The Daily Audio Bible

²¹ (So) Balaam rose early, and when his she ass was saddled, he went forth with them.

²² And God was wroth with Balaam. And the angel of the Lord stood in the way against Balaam, that sat upon the she ass, and had two servants with him. (But God was angry with Balaam for going. And so the angel of the Lord stood in the way against Balaam, who rode on his donkey, and had his two servants with him.)

²³ The (she) ass saw the angel standing in the way, with sword drawn, and the (she) ass turned herself from the way, and went by the field (And the donkey saw the angel standing in the way, with his sword drawn, and she turned herself from the way, and went into a field). And when Balaam beat her, and would lead her again to the path,

²⁴ the angel stood in the straitness of two walls with which the vineries were (en)compassed. (the angel stood in the narrowness between two walls which went all around, or enclosed, the vineyards on either side.)

²⁵ And the female ass saw the angel, and she went herself nigh to the wall, and she hurtled the foot of the sitter upon her; and he beat again her. (And the female donkey saw the angel again, and she brought herself near to the wall, and hurtled the foot of her rider against it; and so he beat her again.)

²⁶ And nevertheless the angel went to a strait place, where was no going out of the way, neither to the right side, nor to the left, and stood against Balaam (Nevertheless the angel went to a narrow place, where there was no going out of the way, neither to the right side, nor to the left, and stood before Balaam.)

²⁷ And when the (she) ass saw the angel standing (there), she felled down under the feet of the sitter upon her, the which was wroth full greatly (who then was greatly angered), and (once more) he beat her sides with a staff.

²⁸ And the Lord opened the mouth of the (she) ass, and she spake, (And the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and she said), What have I done to thee? why smitest thou me, lo! now the third time?

²⁹ Balaam answered, For thou hast dis-served (me), and hast scorned me; I would that I had a sword to slay thee.

³⁰ And the (she) ass said, Whether I am not thy beast upon which thou were wont to ride ever[more] till into this present day? say thou, what like thing to this I did ever to thee? And Balaam said, Never thus thou servedest me. (And the donkey said, Am I not the beast upon which thou were always wont to ride until this present day? say thou, what thing like this have I ever done to thee before? And Balaam said, Never before hast thou served me thus.)

³¹ Anon the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel standing in the way, holding a drawn sword in his hand; and Balaam worshipped him lowly into the earth. (And at once the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel standing in the way, holding a drawn sword in his hand; and Balaam worshipped, or honoured, him lowly on the ground.)

³² To whom the angel said, Why hast thou thrice beaten thine ass? I came (here) to be (an) adversary to thee, for thy way is wayward, and contrary to me;

³³ and if the (she) ass had not bowed away from the way, and given place to the against-stander, I had slain thee, and the (she) ass should have lived. (and if the donkey had not turned aside from the way, and given place to the one who stood against thee, I would have already killed thee, but the donkey would have lived.)

³⁴ Balaam said, I have sinned, not witting that thou stoodest against me; and now, if it displeaseth thee that I go, I shall turn again. (And Balaam said, I have sinned, not knowing that thou stoodest against me; and now, if it displeaseth thee I shall turn back/I shall go back home.)

³⁵ The angel said, (Nay,) Go thou with these men, but beware, that thou speak not [any] other thing than (what) I shall command to thee. Therefore Balaam went with the princes (And so Balaam went forth with Balak’s leaders).

³⁶ And when Balak heard that Balaam was nigh, he went out into the coming of him, in (Ar,) the city of Moabites, which is set in the last coast of (the) Arnon. (And when Balak heard that Balaam was near, he went out to meet him, at Ar, the city of the Moabites, which is set on their most distant border, by the Arnon River.)

³⁷ And Balak said to Balaam, I sent messengers to call thee; why camest thou not anon to me? whether for I may not yield meed to thy coming? (And Balak said to Balaam, I sent messengers to call thee; why did thou not come at once to me? did you think that I would not reward thee for coming?)

