Numbers 23:14 (DBY)

Passage

And he took him to the watchmen's field, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, and offered up a bullock and a ram on [each] altar.

Nearby Context

Numbers 23:12 And he answered and said, Must I not take heed to speak that which Jehovah puts in my mouth?

Numbers 23:13 And Balak said to him, Come, I pray thee, with me to another place, from whence thou wilt see them; thou shalt see only the extremity of them and shalt not see them all, and curse me them from thence.

Numbers 23:14 And he took him to the watchmen's field, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, and offered up a bullock and a ram on [each] altar.

Numbers 23:15 And [Balaam] said to Balak, Stand here by thy burnt-offering, and I will go to meet yonder.

Numbers 23:16 And Jehovah met Balaam, and put a word in his mouth, and said, Return to Balak, and thus shalt thou speak.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "took", "watchmen's", "field", "pisgah", "built", "seven", "altars", and "offered". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "took" and "watchmen's", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 13's "And Balak said to him Come I..." into verse 15's "And Balaam said to Balak Stand here...", so "took" and "watchmen's" belong inside that flow. In Numbers context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "took" and "watchmen's" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.