And God came unto Balaam, and said, What men are these with thee?
Parallel translations
- WEB God came to Balaam, and said, “Who are these men with you?”
- BSB Then God came to Balaam and asked, “Who are these men with you?”
- NKJV Then God came to Balaam and said, “Who are these men with you?”
- NASB Then God came to Balaam and said, “Who are these men with you?”
- NLT That night God came to Balaam and asked him, “Who are these men visiting you?”
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
God comes to Balaam and asks who the men with him are. The question is not for God's information but to confront Balaam with his intentions.
Overview
God's question, like His earlier questions to Adam and Cain, invites self-examination rather than supplying God with knowledge. That the true God speaks to a pagan seer underscores His sovereignty over all peoples. It also begins to corner Balaam, who must now reckon openly with the God of Israel.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Gen 20:3But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man’s wife.
- Num 22:20And God came unto Balaam at night, and said unto him, If the men come to call thee, rise up, and go with them; but yet the word which I shall say unto thee, that shalt thou do.
- Gen 4:9And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper?
- Gen 16:8And he said, Hagar, Sarai’s maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai.
- Exod 4:2And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod.
- 2 Kgs 20:14–15Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him, What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee? And Hezekiah said, They are come from a far country, even from Babylon.
- Gen 3:9–11And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
- Dan 4:31–32While the word was in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee.
- Gen 31:24And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad.
- Matt 24:24For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
- John 11:51And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation;
- Gen 41:25And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do.
- Matt 7:22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
- Dan 2:45Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 22:9 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.