Bil’am said to Balak: “Build seven altars for me here, and prepare for me seven bulls and seven rams.”

And Bil῾am said to Balaq, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven oxen and seven rams.

And Bilam said to Balak: Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams.

Balak did as Bil’am requested. Balak and Bil’am then sacrificed as burnt-offerings an ox and a ram on each altar.

And Balaq did as Bil῾am had spoken; and Balaq and Bil῾am offered on every altar a bullock and a ram.

And Balak did as Bilam had spoken, and Balak and Bilam offered a bullock and a ram on (each) altar.

Bil’am said to Balak: “Stand beside your burnt-offering and I will go away. Perhaps, Adonoy will appear to me, and whatever He will show me I will tell you.” And he went away alone.

And Bil῾am said to Balaq, Stand by thy burnt offering, and I will go: perhaps the Lord will come to meet me; and whatever he shows me I will tell thee. And he went to a steep place.

And Bilam said to Balak: Stand by your burnt-offering and I will go; perhaps the (word of) the L-rd will chance to (come to) me [(He is not wont to speak with me in the daytime)], and I will tell you; and he went off alone.

God chanced to appear to Bil’am, and he said to Him: “I have set up the seven altars and I offered [as burnt-offerings] an ox and a ram on the altar.”

And God met Bil῾am: and he said to him, I have prepared the seven altars, and I have offered upon every altar a bullock and a ram.

And G-d chanced upon Bilam [in the daytime, "grudgingly and contemptuously," and only in order to show His love for Israel]; and he said to Him: The seven altars [corresponding to the seven altars that the patriarchs arranged before You] have I arranged, and I have offered up a bullock and a ram on (each) altar [whereas Abraham offered up only one ram].

Adonoy put a message in Bil’am's mouth and He said: “Return to Balak and tell him as follows.”

And the Lord put a word in Bil῾am’s mouth, and said, Return to Balaq, and thus thou shalt speak.

And the L-rd placed a word in the mouth of Bilam and He said: Return to Balak and thus shall you speak.

When he returned, Balak was still standing next to his burnt-offering together with all the dignitaries of Moav.

And he returned to him, and behold, he stood by his burnt sacrifice, he, and all the princes of Mo᾽av.

And he returned to him, and, behold, he was standing by his burnt-offering, he and all the officers of Moav.

Bil’am set forth his parable, and said: “From Aram has Balak, King of Moav, brought me, out of the mountains of the east [saying]: 'Come, curse Yaakov for me; go, invoke wrath against Yisroel.

And he took up his discourse, and said, Balaq the king of Mo᾽av has brought me from Aram, out of the mountains of the east, saying, Come, curse me Ya῾aqov, and come, denounce Yisra᾽el.

And he took up his parable and he said: From Aram, Balak the king of Moav brought me, from the mountains of the east (saying to me): Go and curse (arah) Jacob for me, and go and curse (zoamah) Israel [(Balak using both terms, being uncertain as to the "lethal" form)].

How can I curse, when God has not cursed? What Divine wrath can I evoke if Adonoy has not been angry?

How shall I curse, whom God has not cursed? or how shall I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?

When I would curse, the Almighty would not curse [(Even when they deserved to be cursed, they were not cursed (see citations in Rashi)], and when I would vent wrath, the L-rd would not. [My only power is in knowing G-d's "moment of wrath," and He did not manifest that moment all of these days)].

For I view it, from the mountain peaks, I gaze upon it from the hills; behold! A people which shall dwell alone and will not be reckoned among the nations.

For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him: it is a people that shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations.

For from [their very] beginning, I behold them [fortified as] rocks [by the patriarchs and the matriarchs]; and [fortified] as mounts, I view them. Lo, the people (of Israel) shall dwell alone [in the world], and among the nations they shall not be reckoned [for destruction].

Who can count the dust of Yaakov or count the seed of Yisroel ? May my soul die the death of the righteous, and let my end be like his.”

Who can count the dust of Ya῾aqov, and the number of the fourth part of Yisra᾽el? Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!