³⁸ To whom Balaam answered, Lo! I am present, (but) whether I shall be able to speak (any) other thing than that, that God shall put in my mouth? (To whom Balaam answered, Lo! I am present, but do not think that I shall speak anything, other than what God himself shall put in my mouth!)

³⁹ Therefore they went forth together, and they came into a city, which was in the last coast of his realm (which was Kiriathhuzoth, that is, the City of Huzoth).

⁴⁰ And when Balak had slain sheep, and oxen, he sent (part of them as) gifts to Balaam and the princes that were with him.

⁴¹ Forsooth when the morrowtide was made, Balak led Balaam (up) to the high places of Baal (Balak led Balaam up to Bamoth Baal, that is, the Heights of Baal), and (there) he beheld (unto) the last part of the people, that is, (he saw) all the host (of the Israelites) till to the last part.

23 And Balaam said to Balak, Build thou here to me seven altars, and make thou ready so many calves, and rams of the same number. (And Balaam said to Balak, Build thou here seven altars for me, and prepare seven calves, and the same number of rams.)

² And when Balak had done by the word of Balaam, they putted a calf and a ram together on the altar. (And when Balak had done what Balaam had asked, they offered a calf and a ram on each altar.)

³ And (then) Balaam said to Balak, Stand thou (here) a little while beside thy burnt sacrifice, while I go, if in hap the Lord (shall) meet (with) me; and I shall tell thee whatever thing he shall command. And when he had gone [away] swiftly (And when he had quickly gone away by himself),

⁴ God came to him; and Balaam spake to him, and said, I have raised up seven altars, and I have put a calf and a ram above each of them (and I have put a calf and a ram on each of them).

⁵ Forsooth the Lord putted a word in his mouth, and said, Turn again to Balak, and thou shalt speak these things. (And the Lord put a word in his mouth, and said, Return to Balak, and thou shalt say these things to him.)

⁶ He turned again, and found Balak standing beside his burnt sacrifice, and all the princes of Moabites. (And he returned, and found Balak standing beside his burnt sacrifice, he and all the leaders of the Moabites.)

⁷ And when his parable was taken, he said, Balak, the king of Moabites, brought me from Aram, from the hills of the east; and he said, Come thou, and curse Jacob; haste thou, and curse Israel. (And when he had received his prophecy, he said, Balak, the king of the Moabites, brought me from Syria, yea, from the hills of the east; and he said, Come thou, and curse Jacob; hurry thou, and curse Israel.)

⁸ How shall I curse, whom God hath cursed not? (But how can I curse, whom God hath not cursed?) by what reason shall I loathe, whom God loatheth not?

⁹ From the highest flints I shall see him, and from the little hills I shall behold him; the people shall dwell alone, and it shall not be reckoned among heathen men. (From the highest rocks I shall see them, and from the little hills I shall behold them; these people shall live alone, and they shall not be counted among the heathen.)

¹⁰ Who may number the dust, that is, the kindred, of Jacob, and who may know the number of the generation of Israel? My life die in the death of just men, and my last things be made like them! (O let me die like the righteous die, and let my ending be made like theirs!)

¹¹ And Balak said to Balaam, What is this that thou doest? I called thee, that thou shouldest curse mine enemies, and on the contrary, thou blessest them.

¹² To whom Balaam answered, Whether I may speak (any) other thing, no but that that the Lord commandeth?

¹³ Therefore Balak said to Balaam, Come with me into another place, from whence thou mayest see a part of Israel, and thou mayest not see all; from thence curse thou him. (And so Balak said to Balaam, Come with me to another place, from where thou can see a part of the Israelites, but thou cannot see all of them; and curse thou them from there.)

¹⁴ And when he had led Balaam into an high place, on the top of the hill of Pisgah, he builded there seven altars to Balaam, and when calves and rams were put above them, (And so when he had led Balaam to the Field of Zophim, that is, to the Field of the Watchers, on top of Mount Pisgah, he built seven altars for Balaam, and when a calf and a ram were offered on each altar,)

¹⁵ Balaam said to Balak, Stand here beside thy burnt sacrifice, while I go to meet with the Lord.

