Cumque vidisset Balaam quod placeret Domino ut benediceret Israëli, nequaquam abiit ut ante perrexerat, ut augurium quæreret: sed dirigens contra desertum vultum suum,

And when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord that he should bless Israel. he went not as he had gone before, to seek divination: but setting his face towards the desert,

But this time, seeing clearly that it was God’s purpose to bless Israel, Balaam did not go apart, as before, to look for portents; he turned towards the desert,

et elevans oculos, vidit Israël in tentoriis commorantem per tribus suas: et irruente in se spiritu Dei,

And lifting up his eyes, he saw Israel abiding in their tents by their tribes: and the spirit of God rushing upon him,

and there, looking about him, he saw Israel encamped, tribe upon tribe. With that, the spirit of God fell upon him,

assumpta parabola, ait: Dixit Balaam filius Beor: dixit homo, cujus obturatus est oculus:

He took up his parable and said: Balaam the son of Beor hath said: The man hath said, whose eye is stopped up:

and he prophesied: Thus speaks Balaam, the son of Beor, thus speaks the man who has seen with eyes blindfolded;

dixit auditor sermonum Dei, qui visionem Omnipotentis intuitus est, qui cadit, et sic aperiuntur oculi ejus:

The hearer of the words of God hath said, he that hath beheld the vision of the Almighty, he that falleth, and so his eyes are opened:

thus speaks the man who has heard the words of God himself, looked on a vision sent from the Almighty, who has fallen into a trance, and learned to see aright!

Quam pulchra tabernacula tua, Jacob, et tentoria tua, Israël!

How beautiful are thy tabernacles, O Jacob, and thy tents, O Israel!

How lovely, Jacob, are thy tents; Israel, how fair thy dwelling!

ut valles nemorosæ, ut horti juxta fluvios irrigui, ut tabernacula quæ fixit Dominus, quasi cedri prope aquas.

As woody valleys, as watered gardens near the rivers, as tabernacles which the Lord hath pitched, as cedars by the waterside.

Fair as wooded valleys, as gardens fed by running streams, as bowers of the Lord’s own planting, as cedars on the river bank!

Fluet aqua de situla ejus, et semen illius erit in aquas multas. Tolletur propter Agag, rex ejus, et auferetur regnum illius.

Water shall flow out of his bucket, and his seed shall be in many waters. For Agag his king shall be removed, and his kingdom shall be taken away.

Like a bucket brimming over at the well, see how their posterity spreads from one river-frontier to the next! The king that rules over them shall rival Agag himself, and take away his kingdom from him.

Deus eduxit illum de Ægypto, cujus fortitudo similis est rhinocerotis. Devorabunt gentes hostes illius, ossaque eorum confringent, et perforabunt sagittis.

God hath brought him out of Egypt, whose strength is like to the rhinoceros. They shall devour the nations that are his enemies, and break their bones, and pierce them with arrows.

God has rescued them from Egypt, and made them like a wild ox for strength; nations shall come and swallow up their enemies, crush them utterly, shoot them down with arrows.

Accubans dormivit ut leo, et quasi leæna, quam suscitare nullus audebit. Qui benedixerit tibi, erit et ipse benedictus: qui maledixerit, in maledictione reputabitur.

Lying down he hath slept as a lion, and as a lioness, whom none shall dare to rouse. He that blesseth thee, shall also himself be blessed: he that curseth thee shall be reckoned accursed.

Though Israel takes his rest, it is but as the crouching lion sleeps; who dares disturb the lioness in her den? A blessing, Israel, on all who bless, a curse on all who curse thee!

Iratusque Balac contra Balaam, complosis manibus ait: Ad maledicendum inimicis meis vocavi te, quibus e contrario tertio benedixisti:

And Balac being angry against Balaam, clapped his hands together and said: I called thee to curse my enemies, and thou on the contrary hast blessed them three times.

At this, Balac clapped his hands together in vexation; It was to curse my enemies, said he to Balaam, that I summoned thee, and thrice thou hast blessed them instead;

revertere ad locum tuum. Decreveram quidem magnifice honorare te, sed Dominus privavit te honore disposito.

Return to thy place. I had determined indeed greatly to honour thee, but the Lord hath deprived thee of the honour designed for thee.

back home with thee! It was in my mind to raise thee to high honours, but this Lord of thine has thwarted thee of thy ambition.

Respondit Balaam ad Balac: Nonne nuntiis tuis, quos misisti ad me, dixi:

Balaam made answer to Balac: Did I not say to thy messengers, whom thou sentest to me:

And Balaam still answered, Did I not warn the messengers thou sentest to me,

Si dederit mihi Balac plenam domum suam argenti et auri, non potero præterire sermonem Domini Dei mei, ut vel boni quid vel mali proferam ex corde meo: sed quidquid Dominus dixerit, hoc loquar?

