Numbers 23:25 (KJV)

Passage

And Balak said unto Balaam, Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all.

Nearby Context

Numbers 23:23 Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel: according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought!

Numbers 23:24 Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain.

Numbers 23:25 And Balak said unto Balaam, Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all.

Numbers 23:26 But Balaam answered and said unto Balak, Told not I thee, saying, All that the LORD speaketh, that I must do?

Numbers 23:27 And Balak said unto Balaam, Come, I pray thee, I will bring thee unto another place; peradventure it will please God that thou mayest curse me them from thence.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "balak", "said", "balaam", "neither", "curse", and "bless". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "balak" and "said", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 24's "Behold the people shall rise up as..." into verse 26's "But Balaam answered and said unto Balak...", so "balak" and "said" 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 "balak" and "said" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.