Who can count the dust of Jacob or number even a fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous; let my end be like theirs!”
Parallel translations
- WEB Who can count the dust of Jacob, or count the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous! Let my last end be like his!”
- KJV Who can count the dust of Jacob, and the number of the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!
- NKJV “Whocan count the dust of Jacob, Or number one-fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, And let my end be like his!”
- NASB “Who has counted the dust of Jacob, Or the number of the fourth part of Israel? May I die the death of the upright, And may my end be like his!”
- NLT Who can count Jacob’s descendants, as numerous as dust? Who can count even a fourth of Israel’s people? Let me die like the righteous; let my life end like theirs.”
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 marvels at Israel's countless multitude and wishes to die the death of the righteous. He glimpses the blessing he cannot give himself.
Overview
The innumerable 'dust of Jacob' recalls God's promises to Abraham (Genesis 13:16; 28:14), now being fulfilled. Balaam's longing to die like the righteous is poignant, for he desires their end without sharing their faith or life. The verse warns that admiring God's people from a distance is no substitute for belonging to them through true faith.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 19
- Ps 37:37Consider the blameless and observe the upright, for posterity awaits the man of peace.
- Gen 13:16I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if one could count the dust of the earth, then your offspring could be counted.
- Ps 116:15Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints.
- Rev 14:13And I heard a voice from heaven telling me to write, “Blessed are the dead—those who die in the Lord from this moment on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds will follow them.”
- 2 Cor 5:1Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is dismantled, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.
- 2 Tim 4:6–8For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand.
- Isa 57:1–2The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart; devout men are swept away, while no one considers that the righteous are guided from the presence of evil.
- 1 Cor 15:53–57For the perishable must be clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.
- Gen 22:17I will surely bless you, and I will multiply your descendants like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the gates of their enemies.
- Num 2:24The total number of men in the divisions of the camp of Ephraim is 108,100; they shall set out third.
- Num 2:9The total number of men in the divisions of the camp of Judah is 186,400; they shall set out first.
- Prov 14:32The wicked man is thrown down by his own sin, but the righteous man has a refuge even in death.
- Gen 28:14Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and east and north and south. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.
- Num 2:31The total number of men in the camp of Dan is 157,600; they shall set out last, under their standards.”
- Phil 1:21–23For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
- Luke 2:29–30“Sovereign Lord, as You have promised, You now dismiss Your servant in peace.
- Num 2:16The total number of men in the divisions of the camp of Reuben is 151,450; they shall set out second.
- 1 Cor 3:21–22Therefore, stop boasting in men. All things are yours,
- 2 Pet 1:13–15I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of my body,
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 23:10 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.