‏ Numbers 23

1And Balaam seide to Balaach, Bilde thou here to me seuene auteris, and make redi so many caluys, and rammes of the same noumbre. 2And whanne he hadde do bi the word of Balaam, thei puttiden a calf and a ram to gidere on the auter. 3And Balaam seide to Balaach, Stond thou a litil while bisidis thi brent sacrifice, while Y go, if in hap the Lord meete me; and Y schal `speke to thee what euer thing he schal comaunde. 4And whanne he hadde go swiftli, God cam to hym; and Balaam spak to hym, and seide, Y reiside seuene auteris, and Y puttide a calf and a ram aboue. 5Forsothe the Lord `puttide a word in his mouth, and seide, Turne ayen to Balaach, and thou schalt speke these thingis. 6He turnede ayen, and fond Balach stondynge bisidis his brent sacrifice, and alle the princes of Moabitis. 7And whanne his parable `was takun, he seide, Balaach, the kyng of Moabitis, brouyte me fro Aran, fro the `hillis of the eest; and he seide, Come thou and curse Jacob; haaste thou, and greetli curse thou Israel. 8How schal Y curse whom God cursid not? bi what resoun schal Y `haue abhomynable whom God `hath not abhomynable? 9Fro the hiyeste flyntis Y schal se hym, and fro litle hillis Y schal biholde hym; the puple schal dwelle aloone, and it schal not be arettid among hethene men. 10Who may noumbre the dust, that is, kynrede, of Jacob, and knowe the noumbre of the generacioun of Israel? My lijf die in the deeth of iust men, and my laste thingis be maad lijk hem! 11And Balaach seide to Balaam, What is this that thou doist? Y clepide thee, that thou schuldist curse myn enemyes, and ayenward thou blessist hem. 12To whom Balaam answeride, Whether Y may speke othir thing no but that that the Lord comaundith? 13Therfor Balaach seide to Balaam, Come with me in to anothir place, fro whennus thou se a part of Israel, and mayst not se al; fro thennus curse thou hym. 14And whanne he hadde led Balaam in to an hiy place, on the cop of the hil of Phasga, he bildide seuene auteris to Balaam, and whanne calues and rammes weren put aboue, 15he seide to Balaach, Stonde here bisidis thi brent sacrifice, while Y go. 16And whanne the Lord hadde `come to him, and hadde put `a word in his mouth, he seide, Turne ayen to Balach, and thou schalt seie these thingis to hym. 17He turnyde ayen, and foond Balach stondynge bisidis his brent sacrifice, and the princis of Moabitis with hym. To whom Balach seide, What spak the Lord? 18And whanne his parable `was takun, he seide, Stonde, Balach, and herkene; here, thou sone of Sephor. God is not `as a man, 19that he lye, nethir he is as the sone of a man, that he be chaungid; therfor he seide, and schal he not do? he spak, and schal he not fulfille? 20Y am brouyt to blesse, Y may not forbede blessyng. 21Noon idol is in Jacob, nethir symylacre is seyn in Israel; his Lord God is with hym, and the sown of victorie of kyng is in hym. 22The Lord God ledde hym out of Egipt, whos strengthe is lijk an vnicorn; 23fals tellyng bi chiteryng of bryddis, `ethir idolatrie, is not in Jacob, nethir fals dyuynyng is in Israel. In his tymes it schal be seide to Jacob and Israel, What the Lord hath wrought! 24Lo! the puple schal rise to gidere as a lionesse, and schal be reisid as a lioun; the lioun schal not reste, til he deuoure prey, and drynke the blood of hem that ben slayn. 25And Balach seide to Balaam, Nether curse thou, nether blesse thou hym. 26And he seide, Whether Y seide not to thee, that what euer thing that God comaundide to me, Y wolde do this? 27And Balach seide to hym, Come, and Y schal lede thee to an other place, if in hap it plesith God that fro thennus thou curse hym. 28And whanne Balaach hadde led hym out on the `cop of the hil of Phegor, that biholdith the wildirnesse, 29Balaam seide to hym, Bilde here seuene auteris to me, and make redi so many caluys, and rammes of the same noumbre. 30Balaach dide as Balaam seide, and he puttide caluys and rammes, bi alle auteris.
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