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“Blessing the Cursed”: How the Septuagint Reframes Balak’s Complaint
καὶ εἶπεν Βαλακ πρὸς Βαλααμ τί πεποίηκάς μοι εἰς κατάρασιν ἐχθρῶν μου κέκληκά σε καὶ ἰδοὺ εὐλόγηκας εὐλογίαν (Numbers 23:11 LXX)
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר בָּלָק֙ אֶל־בִּלְעָ֔ם מֶ֥ה עָשִׂ֖יתָ לִ֑י לָקֹ֤ב אֹיְבַי֙ לְקַחְתִּ֔יךָ וְהִנֵּ֖ה בֵּרַ֥כְתָּ בָרֵֽךְ׃
A Dialog of Disappointment: Structure and Surprise
The confrontation between Balak and Balaam is filled with dramatic irony. Balak hired Balaam to curse his enemies, yet blessing pours forth instead. The Hebrew constructs this speech with participles, infinitives, and rhetorical interjection. The Greek Septuagint, while mostly literal, introduces amplifying structures and aspectual precision that shift the emotional tone and rhetorical pacing of Balak’s complaint.… Learn Hebrew
Posted in Septuagint Studies
Tagged Numbers 23:11
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