Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
Balaam and the angel, painting from Gustav Jaeger, 1836. Balaam (/ ˈ b eɪ l æ m /; [1] Hebrew: בִּלְעָם, romanized: Bīlʿām), son of Beor, [2] was a biblical character, a non-Israelite prophet and diviner who lived in Pethor, a place identified with the ancient city of Pitru, thought to have been located between the region of Iraq and northern Syria in what is now southeastern Turkey.
Alter also noted reiterated phrase-motifs bearing on blessings and curses. In Numbers 22:6, Balak sent for Balaam to curse Israel believing that "Whom you bless is blessed and whom you curse is cursed." In Numbers 22:12, God set matters straight using the same two verb-stems: "You shall not curse the people, for it is blessed."
After his mission with Balaam to curse Israelites failed, Balak decided to ally with Midianites to gather their women in order to lead Israelites men astray in adultery. Sources detailing the story of Balak: Numbers 22–24; Judges 11:25 - This is the only time in the Bible that Balak is not mentioned in direct conjunction with Balaam. Micah 6:5
However, God tells Balaam not to curse them, and when Balaam attempts to travel to Balak with the Moabite officials God sends an angel to stop his donkey. Realising that he cannot curse the Israelites, Balaam blesses them instead, and foresees a figure whom he identifies as 'the Star of Jacob' who will defeat Israel's enemies. This angers Balak ...
Based on his exegesis of Joshua 24:9, Ellicott (1905) argued that Balaam's curse against Israel and the war in Numbers 31 were two separate acts of hostility initiated by Balak. However, he admits that the Hebrew Bible does not sufficiently indicate whether this was the case. [ 39 ]
Beor (Hebrew: בְּעוֹר Bə‘ōr, "a burning") is a name which appears in relation to a king ("Bela son of Beor") and a diviner ("Balaam son of Beor").Because the two names vary only by a single letter (ם , -m, often added to the ends of names), scholars have hypothesized that the two refer to the same person.
The Deir 'Alla inscription or Balaam inscription, [1] numbered KAI 312, is a famous inscription discovered during a 1967 excavation in Deir 'Alla, Jordan. [2] It is currently at the Jordan Archaeological Museum.
Scholars also widely agree that imprecatory passages are never imprecatory in total, but are contextualized within messages of hope or promised mercy and blessing. More so than anything, particularly for passages from the Nevi'im, the intent is to provoke group or national repentance from evil acts and turn the hearers toward God .