Numbers 23:23 For there is no spell against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and Israel, 'What great things God has done!'

◄ Numbers 23:23 ►

New International Version
There is no divination against Jacob, no evil omens against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and of Israel, ‘See what God has done!’

New Living Translation
No curse can touch Jacob; no magic has any power against Israel. For now it will be said of Jacob, ‘What wonders God has done for Israel!’

English Standard Version
For there is no enchantment against Jacob, no divination against Israel; now it shall be said of Jacob and Israel, ‘What has God wrought!’

Berean Standard Bible
For there is no spell against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and Israel, ‘What great things God has done!’

King James Bible
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!

New King James Version
“For there is no sorcery against Jacob, Nor any divination against Israel. It now must be said of Jacob And of Israel, ‘Oh, what God has done!’

New American Standard Bible
“For there is no magic curse against Jacob, Nor is there any divination against Israel; At the proper time it shall be said to Jacob And to Israel, what God has done!

NASB 1995
“For there is no omen against Jacob, Nor is there any divination against Israel; At the proper time it shall be said to Jacob And to Israel, what God has done!

NASB 1977
“For there is no omen against Jacob, Nor is there any divination against Israel; At the proper time it shall be said to Jacob And to Israel, what God has done.

Legacy Standard Bible
For there is no omen against Jacob, Nor is there any divination against Israel; At the proper time it shall be said to Jacob And to Israel, what God has done!

Amplified Bible
“For there is no enchantment or omen against Jacob, Nor is there any divination against Israel. At the proper time it shall be said to Jacob And to Israel, what has God done!

Christian Standard Bible
There is no magic curse against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said about Jacob and Israel, “What great things God has done! ”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
There is no magic curse against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said about Jacob and Israel,” What great things God has done!”

American Standard Version
Surely there is no enchantment with Jacob; Neither is there any divination with Israel: Now shall it be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought!

Contemporary English Version
No magic charms can work against them--just look what God has done for his people.

English Revised Version
Surely there is no enchantment with Jacob, Neither is there any divination with Israel: Now shall it be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought!

GOD'S WORD® Translation
No spell can curse the descendants of Jacob. No magic can harm the people of Israel. Now it will be said of Jacob and Israel: 'See what God has done!'

Good News Translation
There is no magic charm, no witchcraft, That can be used against the nation of Israel. Now people will say about Israel, 'Look what God has done!'

International Standard Version
No Satanic plan against Jacob nor divination against Israel can ever prevail. When the time is right, it is to be asked about Jacob and Israel, 'What has God accomplished?'

Majority Standard Bible
For there is no spell against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and Israel, ?What great things God has done!?

NET Bible
For there is no spell against Jacob, nor is there any divination against Israel. At this time it must be said of Jacob and of Israel, 'Look at what God has done!'

New Heart English Bible
Surely there is no enchantment with Jacob; neither is there any divination with Israel. Now it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, what has God done.

Webster's Bible Translation
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!

World English Bible
Surely there is no enchantment with Jacob; neither is there any divination with Israel. Now it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, ‘What has God done!’

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
For no enchantment [is] against Jacob, "" Nor divination against Israel; At the time it is said of Jacob and Israel, "" O what God has worked!

Young's Literal Translation
For no enchantment is against Jacob, Nor divination against Israel, At the time it is said of Jacob and Israel, What hath God wrought!

Smith's Literal Translation
For no enchantment in Jacob, and no divination in Israel; according to the time it will be said to Jacob and to Israel, What did God do!

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
There is no soothsaying in Jacob, nor divination in Israel. In their times it shall be told to Jacob and to Israel what God hath wrought.

Catholic Public Domain Version
There is no soothsaying in Jacob, nor any divination in Israel. In their times, it shall be told to Jacob and to Israel what God has wrought.

New American Bible
No, there is no augury against Jacob, nor divination against Israel. Now it is said of Jacob, of Israel, “Look what God has done!”

New Revised Standard Version
Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, no divination against Israel; now it shall be said of Jacob and Israel, ‘See what God has done!’

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
For there is no augury in Jacob, neither is there any divination in Israel; according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, What has God wrought!

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Because no divination is in Yaquuv neither an oracle in Israel, according to this time it will be said to Yaquuv and to Israel, ‘What God has done!.’

OT Translations

JPS Tanakh 1917
For there is no enchantment with Jacob, Neither is there any divination with Israel; Now is it said of Jacob and of Israel: 'What hath God wrought!'

