Numbers 23:7-12 - Balaam's First Oracle

⁷ Then Balaam uttered his oracle, saying, "Balak, the king of Moab, brought me from Aram, out of the mountains of the east, saying, 'Come, pronounce a curse on Jacob for me; come, denounce Israel.' ⁸ How can I curse one whom God has not cursed, or how can I denounce one whom the Lord has not denounced? ⁹ For from the top of the rocks I see them; from the hills I watch them. Indeed, a nation that lives alone, and it will not be reckoned among the nations. ¹⁰ Who can count the dust of Jacob, Or number the fourth part of Israel? Let me die the death of the upright, and let the end of my life be like theirs."

¹¹ Then Balak said to Balaam, "What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies, but on the contrary you have only blessed them!"

¹² Balaam replied, "Must I not be careful to speak what the Lord has put in my mouth?"