Numbers 23:26 (KJV)

Passage

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

Nearby Context

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.

Numbers 23:28 And Balak brought Balaam unto the top of Peor, that looketh toward Jeshimon.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "balaam", "answered", "said", "balak", "told", "thee", "saying", and "lord". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "balaam" and "answered", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 25's "And Balak said unto Balaam Neither curse..." into verse 27's "And Balak said unto Balaam Come I...", so "balaam" and "answered" 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 "balaam" and "answered" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.