Numbers 23:19 (DRB)

Passage

God is not a man, that he should lie, nor is the son of man, that he should be changed. Hath he said then, and will he not do? hath he spoken, and will he not fulfil?

Nearby Context

Numbers 23:17 Returning he found him standing by his burnt sacrifice, and the princes of the Moabites with him. And Balac said to him: What hath the Lord spoken?

Numbers 23:18 But he taking up his parable, said: Stand, O Balac, and give ear: hear, thou son of Sephor:

Numbers 23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie, nor is the son of man, that he should be changed. Hath he said then, and will he not do? hath he spoken, and will he not fulfil?

Numbers 23:20 I was brought to bless, the blessing I am not able to hinder.

Numbers 23:21 There is no idol in Jacob, neither is there an image god to be seen in Israel. The Lord his God is with him, and the sound of the victory of the king in him.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "should", "changed", "hath", "said", "spoken", and "fulfil". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "should" and "changed", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 18's "But he taking up his parable said..." into verse 20's "I was brought to bless the blessing...", so "should" and "changed" 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 "should" and "changed" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.