Numbers 24:1-3 By now Balaam realized that God wanted to bless Israel. So he didn’t work in any sorcery as he had done earlier. He turned and looked out over the wilderness. As Balaam looked, he saw Israel camped tribe by tribe. The Spirit of God came on him, and he spoke his oracle-message:
3-9 Decree of Balaam son of Beor,
yes, decree of a man with 20/20 vision;
Decree of a man who hears God speak,
who sees what The Strong God shows him,
Who falls on his face in worship,
who sees what’s really going on.
What beautiful tents, Jacob,
oh, your homes, Israel!
Like valleys stretching out in the distance,
like gardens planted by rivers,
Like sweet herbs planted by the gardener God,
like red cedars by pools and springs,
Their buckets will brim with water,
their seed will spread life everywhere.
Their king will tower over Agag and his ilk,
their kingdom surpassingly majestic.
God brought them out of Egypt,
rampaging like a wild ox,
Gulping enemies like morsels of meat,
crushing their bones, snapping their arrows.
Israel crouches like a lion and naps,
king-of-the-beasts—who dares disturb him?
Whoever blesses you is blessed,
whoever curses you is cursed.
10-11 Balak lost his temper with Balaam. He shook his fist. He said to Balaam: “I got you in here to curse my enemies and what have you done? Blessed them! Blessed them three times! Get out of here! Go home! I told you I would pay you well, but you’re getting nothing. You can blame God.”
12-15 Balaam said to Balak, “Didn’t I tell you up front when you sent your emissaries, ‘Even if Balak gave me his palace stuffed with silver and gold, I couldn’t do anything on my own, whether good or bad, that went against God’s command’? I’m leaving for home and my people, but I warn you of what this people will do to your people in the days to come.” Then he spoke his oracle-message:
15-19 Decree of Balaam son of Beor,
decree of the man with 20/20 vision,
Decree of the man who hears godly speech,
who knows what’s going on with the High God,
Who sees what The Strong God reveals,
who bows in worship and sees what’s real.
I see him, but not right now,
I perceive him, but not right here;
A star rises from Jacob
a scepter from Israel,
Crushing the heads of Moab,
the skulls of all the noisy windbags;
I see Edom sold off at auction,
enemy Seir marked down at the flea market,
while Israel walks off with the trophies.
A ruler is coming from Jacob
who’ll destroy what’s left in the city.
* * *
20 Then Balaam spotted Amalek and delivered an oracle-message. He said,
Amalek, you’re in first place among nations right now,
but you’re going to come in last, ruined.
* * *
21-22 He saw the Kenites and delivered his oracle-message to them:
Your home is in a nice secure place,
like a nest high on the face of a cliff.
Still, you Kenites will look stupid
when Asshur takes you prisoner.
* * *
23-24 Balaam spoke his final oracle-message:
Doom! Who stands a chance
when God starts in?
Sea-Peoples, raiders from across the sea,
will harass Asshur and Eber,
But they’ll also come to nothing,
just like all the rest.
25 Balaam got up and went home. Balak also went on his way.
Well! If ever a prophet has failed to earn incredible riches, Balaam is it! All King Balak of Moab wanted was for Balaam to act as a channel of curses from God upon the Israelites. But Balak has misunderstood something: true prophets can only deliver the messages God gives them. And amazingly enough, in this instance, Balaam acts as a true prophet. Notice that previously, Balaam was trying to work sorcery on God-big mistake! Sorcery might work with demons, but sorcery simply offends God.
Balak has slaughtered animals and sacrificed them in hopes of manipulating God. While God has seen the sacrifices, God also knows the evil that lurks in Balak’s heart, and He will not go against His own divine Nature. Even if Balak were to fill all the mountain tops with altars and sacrifices, those sacrifices would be worthless because God sees hearts and not simply outward practices. Blood sacrifices are only effective when one’s heart is right.
But now Balak has gotten far more than he has bargained for, because Balaam is prophesying under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, and nothing can stop him. Look at Balaam’s prophecies.
First, Balaam speaks marvelous things over Israel, concluding with the phrase, “Whoever blesses you is blessed, whoever curses you is cursed.” Sorry, Balak! This is God speaking and there’s nothing anybody can do about it. Balak has an absolute fit, jumping up and down, shaking his fist at Balaam, tearing his royal robes, and ordering Balaam to go home without any reward at all. But Balaam is only getting started.
