Numbers 24:17

Linguistic Bible Translation from Source Texts

I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob, a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab and destroy all the sons of Sheth.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

אֶרְאֶ֙נּוּ֙ וְלֹ֣א עַתָּ֔ה אֲשׁוּרֶ֖נּוּ וְלֹ֣א קָר֑וֹב דָּרַ֨ךְ כּוֹכָ֜ב מִֽיַּעֲקֹ֗ב וְקָ֥ם שֵׁ֙בֶט֙ מִיִּשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וּמָחַץ֙ פַּאֲתֵ֣י מוֹאָ֔ב וְקַרְקַ֖ר כָּל־בְּנֵי־שֵֽׁת׃

Transliteration

I ʾerʾennû and not now, I ʾăšûrennû and not qārôḇ; dāraḵ kôḵāḇ from Yaʿăqōḇ, and qām šēḇeṭ from Yiśrāʾēl, and māḥaṣ paʾăṯê Môʾāḇ, and qarqar all-sons of-šēṯ.

Grammar Details

• *ʾerʾennû*: qal imperfect 1cs with 3ms suffix - 'I will see him'
• *ʾăšûrennû*: qal imperfect 1cs with 3ms suffix - 'I will behold him'
• *qārôḇ*: adjective ms - 'near'
• *dāraḵ*: qal perfect 3ms - 'he proceeded/stepped forth'
• *kôḵāḇ*: noun ms - 'star'
• *Yaʿăqōḇ*: proper noun - 'Jacob'
• *qām*: qal perfect 3ms - 'he arose'
• *šēḇeṭ*: noun ms - 'scepter/tribe/rod'
• *Yiśrāʾēl*: proper noun - 'Israel'
• *māḥaṣ*: qal perfect 3ms - 'he smote/crushed'
• *paʾăṯê*: noun dual construct - 'sides/corners of'
• *Môʾāḇ*: proper noun - 'Moab'
• *qarqar*: pilpel perfect 3ms - 'he tore down/demolished'
• *šēṯ*: proper noun - 'Seth/Sheth'

Word Meanings

• *ʾăšûrennû*: I will behold him/look at him/regard him
• *dāraḵ*: proceeded/stepped forth/tread
• *šēḇeṭ*: scepter/tribe/rod/staff
• *māḥaṣ*: smote/crushed/strike through
• *paʾăṯê*: sides/corners/temples
• *qarqar*: tear down/demolish/destroy
• *šēṯ*: Seth/Sheth/tumult

Other Translations

• King James Version 1769 (Standard Version)

  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.

• KJV1611 – Modern English

  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not near: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Scepter shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.

• King James Version 1611 (Original)

  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.

• American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

  I see{H7200} him, but not now; I behold{H7200} him, but not nigh:{H7138} There shall come{H1869} forth a star{H3556} out of Jacob,{H3290} And a sceptre{H7626} shall rise{H6965} out of Israel,{H3478} And shall smite{H4272} through the corners{H6285} of Moab,{H4124} And break down{H6979} all the sons{H1121} of tumult.{H8352}

• King James Version with Strong's Numbers

  I shall see{H7200}{(H8799)} him, but not now: I shall behold{H7789}{(H8799)} him, but not nigh{H7138}: there shall come{H1869}{(H8804)} a Star{H3556} out of Jacob{H3290}, and a Sceptre{H7626} shall rise{H6965}{(H8804)} out of Israel{H3478}, and shall smite{H4272}{(H8804)} the corners{H6285} of Moab{H4124}, and destroy{H6979}{(H8773)} all the children{H1121} of Sheth{H8352}{(H8676)}{H8351}.

• Tyndale Bible (1526/1534)

  I se him but not now I beholde him but not nye. There shall come a starre of Iacob and ryse a cepter of Israel which shall smyte ye coostes of Moab and vndermyne all the childern of Seth.

• Coverdale Bible (1535)

  I shal se him, but not now: I shal beholde him, but not nie at hade. There shal a starre come out of Iacob, & a cepter shall come vp out of Israel, and shal smyte ye rulers of the Moabites, and ouercome all the children of Seth.

• Geneva Bible (1560)

  I shal see him, but not nowe: I shal behold him, but not neere: there shall come a starre of Iaakob, and a scepter shal rise of Israel, and shall smite the coastes of Moab, and destroy all the sonnes of Sheth.

• Bishops' Bible (1568)

  I shall see him, but not nowe, I shall beholde him, but not nigh: There shall come a starre of Iacob, and ryse a scepter of Israel, & shall smyte the coastes of Moab, and vndermine all the chyldren of Seth.

• Authorized King James Version (1611)

  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.

• Webster's Bible (1833)

  I see him, but not now; I see him, but not near: There shall come forth a star out of Jacob, A scepter shall rise out of Israel, Shall strike through the corners of Moab, Break down all the sons of tumult.

