And Balaam said to the donkey, “You have made me look stupid; I wish ¹  there were a sword in my hand, for I would kill you right now.”

“But now they mock me, those who are younger ¹  than I, whose fathers I disdained too much ²  to put with my sheep dogs. ³ 

Those both near and far from you will mock you, you with your bad reputation, ¹  full of turmoil.

“Blessed are you when people ¹  insult you and persecute you and say all kinds of evil things about you falsely ²  on account of me.

In humiliation ¹  justice was taken from him. ²  Who can describe his posterity? ³  For his life was taken away ⁴  from the earth.” ⁵ 

But Jeshurun ¹  became fat and kicked, you ²  got fat, thick, and stuffed! Then he deserted the God who made him, and treated the Rock who saved him with contempt.

This is what the Lord says about him: ¹  “The virgin daughter Zion ²  despises you, she makes fun of you; Daughter Jerusalem shakes her head after you. ³ 

Hear, O our God, for we are despised! Return their reproach on their own head! Reduce them to plunder in a land of exile!

Then I ¹  said, “The thing that you are doing is wrong! ²  Should you not conduct yourselves ³  in the fear of our God in order to avoid the reproach of the Gentiles who are our enemies?

Seven women will grab hold of one man at that time. ¹  They will say, “We will provide ²  our own food, we will provide ³  our own clothes; but let us belong to you ⁴  – take away our shame!” ⁵ 

this is what the Lord says about him: ¹  “The virgin daughter Zion ²  despises you – she makes fun of you; daughter Jerusalem shakes her head after you. ³ 

Listen to me, you who know what is right, you people who are aware of my law! ¹  Don’t be afraid of the insults of men; don’t be discouraged because of their abuse!

Lord, you coerced me into being a prophet, and I allowed you to do it. You overcame my resistance and prevailed over me. ¹  Now I have become a constant laughingstock. Everyone ridicules me.

I will bring such disaster on them that all the kingdoms of the earth will be horrified. I will make them an object of reproach, a proverbial example of disaster. I will make them an object of ridicule, an example to be used in curses. ¹  That is how they will be remembered wherever I banish them. ² 

For I solemnly swear,” ¹  says the Lord, “that Bozrah ²  will become a pile of ruins. It will become an object of horror and ridicule, an example to be used in curses. ³  All the towns around it will lie in ruins forever.”

“Blessed are you when people ¹  hate you, and when they exclude you and insult you and reject you as evil ²  on account of the Son of Man!

(Look! He is returning with the clouds, ¹  and every eye will see him, even ²  those who pierced him, ³  and all the tribes ⁴  on the earth will mourn because ⁵  of him. This will certainly come to pass! ⁶  Amen.) ⁷ 

Then Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law who were going to marry his daughters. ¹  He said, “Quick, get out of this place because the Lord is about to destroy ²  the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was ridiculing them. ³ 

Zebul said to him, “Where now are your bragging words, ¹  ‘Who is Abimelech that we should serve him?’ Are these not the men ²  you insulted? ³  Go out now and fight them!”

then I will remove Israel from the land ¹  I have given them, I will abandon this temple I have consecrated with my presence, ²  and Israel will be mocked and ridiculed ³  among all the nations.