughtered.”

25 Then Balak said to Balaam, “If you will not curse them, then I certainly do not want you to bless them!”

26 But Balaam replied, “I told you that I must do only what Yahweh tells me to do!”