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So Balaam arose in the morning, saddled his donkey, and went with the leaders of Moab.
Numbers 22:21 · New American Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Balaam rose up in the morning, and saddled his donkey, and went with the princes of Moab.
  • KJV And Balaam rose up in the morning, and saddled his ass, and went with the princes of Moab.
  • BSB So in the morning Balaam got up, saddled his donkey, and went with the princes of Moab.
  • NKJV So Balaam rose in the morning, saddled his donkey, and went with the princes of Moab.
  • NLT So the next morning Balaam got up, saddled his donkey, and started off with the Moabite officials.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Balaam saddles his donkey and sets out with the Moabite princes. He proceeds on the journey God's anger will soon confront.

Overview

Balaam's prompt departure reveals his eagerness to pursue the errand. Though he has technical permission, his heart is bent toward the reward rather than toward God. The next verses show that God will meet him on the road to humble and correct him.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 1

  • Prov 1:15–16My son, don’t walk on the path with them. Keep your foot from their path,

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Numbers videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Numbers 22:21YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on NumbersMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.

How Numbers 22:21 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.