¹⁶ And when the Lord had met with Balaam, and had put a word in his mouth, he said, Turn again to Balak (Return to Balak), and thou shalt say these things to him.

¹⁷ He turned again, and found Balak standing beside his burnt sacrifice, and the princes of Moabites with him. To whom Balak said, What hath spoken the Lord? (And he returned, and found Balak standing beside his burnt sacrifice, and the leaders of the Moabites with him. And Balak said to him, What hath the Lord said?)

¹⁸ And when his parable was taken (And when he had received his prophecy), he said, Stand thou (up), Balak, and harken; hear, thou son of Zippor.

¹⁹ God is not a man, that he (can) lie, neither he is as the son of a man, that he (can) be changed; therefore he hath said, and shall he not do it? he hath spoken, and shall he not fulfill it?

²⁰ I am brought hither by the Lord to bless; (and) I may not forbid, or hinder, (the) blessing.

²¹ None idol is in Jacob, neither simulacrum is seen in Israel; his Lord God is with him, and the sound of the victory of a king is in him. (There is no idolatry in Jacob, no false god is seen in Israel; the Lord their God is with them, and they hear the shout of the victory of their King.)

²² The Lord God led him out of Egypt, whose strength is like an unicorn; (The Lord God led them out of Egypt, whose strength is like a wild ox;)

²³ false divining by (the) chittering of birds is not in Jacob, neither false divining is in Israel. In his times, (that is,) when, where, and how God will, it shall be said to Jacob and to Israel, What the Lord hath wrought! (false divining by the twittering of birds is not in Jacob, yea, false divining is not in Israel. In his own timing, that is, when, where, and how God desireth it, it shall be said of Jacob, and of Israel, What the Lord hath wrought!/Yea, at this time, it can be said of Jacob, and of Israel, What the Lord hath wrought!)

²⁴ Lo! the people shall rise together as a lioness, and it shall be raised as a lion (Lo! the people shall rise up like a lioness, and they shall be raised up like a lion); the lion shall not rest, till he devour [the] prey, and drink the blood of them that be slain.

²⁵ And Balak said to Balaam, Neither curse thou, neither bless thou him. (And Balak said to Balaam, If thou wilt not curse them, at least do not thou bless them!)

²⁶ And Balaam said, Whether I said not to thee, that whatever thing God commanded to me, I would do that?

²⁷ And Balak said to him, Come, and I shall lead thee to another place, if in hap it pleaseth God that from thence thou curse him (perhaps it shall please God that thou curse them from there).

²⁸ And when Balak had led him out on(to) the top of the hill of Peor, that beholdeth the wilderness, (And when Balak had led Balaam to the top of Mount Peor, that overlooketh Jeshimon, that is, the wilderness,)

²⁹ Balaam said to Balak, Build here seven altars to me, and make ready so many calves, and rams of the same number. (Balaam said to Balak, Now also build seven altars here for me, and prepare seven calves, and the same number of rams.)

³⁰ Balak did as Balaam said, and he put the calves and the rams, by all the altars. (And Balak did as Balaam said, and he put a calf and a ram on each of the altars.)

⁵⁷ But the time of bearing child was fulfilled to Elisabeth, and she bare a son.

⁵⁸ And the neighbours and the cousins of her heard, that the Lord had magnified his mercy with her; and they thanked him [and they together joyed to her].

⁵⁹ And it was done in the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, by the name of his father.

⁶⁰ And his mother answered, and said, Nay, but he shall be called John.

⁶¹ And they said to her, For no man is in thy kindred, that is called [by] this name.

⁶² And they beckoned to his father, what he would that he were called. [Soothly they made a sign to his father, whom he would him to be called.]

⁶³ And he asking a stylus [a pointel], wrote, saying, John is his name. And all men wondered.

⁶⁴ And at once his mouth was opened [Forsooth his mouth was opened anon], and his tongue, and he spake, and blessed God.

⁶⁵ And dread was made on all their neighbours, and all these words were published on all the mountains of Judaea [on all the hilly places of Judaea].

