Numbers 22:18

Num 22:18 And Balaam answered and said unto the servants of Balak, If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the word of the LORD my God, to do less or more.

Ver. 18. I cannot go beyond.] Intus Nero, foris Cato; loquitur hic ut Piso, vivit ut Gallonius: Audi, nemo melius; specta, nemo peius. A preacher, as Quintilian saith of an orator, should be Vir bonus dicendi peritus, A well-spoken and well-deeded person.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

22:18 Some have read Balaam’s reply to this second delegation as his attempt to prompt a more lucrative offer, but his refusal (24:13) weighs against this view. Instead, Balaam seemed determined to obey the Lord and called him my God.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 18. I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord my God] Balaam knew God too well to suppose he could reverse any of his purposes; and he respected him too much to attempt to do any thing without his permission. Though he was covetous, yet he dared not, even when strongly tempted both by riches and honours, to go contrary to the command of his God. Many make all the professions of Balaam, without justifying them by their conduct. "They pretend," says one, "they would not do any thing against the word of God for a house full of gold, and yet will do it for a handful!"

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(18) I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord . . . —These words may have been nothing more than an ostentatious semblance of disinterestedness and superiority to worldly considerations; or it is possible that Balaam may have been conscious that “he spake not of himself,” and that, as regards his prophetic utterances, he was but the mouthpiece of the Lord.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

18. Jehovah my God] It is very remarkable that the early Israelite tradition, as preserved in J , should have placed this expression in the mouth of an Ammonite (Num_22:7) soothsayer.

to do less or more] to do small or great. An idiomatic expression for ‘to do anything at all.’ The same is expressed in Num_24:13 by ‘good or bad.’

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And Balaam rose up in the morning,.... Early, not waiting for the call of the princes, which showed how eager he was to be gone, and how intent upon the journey:

and saddled his ass; which, if he did himself, as Jarchi suggests, this is a further proof of the haste he was in; though, as he had two servants with him, it is more likely that they did it by his order: the same is said of Abraham, Gen 22:3, it was usual for persons of note and figure, in those times and countries, to ride on asses, Jdg 5:10 and went with the princes of Moab; in company with them, and with as good a will as they, his heart and theirs being alike, as Jarchi notes; though it seems by what follows that by some means or another they soon parted company; for when the affair of the ass happened, Balaam was alone, only attended by his two servants.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Less. Not that he was resolved to comply with God’s will, but because he found an insuperable impediment to oppose it at present. (Calmet)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

You desire and expect that from me which is out of my power, to resist the will of the great God. He slyly insinuates, that he wanted not will, but power only.

The Lord my God; so he calls him, partly, to magnify himself as the servant of the great Jehovah; partly, that by professing this respect unto God he might the sooner induce him to grant his desire; and partly, because he worshipped the true God, together with idols, as many in those times and places did.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

18. House full of silver and gold — “Illustrious words,” says Calvin, “and indicative of a noble firmness. But why did he not instantly send away the unrighteous messengers who were soliciting him to transgress? We see that he chose rather to sell himself than render due glory to God. For he wished by this boast of obedience to acquire the title and honour of a holy prophet.” Here is a picture of the covetous hypocrite who loudly boasts that he will not act contrary to the word of God for a houseful of gold when he will do it for a handful, as Balaam laboured with all his might to do the thing which God had forbidden.

I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord — This was a moral inability induced by the fear of Jehovah and the dread of his judgments. “From beginning to end this fact was firmly established in Balaam’s mind, that in the work to which Balak summoned him he could do nothing at all except through Jehovah. This knowledge he had acquired by virtue of his natural gifts as a seer, and his previous experience. But this clear knowledge of Jehovah was completely obscured again by the love of wages which ruled in his heart. Because he loved Balak, the enemy of Israel, for the sake of the wages, whereas Jehovah loved Israel for his own sake, Balaam was opposed to Jehovah in his inmost nature and will, though he knew himself to be in unison with him by virtue of his natural gift. Consequently he fell into the same blindness of contradiction to which Balak was in bondage.” — Baumgarten. Thus many a man “holds the truth in unrighteousness.” Rom_1:18, note.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord my God. Balaam"s faith was paramount within its own sphere of operation. It did not control his wishes; it did not secure the heart obedience which God loves; but it did secure, and that absolutely, outward obedience to every positive command of God, however irksome; and Balaam never made any secret of this.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Balak

This is the name of a man. See how you translated this in Numbers 22:2.

Even if Balak would give me his palace full of silver and gold

Balaam is describing something that would never happen. He is emphasizing that there is nothing that could make him disobey Yahweh. (See: Hypothetical Situations)

I cannot go beyond the word of Yahweh ... and do less or more than what he tells me

This means Balaam cannot disobey Yahweh in any way.

translationWords

Balaam

palace

silver

gold

word of God

God

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

מלא ביתו כסף וזהב [IF BALAK WOULD GIVE ME HIS HOUSE] FULL OF SILVER AND GOLD — This tells us that he was avaricious and covetous of other peoples wealth. He said: He ought to give me all his silver and gold, for, behold, he would otherwise have to hire many armies to fight against them. Even then it is doubtful whether he would conquer or not conquer, but “I” would certainly conquer (Midrash Tanchuma, Balak 6).

לא אוכל לעבר I CANNOT GO BEYOND [THE WORD OF THE LORD] — Against his own will he divulged to them that he was under the control of others, and he prophesied here that he would be unable to annul those blessings with which the patriarchs had been blessed by the mouth of God (Midrash Tanchuma, Balak 6).

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.