Brenton Septuagint Translation
For there is no divination in Jacob, nor enchantment in Israel; in season it shall be told to Jacob and Israel what God shall perform.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

Balaam's Second Oracle
…22God brought them out of Egypt with strength like a wild ox. 23For there is no spell against Jacob and no divination against Israel. It will now be said of Jacob and Israel, ‘What great things God has done!’ 24Behold, the people rise like a lioness; they rouse themselves like a lion, not resting until they devour their prey and drink the blood of the slain.”…

Berean Standard Bible · Download

Cross References

Isaiah 54:17
No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their vindication is from Me,” declares the LORD.

Deuteronomy 18:14-15
Though these nations, which you will dispossess, listen to conjurers and diviners, the LORD your God has not permitted you to do so. / The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must listen to him.

1 Samuel 28:9-10
But the woman replied, “Surely you know what Saul has done, how he has killed the mediums and spiritists in the land. Why have you set a trap to get me killed?” / Then Saul swore to her by the LORD: “As surely as the LORD lives, no punishment shall come upon you for this.”

Micah 5:12
I will cut the sorceries from your hand, and you will have no fortune-tellers.

Isaiah 8:19-20
When men tell you to consult mediums and spiritists who whisper and mutter, shouldn’t a people consult their God instead? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? / To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn.

Jeremiah 10:2
This is what the LORD says: “Do not learn the ways of the nations or be terrified by the signs in the heavens, though the nations themselves are terrified by them.

2 Kings 17:17
They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire and practiced divination and soothsaying. They devoted themselves to doing evil in the sight of the LORD, provoking Him to anger.

Ezekiel 13:23
therefore you will no longer see false visions or practice divination. I will deliver My people from your hands. Then you will know that I am the LORD.”

Acts 8:9-11
Prior to that time, a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and astounded the people of Samaria. He claimed to be someone great, / and all the people, from the least to the greatest, heeded his words and said, “This man is the divine power called the Great Power.” / They paid close attention to him because he had astounded them for a long time with his sorcery.

Galatians 3:1
O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.

2 Corinthians 6:14-16
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership can righteousness have with wickedness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness? / What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? / What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.”

Colossians 2:8
See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, which are based on human tradition and the spiritual forces of the world rather than on Christ.

Revelation 18:23
The light of a lamp will never shine in you again, and the voices of a bride and bridegroom will never call out in you again. For your merchants were the great ones of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery.”

1 John 4:4
You, little children, are from God and have overcome them, because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.

Matthew 12:27-28
And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. / But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

Treasury of Scripture

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 has God worked!

no enchantment

Numbers 22:6
Come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people; for they are too mighty for me: peradventure I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land: for I wot that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed.

Numbers 24:1
And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he went not, as at other times, to seek for enchantments, but he set his face toward the wilderness.

Genesis 3:15
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

against or in according

Psalm 44:1-3
To the chief Musician for the sons of Korah, Maschil. We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old…

Psalm 136:13-20
To him which divided the Red sea into parts: for his mercy endureth for ever: …

Isaiah 63:9-12
In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old…

what hath

Psalm 31:19
Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men!

Psalm 64:9
And all men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider of his doing.

Psalm 126:2,3
Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The LORD hath done great things for them…

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Numbers 23

1. Balak's sacrifices

Berean Study Bible

For there is no spell against Jacob
The Hebrew word for "spell" is "נַחַשׁ" (nachash), which can also mean enchantment or omen. In the ancient Near Eastern context, spells and omens were believed to have power over individuals and nations. However, this verse emphatically declares that such practices hold no power over Jacob, representing the people of Israel. This highlights God's sovereign protection over His chosen people, emphasizing that no human or demonic force can thwart His plans for them. The name "Jacob" here is significant as it recalls the patriarch who was renamed Israel, symbolizing the entire nation and God's covenant relationship with them.

and no divination against Israel
"Divination" in Hebrew is "קֶסֶם" (qesem), referring to the practice of seeking knowledge of the future or the unknown by supernatural means. In the biblical context, divination is often associated with pagan practices and is condemned by God. The phrase underscores that Israel is under divine protection, immune to the manipulations of those who would seek to harm them through such means. This assurance is rooted in God's covenant with Israel, affirming that His will prevails over any attempt to predict or alter the future through forbidden practices.

