TO CURSE — a second, rarer verb, distinct from arar and concentrated almost entirely in the Balaam story. ⭐ It is the word BALAAM uses when he repeats Balak’s request to God (Numbers 22:11), and the one Balak’s second embassy uses at v17 — where Balak’s own first message at v6 had said arar. ⚠ Whether the switch characterises Balaam (softening it, or reaching for his own trade’s technical term) or is simply narrative variation is genuinely open, and this project does not vote; what is checkable is that the swap happens, that God’s answer reverts to Balak’s word, and that eleven of thirteen versions make both verbs come out as ‘curse’. This translation renders it ‘hex’ so the two stay visibly different in English. The NWT 1984 reaches for ‘execrate’ and the TNM 1987 for «exécrame». ⭐ The substitution then holds and spreads. At Numbers 23:7 Balaam quotes Balak's commission back in Balak's own word (arar); at v8 he answers with qabab instead — and from there on it is BALAK who uses Balaam's verb, at vv11, 13, 25 and 27. Arar does not appear again in that chapter after v7. → first discussed at Num 22:11