• Young's Literal Translation (1862/1898)

  I see it, but not now; I behold it, but not near; A star hath proceeded from Jacob, And a sceptre hath risen from Israel, And hath smitten corners of Moab, And hath destroyed all sons of Sheth.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not nigh: There shall come forth a star out of Jacob, And a sceptre shall rise out of Israel, And shall smite through the corners of Moab, And break down all the sons of tumult.

• American Standard Version (1901)

  I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not nigh: There shall come forth a star out of Jacob, And a sceptre shall rise out of Israel, And shall smite through the corners of Moab, And break down all the sons of tumult.

• Bible in Basic English (1941)

  I see him, but not now: looking on him, but not near: a star will come out of Jacob, and a rod of authority out of Israel, sending destruction to the farthest limits of Moab and on the head of all the sons of Sheth.

• World English Bible (2000)

  I see him, but not now. I see him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob. A scepter will rise out of Israel, and shall strike through the corners of Moab, and break down all the sons of Sheth.

• NET Bible® (New English Translation)

  ‘I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not close at hand. A star will march forth out of Jacob, and a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the skulls of Moab, and the heads of all the sons of Sheth.

Referenced Verses

• Gen 49:10 : 10 'The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come, and the obedience of the peoples shall be his.'
• Rev 22:16 : 16 I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to these things for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the bright Morning Star.
• Rev 1:7 : 7 Look, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him. All the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Yes, Amen.
• Zech 10:4 : 4 From Judah will come the cornerstone, the tent peg, the battle bow, and every ruler together.
• Isa 9:7 : 7 The Lord has sent a word against Jacob, and it will fall upon Israel.
• Ps 45:6 : 6 Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies; the nations fall beneath your feet.
• Rev 11:15 : 15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever."
• 2 Pet 1:19 : 19 And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.
• Luke 1:32-33 : 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.
• Job 19:25-27 : 25 For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth. 26 And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God. 27 Whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!
• Heb 1:8 : 8 But about the Son He says, 'Your throne, O God, will last forever and ever; a scepter of righteousness will be the scepter of Your kingdom.'
• Luke 1:78 : 78 Because of our God's tender mercy, the dawn from on high will visit us,
• Zech 12:10 : 10 And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on Me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son.
• 2 Sam 8:2 : 2 David also defeated Moab. He made them lie down on the ground and measured them with a rope. He measured two lengths of rope to put them to death and one full length to let them live, and the Moabites became servants to David, bringing him tribute.
• 2 Kgs 3:5 : 5 But when Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
• 2 Kgs 3:26-27 : 26 When the king of Moab saw that the battle was too fierce for him, he took seven hundred men with swords to break through to the king of Edom, but they could not. 27 Then he took his firstborn son, who was to succeed him as king, and offered him as a burnt sacrifice on the city wall. Great wrath came upon Israel, so they withdrew from him and returned to their own land.
• 1 Chr 18:2 : 2 David also defeated Moab, and the Moabites became his servants, bringing him tribute.
• Num 21:29 : 29 Woe to you, Moab! You have been destroyed, O people of Chemosh! He has given up his sons as fugitives and his daughters as captives to Sihon, king of the Amorites.
• 1 Sam 14:38 : 38 Then Saul said, 'Come here, all you chiefs of the people. Investigate and find out what sin has been committed today.
• Gen 4:25-26 : 25 Adam was intimate with his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, saying, 'God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.' 26 Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh. At that time, people began to call on the name of the LORD.
• Gen 5:3-9 : 3 When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, according to his image, and named him Seth. 4 After he fathered Seth, Adam lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. 5 So all the days of Adam’s life were 930 years, and then he died. 6 When Seth had lived 105 years, he fathered Enosh. 7 After he fathered Enosh, Seth lived 807 years and had other sons and daughters. 8 So all the days of Seth's life were 912 years, and then he died. 9 When Enosh had lived 90 years, he fathered Kenan. 10 After he fathered Kenan, Enosh lived 815 years and had other sons and daughters. 11 So all the days of Enosh's life were 905 years, and then he died. 12 When Kenan had lived 70 years, he fathered Mahalalel. 13 After he fathered Mahalalel, Kenan lived 840 years and had other sons and daughters. 14 So all the days of Kenan's life were 910 years, and then he died. 15 When Mahalalel had lived 65 years, he fathered Jared. 16 After he fathered Jared, Mahalalel lived 830 years and had other sons and daughters. 17 So all the days of Mahalalel's life were 895 years, and then he died. 18 When Jared had lived 162 years, he fathered Enoch. 19 After he fathered Enoch, Jared lived 800 years and had other sons and daughters. 20 So all the days of Jared's life were 962 years, and then he died. 21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. 22 After he fathered Methuselah, Enoch walked with God for 300 years and had other sons and daughters. 23 So all the days of Enoch's life were 365 years. 24 Enoch walked with God, and then he was no more, because God took him. 25 When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he fathered Lamech. 26 After he fathered Lamech, Methuselah lived 782 years and had other sons and daughters. 27 So all the days of Methuselah's life were 969 years, and then he died. 28 When Lamech had lived 182 years, he fathered a son. 29 He named him Noah, saying, "This one will comfort us in our work and the painful labor of our hands, caused by the ground that the LORD has cursed."