Who can count the dust [i.e., the offspring (see Genesis 13:16)] of Jacob or the number of [one of] the four [banners of the encampments of] Israel? Let my soul die the death of the righteous [among them] and let my last end be like theirs.

Balak said to Bil’am: “What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies but you have in fact blessed them!”

And Balaq said to Bil῾am, What hast thou done to me? I took thee to curse my enemies, and, behold, thou hast blessed them altogether.

And Balak said to Bilam: What did you do to me? To curse my foes did I take you, and, behold, you have blessed them!

Bil’am replied and said: “Only what Adonoy tells me must I be careful to say.”

And he answered and said, Must I not take heed to speak that which the Lord has put in my mouth?

And he answered and said: Must I not take heed to speak that which the L-rd places in my mouth?

Balak then said to him, “Come with me to another place from where you will see them. But you will see only a part of them, without seeing them all, and curse them for me from there.”

And Balaq said to him, Come, I pray thee, with me to another place, from whence thou mayst see them: thou shalt see but the utmost part of them, and shalt not see them all: and curse me them from there.

And Balak said to him: Come, I pray you, with me to another place whence you will see them. But only their outermost part will you see, and you will not see all of them; and curse them for me from there.

He took him [Bil’am] to the field of Tzofim, to the peak of the mountain; he built seven altars and sacrificed as a burnt-offering a bull and a ram on each altar.

And he brought him into a field of vantage, at the top of Pisga, and built seven altars, and offered a bullock and a ram on every altar.

And he took him to the field of the scouts, to the top of the height [Balak divined that a breach would break forth in Israel there and assumed it to be the effect of the curse (whereas, in reality, the "breach" was Moses' dying there)]; and he built seven altars, and he offered up a bullock and a ram on (each) altar.

He then said to Balak: “Stand here next to your burnt-offering, and I will be called here by chance.”

And he said to Balaq, Stand here by thy burnt offering, while I go to the meeting yonder.

And he said to Balak: Stand here by your burnt-offering, and I will be chanced upon here [by the Holy One Blessed be He].

Adonoy chanced to appear to Bil’am and placed the word in his mouth; He said: “Return to Balak and say as follows.”

And the Lord met Bil῾am, and put a word in his mouth, and said, Go back to Balaq, and say thus.

And the L-rd chanced upon Bilam, and He placed a word in his mouth, [as one places a bit in an animal's mouth (Bilam balking at what he now saw to be a futile errand, and the L-rd "bridling" him to His will)], and He said: Return to Balak, and thus shall you speak.

When he returned, he (Balak) was still standing next to his burnt-offering accompanied by the Moavite dignitaries; Balak asked: “What did Adonoy say?”

And when he came to him, behold, he stood by his burnt offering, and the princes of Mo᾽av with him. And Balaq said to him, What has the Lord spoken?

And he came to him, and, lo, he stood by his burnt-offering, and [some of] the officers of Moav with him, [but not all of them (as opposed to (6), some of them having lost hope in him and having left)]. And Balak said to him [mockingly]: What did the L-rd (but not "you") speak? [you being nothing but His mouthpiece]

Bil’am set forth his parable, and said: “Arise, Balak, and hear, listen closely to me, son of Tzipor.

And he took up his discourse, and said, Rise up, Balaq and hear; hearken to me, thou son of Żippor:

And he took up his parable and he said: Arise, Balak [(This is Bilam's "riposte" to Balak's mockery — Stand! You have no right to sit when being addressed by G-d's emissary!)]; give ear to me, son of Tzippor!

God is not like man that He should act falsely, nor is He mortal that He should change His mind. Would He say and not do it? Or speak and not fulfill it ?

God is not a man, that he should lie; nor the son of man, that he should repent: has he said, and shall he not perform? or has he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

The Almighty is not a man that He should deceive [(He has sworn to give them the land, and do you think to slay them in the desert)]; nor the son of man, that He should retract. Would He say and not do? [Would He] speak and not fulfill?