If Balac would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord my God, to utter any thing of my own head either good or evil: but whatsoever the Lord shall say, that I will speak?

Though Balac should fill his house with silver and gold and offer to give it me, I have no power to go beyond the Lord’s bidding by uttering any word of my own, for good or ill; I can only deliver the Lord’s message?

verumtamen pergens ad populum meum, dabo consilium, quid populus tuus populo huic faciat extremo tempore.

But yet going to my people, I will give thee counsel, what this people shall do to thy people in the latter days.

I will go back, then, to my own folk; but not till I have instructed thee about the dealings there must be between this folk and thine in the days that are coming.

Sumpta igitur parabola, rursum ait: Dixit Balaam filius Beor: dixit homo, cujus obturatus est oculus:

Therefore taking up his parable, again he said: Balaam the son of Beor hath said: The man whose eye is stopped up, hath said:

And once more Balaam prophesied: Thus speaks Balaam, the son of Beor, thus speaks the man who has seen with eyes blindfolded;

dixit auditor sermonum Dei, qui novit doctrinam Altissimi, et visiones Omnipotentis videt, qui cadens apertos habet oculos:

The hearer of the words of God hath said, who knoweth the doctrine of the Highest, and seeth the visions of the Almighty, who falling hath his eyes opened:

who heard speech of God, most high, the Almighty, knew his mind, had vision of him, and in a trance, learned to see aright!

Videbo eum, sed non modo: intuebor illum, sed non prope. Orietur stella ex Jacob, et consurget virga de Israël: et percutiet duces Moab, vastabitque omnes filios Seth.

I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not near. A STAR SHALL RISE out of Jacob and a sceptre shall spring up from Israel: and shall strike the chiefs of Moab, and shall waste all the children of Seth.

My vision is not of this time, is not of the things that meet my eyes. I see a star that rises out of Jacob, a stem that springs from Israel’s root; one who shall lay low the chiefs of Moab, shall bring devastation on all the posterity of Seth.

Et erit Idumæa possessio ejus: hæreditas Seir cedet inimicis suis: Israël vero fortiter aget.

And he shall possess Idumea: the inheritance of Seir shall come to their enemies, but Israel shall do manfully

Edom shall fall into his hands; the men of Seir will yield their lands to the enemy. Brave deeds in Israel;

De Jacob erit qui dominetur, et perdat reliquias civitatis.

Out of Jacob shall he come that shall rule, and shall destroy the remains of the city.

such a ruler for Jacob as shall leave no remnant in the captured city!

Cumque vidisset Amalec, assumens parabolam, ait: Principium gentium Amalec, cujus extrema perdentur.

And when he saw Amalec, he took up his parable, and said: Amalec the beginning of nations, whose latter ends shall be destroyed.

Then he spoke of Amalec, Amalec, first-fruits of the nations, shall have his very gleanings destroyed;

Vidit quoque Cinæum: et assumpta parabola, ait: Robustum quidem est habitaculum tuum: sed si in petra posueris nidum tuum,

He saw also the Cinite: and took up his parable, and said: Thy habitation indeed is strong: but though thou build thy nest in a rock,

spoke of the Cinites, Though strong be thy fastness, though high thy nest,

et fueris electus de stirpe Cin, quamdiu poteris permanere? Assur enim capiet te.

And thou be chosen of the stock of Cin, how long shalt thou be able to continue? For Assur shall take thee captive.

proud race of Cin, it shall not be for ever; Assur shall carry thee away into exile.

Assumptaque parabola iterum locutus est: Heu! quis victurus est, quando ista faciet Deus?

And taking up his parable, again he said: Alas, who shall live when God shall do these things?

And once more he prophesied: Alas, who can survive when God brings all this about?

Venient in trieribus de Italia: superabunt Assyrios, vastabuntque Hebræos, et ad extremum etiam ipsi peribunt.

They shall come in galleys from Italy, they shall overcome the Assyrians, and shall waste the Hebrews, and at the last they themselves also shall perish.

Men will come in ships of war from Italy, conquering the Assyrians, laying the Hebrew land waste, doomed themselves, last of all, to perish.

Surrexitque Balaam, et reversus est in locum suum: Balac quoque via, qua venerat, rediit.

And Balaam rose, and returned to his place: Balac also returned the way that he came.

With that, Balaam set out and made his way home; and Balac, too, went back whence he came.