• Matt 2:2-9 : 2 They asked, 'Where is the newborn King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.' 3 When King Herod heard this, he was deeply troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 He called together all the chief priests and scribes of the people and asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5 They replied, 'In Bethlehem of Judea, because this is what was written by the prophet: 6 'And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you will come a ruler who will shepherd My people Israel.' 7 Then Herod secretly called the magi and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, 'Go and search carefully for the child. When you find Him, report back to me so that I too may go and worship Him.' 9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and behold, the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.
• Isa 15:1-16:14 : 1 An oracle concerning Moab: In the night, Ar of Moab was devastated and destroyed. In the night, Kir of Moab was devastated and destroyed. 2 They have gone up to the temple and to Dibon, to the high places, to weep. Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba. Every head is shaved, and every beard is cut off. 3 In its streets, they wear sackcloth. On its rooftops and public squares, everyone wails, falling down in tears. 4 Heshbon and Elealeh cry out; their voices are heard as far as Jahaz. Therefore, the armed men of Moab cry out, and their souls are filled with dread. 5 My heart cries out for Moab; her fugitives flee to Zoar, like a three-year-old heifer. They go up weeping by the ascent of Luhith. On the way to Horonaim, they raise a cry of destruction. 6 The waters of Nimrim are desolate. The grass is withered, the vegetation has vanished, and nothing green remains. 7 So the wealth they have earned and their stored possessions will be carried away over the Wadi of the Willows. 8 For the cry has gone around the borders of Moab. Its wailing reaches Eglaim, and its lamentation goes all the way to Beer Elim. 9 The waters of Dimon are full of blood, and I will bring even more upon Dimon—a lion upon the survivors of Moab and upon those remaining in the land. 1 Send a lamb as tribute to the ruler of the land, from Sela, through the wilderness, to the mountain of the daughter of Zion. 2 Like a bird that wanders from its nest, so the daughters of Moab will be at the fords of the Arnon. 3 Bring counsel and make a decision. Provide shade as if it were night, even at midday. Hide the outcasts; do not reveal the wanderers. 4 Let my outcasts live among you, O Moab. Be a shelter for them from the destroyer. For the oppressor will come to an end, destruction will cease, and those who trample others will disappear from the land. 5 Then a throne will be established in steadfast love, and one will sit on it in faithfulness, in the tent of David—a judge who seeks justice and is quick to do what is right. 6 We have heard of Moab’s pride—how exceedingly proud and arrogant he is, full of pride, fury, and empty boasts. 7 Therefore, Moab will wail for Moab—everyone will wail. Mourn for the raisin cakes of Kir-hareseth, utterly stricken and grieving. 8 The fields of Heshbon languish, as does the vine of Sibmah. The rulers of the nations have struck its choice vines, which reached as far as Jazer, wandered into the wilderness, and spread their shoots abroad, crossing the sea. 9 Therefore, I weep with the weeping of Jazer for the vine of Sibmah. I drench you with my tears, O Heshbon and Elealeh, for over your summer fruits and your harvest, shouts of joy have fallen silent. 10 Joy and gladness are taken away from the fertile fields. In the vineyards, no songs are sung, no cheers are heard. No one treads out wine in the presses—the cheerful shouting has stopped. 11 Therefore, my heart moans like a lyre for Moab, and my innermost being for Kir Hareseth. 12 When Moab appears, weary on the high places, and comes to his sanctuary to pray, he will not prevail. 13 This is the word the LORD spoke concerning Moab in the past. 14 But now the LORD has spoken, saying: In three years, as precisely as the years of a hired worker, the glory of Moab, along with its great multitude, will be brought into contempt. Only a small and insignificant remnant will remain, not mighty at all.
• Jer 48:45 : 45 In the shadow of Heshbon, the fugitives stand helpless, for a fire has gone out from Heshbon, and a flame from Sihon. It devours the corner of Moab and the crown of the noisy boasters.
• Ps 72:8-9 : 8 He will have dominion from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth. 9 Those who dwell in the desert will bow before him, and his enemies will lick the dust. 10 The kings of Tarshish and distant shores will bring tribute; the kings of Sheba and Seba will offer gifts. 11 All kings will bow down to him, and all nations will serve him.
• Ps 78:70-72 : 70 He chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds. 71 From tending the nursing ewes, He brought him to shepherd Jacob, His people, and Israel, His inheritance. 72 He shepherded them with a heart of integrity and guided them with the skillfulness of his hands.
• Ps 110:2 : 2 The Lord will send out the scepter of your strength from Zion, saying, "Rule in the midst of your enemies."
• Jude 1:11 : 11 Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, rushed headlong for profit into Balaam’s error, and perished in Korah’s rebellion.
• Jude 1:14-15 : 14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, also prophesied about them, saying, 'Behold, the Lord comes with countless thousands of His holy ones,' 15 to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds they have committed, and of all the harsh words that ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.