⁶⁶ And all men that heard putted in their heart, and said, What manner child shall this be? For the hand of the Lord was with him. [And all men that heard put in their heart, saying, Who guessest thou, this child shall be? And soothly the hand of the Lord was with him.]

⁶⁷ And Zacharias, his father, was full-filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, and said, [And Zacharias, his father, was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying,]

⁶⁸ Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he hath visited, and made redemption of his people.

⁶⁹ And he hath raised to us an horn of health in the house of David, his child.

⁷⁰ As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, that were from the world.

⁷¹ Health from our enemies, and from the hand of all men that hated us [and from the hand of all that hated us].

⁷² To do mercy with our fathers, and to have mind of his holy testament.

⁷³ The great oath [The oath] that he swore to Abraham, our father,

⁷⁴ to give himself to us. That we without dread delivered from the hand of our enemies, serve to him [That we delivered from the hand of our enemies, serve to him without dread],

⁷⁵ in holiness and rightwiseness before him in all our days.

⁷⁶ And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest; for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord, to make ready his ways.

⁷⁷ To give science of health to his people, into remission of their sins;

⁷⁸ by the inwardness of the mercy of our God, in the which [in which] he springing up from on high hath visited us.

⁷⁹ To give light to them that sit in darknesses and in the shadow of death; to direct [to dress] our feet into the way of peace.

⁸⁰ And the child waxed, and was comforted in spirit, and was in desert places unto the day [and was in desert till the day] of his showing to Israel.

58 To victory, lose thou not the sweet song, either the seemly psalm, of David. Forsooth if ye speak rightfulness verily; ye sons of men, deem rightfully. (To victory, destroy thou not the sweet song, that is, the comely song, of David. Speak ye truly with righteousness, ye sons and daughters of men? judge ye justly? Nay!)

² For in heart ye work wickedness in earth; your hands make ready unrightfulnesses. (For in your hearts ye do evil; and your hands bring forth unrightfulnesses, or wickedness, in all the earth.)

³ Sinners were made aliens from the womb (Sinners, or evil-doers, go wrong from the womb); they erred from the womb, they spake false things.

⁴ Strong vengeance is to them, by the likeness of a serpent; as of a deaf snake, and stopping his ears. (Strong venom cometh forth from them, like that of serpents; and they be like a deaf snake that stoppeth its ears.)

⁵ Which shall not hear the voice of charmers; and of a venom-maker charming (ever so) wisely.

⁶ God shall all-break the teeth of them in their mouth; the Lord shall break (al)together the great teeth of lions. (O God, break all the teeth in their mouths; O Lord, break all in pieces the great teeth of these lions.)

⁷ They shall come to nought, as water running away; he bent his bow, till they be made sick. (They shall come to nothing, like water running forth; and when they go to bend their bows, they shall be made feeble, or weak.)

⁸ As wax that floateth away, they shall be taken away; fire fell above, and they saw not the sun. (Like a snail that melteth away into slime, they shall be taken away; like a dead-born child, they shall not see the sun.)

⁹ Before that your thorns understood the rhamn, either thieve-thorn; he swalloweth them so in ire, as (with) living men. (Before that the rhamn, or the thieve-thorn, that is, a weed, can grow, he shall swallow them up in his anger; yea, while they still be living.)

¹⁰ The just man shall be glad, when he shall see vengeance; he shall wash his hands in the blood of a sinner. (The righteous shall be glad when they see the vengeance taken; they shall wash their hands in the blood of the sinners.)

¹¹ And a man shall say truly, For fruit is to a just man; truly God is deeming them in earth. (And someone shall say, Truly there is a reward for the righteous; truly God is judging people here on earth.)

¹² He that despiseth his friend, is needy in heart; but a prudent man shall be still. (He who despiseth his friend is foolish; but a man of understanding shall be silent.)

¹³ He that goeth guilefully, showeth privates (He who goeth deceitfully, telleth secrets); but he that is faithful, covereth the private (matter) of a friend.