Discovery BoxNumbers 22:12 
Context22:12 But God said to Balaam, “You must not go with them; you must not curse the people, 1 for they are blessed.” 2
Numbers 23:11
Context23:11 Then Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies, but on the contrary 3 you have only blessed them!” 4
1 tn The two verbs are negated imperfects; they have the nuance of prohibition: You must not go and you must not curse.
2 tn The word בָּרוּךְ (barukh) is the Qal passive participle, serving here as the predicate adjective after the supplied verb “to be.” The verb means “enrich,” in any way, materially, spiritually, physically. But the indication here is that the blessing includes the promised blessing of the patriarchs, a blessing that gave Israel the land. See further, C. Westermann, Blessing in the Bible and the Life of the Church (OBT).
3 tn The Hebrew text uses הִנֵּה (hinneh) here to stress the contrast.
4 tn The construction is emphatic, using the perfect tense and the infinitive absolute to give it the emphasis. It would have the force of “you have done nothing but bless,” or “you have indeed blessed.” The construction is reminiscent of the call of Abram and the promise of the blessing in such elaborate terms.
