NUMBERS CHAPTER 24 Balaam lays aside his sorceries, and the Spirit of God comes upon him; his eyes are open; hears the words of God, and sees the vision of the Almighty, NUMBERS 24:1; prophesies of Israel's prosperity, NUMBERS 24:5. Balak is angry; commands him to flee; his answer, NUMBERS 24:10. He... [ Continue Reading ]
ACCORDING TO THEIR TRIBES; in the order appointed, NUM 2. CAME UPON HIM, i.e. inspired him to speak the following words, and so constrained him again to bless those whom he desired to curse.... [ Continue Reading ]
The eyes, either, 1. Of his body, as in the following verse; or, 2. Of his mind, which God had opened in a peculiar and prophetical manner, whence prophets are called seers, 1 SAMUEL 9:9. He implies that before he was blind and stupid, having eyes, but not seeing nor understanding. Some render the... [ Continue Reading ]
THE VISION; so called either strictly and properly, because he was awake when this was revealed to him; or largely and improperly, for any extraordinary discovery of God's mind to him, whether sleeping or waking. A trance, or ecstasy, fainting and falling upon the ground, as the prophets used to do.... [ Continue Reading ]
No text from Poole on this verse.... [ Continue Reading ]
VALLEYS ofttimes from a small beginning are spread forth fir and wide. Others, _as the brooks_, or _rivers_, as the word signifies, which stretch out and disperse their waters into several channels, and sometimes farther. Are they spread forth, i.e. the Israelites last mentioned. _As gardens by the... [ Continue Reading ]
HE, i.e. God, will abundantly water the _valleys, gardens_, and _trees_, is which represent the Israelites, NUMBERS 24:6, i.e. he will wonderfully bless his people, not only with outward blessings, of which a chief one in those parts was plenty of water, but also with higher gifts and graces, with h... [ Continue Reading ]
SHALL BREAK THEIR BONES, or, _unbone_, or, _take out_, i.e. shall eat the flesh to the very bones, and then break them also.... [ Continue Reading ]
Having conquered his enemies the Canaanites, and their land, he shall quietly and securely rest and settle himself there. STIR HIM UP, i.e. awake or provoke him.... [ Continue Reading ]
HE SMOTE HIS HANDS TOGETHER; a sign of great anger, EZEKIEL 21:17, EZEKIEL 22:13.... [ Continue Reading ]
FLEE THOU TO THY PLACE, whence I sent for thee, NUMBERS 22:5. The Lord, whose commands thou hast preferred before my desires and interest; and therefore seek thy recompence from him, and not from me.... [ Continue Reading ]
No text from Poole on this verse.... [ Continue Reading ]
No text from Poole on this verse.... [ Continue Reading ]
ADVERTISE THEE, or _inform thee_, to wit, concerning future things, as it here follows, for this word seems inseparably joined with the following. Others, _give thee counsel_, and tell thee _what this people_, &c. So it is a short and defective speech, such as we have EXODUS 4:5, EXODUS 13:8. And by... [ Continue Reading ]
No text from Poole on this verse.... [ Continue Reading ]
No text from Poole on this verse.... [ Continue Reading ]
I SHALL SEE, or, _I have seen_, or _do see_, for the future is oft put for other times or tenses: he speaks of a prophetical sight, like that of Abraham s, who _saw_ Christ's day, 1 THESSALONIANS 8:56. HIM, to wit, the _Star_ and _Sceptre_, as it here follows, i.e. a great and eminent prince, which... [ Continue Reading ]
A POSSESSION; which was also foretold GENESIS 25:23, and in part fulfilled, 2 SAMUEL 8:14 1 CHRONICLES 18:13, but more fully by Christ, AMOS 9:12 OBADIAH 1:18; who shall subdue and possess all his enemies; here signified by the name of Edom; as Jacob or Israel, his brother, signifies all his church... [ Continue Reading ]
OUT OF JACOB; out of Jacob's loins. HE THAT SHALL HAVE DOMINION; David, and especially Christ. OF THE CITY, or, _from or out of this city_, i.e. the cities, the singular number for the plural, which hath been oft noted before. The sense is, He shall not only subdue those Moabites and Edomites which... [ Continue Reading ]
HE LOOKED from the top of Pisgah, which was exceeding high, and gave him the prospect of parts of all these kingdoms. THE FIRST, Heb. _the first-fruits_; so called either, 1. Because they were the first of all the neighbouring nations which were embodied together in one government. Or, 2. Because... [ Continue Reading ]
THE KENITE; the posterity or kindred of Jethro; not that part of them which dwelt among the Israelites, to whom the following words do not agree, but those of them who were mingled with the Amalekites and Midianites. See EXODUS 3:1 JUDGES 1:16, JUDGES 4:11 1 SAMUEL 15:6. THY NEST, i.e. thy dwelling-... [ Continue Reading ]
KENITE, Heb. _Kain_, i.e. the Kenite; so called, either by a transposition of letters, which is very usual in the Hebrew tongue; or from the name of some eminent place where they lived, or person from whom they were descended, though now the memory of them be utterly lost, as it hath fared with innu... [ Continue Reading ]
How calamitous and miserable will the state of the world be, when the Assyrian, and after him the Chaldean, shall overrun and overturn all these parts of the world! who will be able to live and keep his heart from fainting under such grievous pressures? how few will then escape the destroying sword!... [ Continue Reading ]
CHITTIM; a place or people so called from Chittim the son of Javan, GENESIS 10:4, whose posterity were very numerous, and were first seated in the Lesser Asia, and from thence sent forth colonies into the islands of the \'c6gean Sea, and into Cyprus, and afterwards into Macedonia, and other parts of... [ Continue Reading ]
TO HIS PLACE, i.e. to Mesopotamia. OBJECT: He went only to Midian, where he was slain, NUMBERS 31:8. ANSW. 1. He is said to return home, because he intended and began to do so, though he was diverted by the Midianites; for men in Scripture are oft said to do what they design or attempt to do, as EX... [ Continue Reading ]