Behold, I was commanded to bless, and [when] He has blessed, I cannot reverse it.

Behold, I am bidden to bless: and he has blessed; and I cannot reverse it.

Behold, [a fiat] to bless [them] have I received [from Him], and He has blessed [them], and I will not reverse it.

One does not see evildoers in Yaakov; and He has seen no transgression in Yisroel; Adonoy, his God, is with him, and he has the King's friendship.

He has not beheld iniquity in Ya῾aqov nor has he seen perverseness in Yisra᾽el: the Lord his God is with him, and the trumpet blast of a king is among them.

He does not scrutinize [exactingly] the iniquity [that is] in Jacob, and He does not see the toil [i.e., the toilsome transgression] [that is] in Israel. The L-rd, his G-d, is with him, [not leaving them even when they are rebellious], and the King's love is in him.

God Who has brought them out of Egypt, has shown His great strength to them.

God who brought them out of Miżrayim; he has as it were the strength of a wild ox.

The Almighty brought them forth from Egypt [(as opposed to your: "A people has gone forth from Egypt" (22:5)]; and the flight of the heights is His.

For, there is no sorcery in Yaakov, nor occult powers against Yisroel; in due time it will be said to Yaakov and Yisroel, 'What has God done?'

Surely there is no enchantment in Ya῾aqov, nor is there any divination in Yisra᾽el: in due time Ya῾aqov and Yisra᾽el are told what God has performed.

[They are worthy of blessing] for there is no [practice of] enchantment in Jacob, and there is no divination in Israel. [There is destined to come] a time like this [when His love for them will be revealed, when they are seated within the Divine partition and] it will be asked of Jacob and of Israel: "What hath the Almighty wrought?"

Behold, a people that rises like a young lion, and lifts itself up like a lion; he does not lie down until it devours its prey and drinks the blood of its kill.”

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.

Behold, a people that rises like a lioness [in the morning from their sleep to "snatch" mitzvoth] and which lifts itself up as a lion. It does not lie down [to sleep] until [by the reading of the Shema] it consumes its prey, [all of the mazzikin (destructive agents) which come to assail them], and [when armies come against them, the L-rd protects them and fights their wars], and it drinks the blood of the slain.

Balak said to Bil’am: “Also do not curse them, also do not bless them.”

And Balaq said to Bil῾am, Neither curse them, nor bless them.

And Balak said to Bilam: Neither curse them nor bless them!

Bil’am answered Balak and said: “Did I not tell you that all that Adonoy tells me will I do.”

But Bil῾am answered and said to Balaq, Did not I tell thee, saying, All that the Lord speaks, that I must do?

And Bilam answered and said to Balak: Did I not tell you: All that the L-rd speaks, that will I do?

Balak then said to Bil’am: “Come, I will take you somewhere else, perhaps God will consider it proper and you will curse them for me, from there.”

And Balaq said to Bil῾am, Come, I pray thee, I will bring thee to another place; perhaps it will please God that thou mayst curse me them from there.

And Balak said to Bilam: Come, I pray you, let me take you to another place. Perhaps it will be right in the eyes of G-d, and you will curse them for me from there.

Balak took Bil’am to the peak of Pe’or which overlooks the Yeshimon.

And Balaq brought Bil῾am to the top of Pe῾or, that looks out towards the desert.

And Balak took Bilam to the top of Peor, which looks out upon the face of the wilderness. [Balak divined that Israel would be smitten by Peor and assumed the (prospective) curse to be the cause.]

Bil’am said to Balak: “Build seven altars for me here and prepare for me seven bulls and seven rams.”

And Bil῾am said to Balaq, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams.

And Bilam said to Balak: Build for me here seven altars and prepare for me here seven bullocks and seven rams.

Balak did as Bil’am said, and he sacrificed as a burnt-offering a bull and a ram on each altar.

And Balaq did as Bil῾am had said, and offered a bullock and a ram on every altar.

And Balak did as Bilam said, and he offered up a bullock and a ram upon (each) altar.