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Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place; and Balak also went his way.
Numbers 24:25 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way.
  • BSB Then Balaam arose and returned to his homeland, and Balak also went on his way.
  • NKJV So Balaam rose and departed and returned to his place; Balak also went his way.
  • NASB Then Balaam arose, and he departed and returned to his place, and Balak also went on his way.
  • NLT Then Balaam left and returned home, and Balak also went on his way.

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

With his oracles complete, Balaam returns home and Balak goes his own way. The encounter ends with Israel blessed and the plot to curse them defeated.

Overview

The two men part, their scheme thoroughly overturned by God's sovereign word. Though Balaam departs, his later counsel will tragically lead Israel into sin at Peor, the very next episode. The verse closes the curse narrative on a note of God's triumph, while setting the stage for a sober warning about temptation from within.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 3

  • Num 31:8They killed the kings of Midian with the rest of their slain: Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, the five kings of Midian. They also killed Balaam the son of Beor with the sword.
  • Num 24:11Therefore now flee you to your place! I thought to promote you to great honor; but, behold, Yahweh has kept you back from honor.”
  • Josh 13:22The children of Israel also killed Balaam the son of Beor, the soothsayer, with the sword, among the rest of their slain.

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 24:25YouTube · 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 24:25 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.