Next, Balaam begins describing the coming of an almighty ruler: “I see him, but not right now, I perceive him, but not right here; A star rises from Jacob, a scepter from Israel, crushing the heads of Moab…” Amazing! Here in the midst of a prophecy about a group of people who are yet to truly become a nation, God causes this pagan seer to foretell the coming of Jesus Christ. This is one of the earliest prophecies about Jesus in the Bible.
At the same time, Balaam is pronouncing doom over Balak’s kingdom of Moab, as well as neighboring kingdoms of Edom and Seir. Balaam goes on to prophesy over several countries, world powers in Balak’s day, foretelling doom for the Amalekites, the Kenites at Petra, Asshur and Eber. Fed up, Balak leaves, and Balaam supposedly goes on his way; however, that’s not true.
Balaam REALLY wants that reward King Balak has promised, so he tries to find a way around God’s blessings. “…later on Balaam figured out a way to get his reward from Balak. Balaam advised the Moabites on how to entice the people of Israel with prostitutes and idolatry. He could not curse Israel directly, so he came up with a plan for Israel to bring a curse upon themselves. Balak followed Balaam’s advice, and Israel fell into sin, worshiping Baal of Peor and committing fornication with Midianite women. For this God plagued them, and 24,000 men died (Numbers 25:1–9; Deuteronomy 23:3–6). https://www.gotquestions.org/Balaam-in-the-Bible.html
Not only does Balaam not go home, but he hangs around and is eventually killed in battle. Numbers 31:8 and Joshua 13:22 both verify Balaam’s death. What a tragic end for a man who has heard the Voice of God!
In the American South, there’s a saying that “Even a blind hog finds an acorn once in awhile.” Balaam is a truly tragic figure. Here is a man who hears from the One True Living God and who prophesies under that anointing. But Balaam is like a blind hog, rooting around under oak trees to see if he can find any acorns that will assist him in fulfilling King Balak’s demands. The only prophecies God allows Balaam to utter all bless Israel and foretell doom for their enemies. And though Balaam has heard from God many times, that experience has failed to change his heart or mind. Even when God is ready to strike him dead, preserving the donkey on which he’s riding, Balaam reacts in a very mealy-mouthed, hand-wringing fashion.
Balaam still fails to realize the incredible blessing that God has given him, the blessing of hearing from God. Given the fact that Balaam begins by attempting to manipulate God using sorcery, it seems that most of Balaam’s curses have involved demons. Both Balak and Balaam appear to be following a formula: build seven altars, sacrifice seven bulls, utter a few words, and presto! the desired results come forth. But God isn’t putting up with these machinations, and the demons can’t do anything because God’s Presence is evident. The demons only get to come into play once Balaam entices the Israelites to worship the Baal of Peor by engaging in fertility rites with Midianite women. (Numbers 25) (The term “Baal” is a general term meaning “Lord,” and likely indicates a territorial spirit.)
Why consider Balak, Balaam, and the blessings on the Israelites? Blood sacrifices-or sacrifices of any kind-are only effective when someone has the proper heart attitude; obviously, Balak and Balaam are sacrificing to manipulate God. Somehow, Moses gains knowledge of this story because he records it in the Torah for all generations to study. As a prophet who hears from God frequently, Moses recognizes the validity of Balaam’s prophecies but deplores his other actions. It’s even possible that Moses grieves over Balaam’s eventual demise, realizing that Balaam has chosen to follow Satan rather than the One True Living God.
As we continue through Advent, consider the marvelous prophecy about the coming of Jesus Christ: “I see him, but not right now, I perceive him, but not right here; A star rises from Jacob, a scepter from Israel…” God who is not limited by time or space has given a pagan magician a vision of His Son. And Moses, who is recording all this, must be looking at God and asking, “Lord, when will all this happen?”
The miracle for us is that God is closer to us than our own heartbeats. We don’t have to slaughter bulls or sheep or goats or birds. All we need to do is to pray.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, we give You our hearts as living sacrifices to Your goodness, Your glory, and Your grace. Thank You for delivering us from our sins. Help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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