Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him that remaineth of the city.

NUMBERS 24:19KJV
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Numbers 24:19 (KJV)

What does Numbers 24:19 mean?

Numbers 24:19 describes a future ruler coming from Jacob’s people, Israel. The ruler will exercise authority and destroy those left in a city. The verse presents this as a victory over an enemy, not merely the arrival of a new leader.

Balaam speaks these words to Balak, the king who had wanted him to curse Israel. After the picture of a star and a ruler’s staff in verse 17, Balaam describes the ruler’s power in terms of both authority and destruction.

The Hebrew behind Numbers 24:19

  • “dominion” — רָדָה (radah): This word means to rule or exercise authority. In Numbers 24:19, it describes the power the one from Jacob will hold, not just his position as a leader.
  • “remaineth” — שָׂרִיד (sarid): This word refers to a survivor or someone left over. Its use here suggests that the person left in the city has survived an earlier disaster or attack.

Why Numbers 24:19 matters

  • The ruler’s origin is central to Balaam’s announcement. “Out of Jacob” identifies him with the people descended from Jacob, who was also called Israel.

  • The city image fits the passage’s language of conflict. The words “destroy him that remaineth” follow Balaam’s description of Edom as a possession in verse 18, placing the ruler’s action among the victories he foretells.

  • The wording focuses on the people left in the city. The KJV says the ruler “shall destroy him that remaineth of the city,” directing attention to a survivor rather than to the city’s buildings.

Where else these words appear

“dominion” Hebrew H7287 · used in 25 verses

  • Genesis 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
  • 1 Kings 4:24 For he had dominion over all the region on this side the river, from Tiphsah even to Azzah, over all the kings on this side the river: and he had peace on all sides round about him.
  • Psalms 110:2 The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.

“remaineth” Hebrew H8300 · used in 28 verses

  • Numbers 21:35 So they smote him, and his sons, and all his people, until there was none left him alive: and they possessed his land.
  • Joshua 10:39 And he took it, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof; and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining: as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir, and to the king thereof; as he had done also to Libnah, and to her king.
  • Isaiah 1:9 Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.