It will now be said of Jacob and Israel
This phrase anticipates a future declaration, a testimony to the surrounding nations of God's mighty works. The repetition of "Jacob and Israel" reinforces the identity of the people as both descendants of the patriarch Jacob and the nation chosen by God. It suggests a public acknowledgment of God's intervention and favor, which will be evident to all. This prophetic statement points to a time when God's actions on behalf of His people will be undeniable and celebrated.

'See what God has done!'
The exclamation "See what God has done!" is a call to witness and marvel at the deeds of the Almighty. It is an invitation to recognize God's active role in the history and destiny of Israel. This phrase encapsulates the theme of divine intervention and blessing, serving as a reminder of God's faithfulness and power. It reflects the broader biblical narrative where God's works are often a cause for praise and testimony among His people and the nations. The emphasis is on God's sovereignty and the fulfillment of His promises, encouraging believers to trust in His providential care and to proclaim His deeds to the world.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(23) Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob . . . --The verse may be rendered as follows: For there is no augury in Jacob, and there is no divina-Hon in Israel. At the (set) time it is told to Jacob and to Israel what God hath done (or, doth). The ordinary meaning of the words nahash (omen, or augury) and kesem (soothsaying, or divination), the use of the same preposition in Numbers 23:21 which is there rendered in, and more especially the second clause of the verse, seem to decide the meaning of the former clause to be as it is here given. The Israelites had no need of augury and divination, seeing that God revealed to them His acts. His counsel, and His will. "What is here affirmed of Israel," says Hengstenberg, "applies to the Church of all ages, and also to every individual believer. The Church of God knows from His own Word what God does, and what it has to do in consequence. The wisdom of this world resembles augury and divination. The Church of God, which is in possession of His word, has no need of it." (History of Balaam and his Prophecies, p. 441).

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 23. - Enchantment, נָחַשׁ. Rather, "augury." Septuagint, οἰωνισμός. See on Leviticus 19:26, where the practice is forbidden to Israel. Against Jacob, or, "in Jacob," as the marginal reading, and this is favoured by the Septuagint and the Targums, and is equally true and striking. It was the proud peculiarity of Israel that he trusted not to any magic arts or superstitious rites, uncertain in themselves, and always leading to imposture, but to the direction and favour of the Almighty. Divination. קֶסֶם. Septuagint, μαντεία. The art of the soothsayer. According to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel. Rather, "in season," i.e., in God's good time, "it shall be said to Jacob and to Israel. What hath God wrought! or, "what God doeth." The meaning seems to be that augury and divination were useless and vain in the case of Israel, because God himself declared and would declare his mighty acts in behalf of his people, and that by no uncertain vaticination, but by open declaration.

Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

For
כִּ֤י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

there is no
לֹא־ (lō-)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

spell
נַ֙חַשׁ֙ (na·ḥaš)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5173: Divination, enchantment

against Jacob
בְּיַעֲקֹ֔ב (bə·ya·‘ă·qōḇ)
Preposition-b | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3290: Jacob -- a son of Isaac, also his desc

and no
וְלֹא־ (wə·lō-)
Conjunctive waw | Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

divination
קֶ֖סֶם (qe·sem)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 7081: A lot, divination, oracle

against Israel.
בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל (bə·yiś·rā·’êl)
Preposition-b | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3478: Israel -- 'God strives', another name of Jacob and his desc

It will now
כָּעֵ֗ת (kā·‘êṯ)
Preposition-k, Article | Noun - common singular
Strong's 6256: Time, now, when

be said
יֵאָמֵ֤ר (yê·’ā·mêr)
Verb - Nifal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

of Jacob
לְיַעֲקֹב֙ (lə·ya·‘ă·qōḇ)
Preposition-l | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3290: Jacob -- a son of Isaac, also his desc

and Israel,
וּלְיִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל (ū·lə·yiś·rā·’êl)
Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3478: Israel -- 'God strives', another name of Jacob and his desc

‘What
מַה־ (mah-)
Interrogative
Strong's 4100: What?, what!, indefinitely what

great things God
אֵֽל׃ (’êl)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 410: Strength -- as adjective, mighty, the Almighty

has done!’
פָּ֖עַל (pā·‘al)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6466: To do, make, to practise

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OT Law: Numbers 23:23 Surely there is no enchantment with Jacob (Nu Num.)