|
|
Balaam’s First Oracle
23 And Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me here seven altars, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” Balak did as Balaam had said. And Balak and Balaam offered on each altar a bull and a ram. And Balaam said to Balak, “Stand beside your burnt offering, and I will go. Perhaps the LORD will come to meet me, and whatever he shows me I will tell you.” And he went to a bare height, and God met Balaam. And Balaam said to him, “I have arranged the seven altars and I have offered on each altar a bull and a ram.” And the LORD put a word in Balaam’s mouth and said, “Return to Balak, and thus you shall speak.” And he returned to him, and behold, he and all the princes of Moab were standing beside his burnt offering. And Balaam took up his discourse and said,
“From Aram Balak has brought me,
the king of Moab from the eastern mountains:
‘Come, curse Jacob for me,
and come, denounce Israel!’
How can I curse whom God has not cursed?
How can I denounce whom the LORD has not denounced?
For from the top of the crags I see him,
from the hills I behold him;
behold, a people dwelling alone,
and not counting itself among the nations!
Who can count the dust of Jacob
or number the fourth part of Israel?
Let me die the death of the upright,
and let my end be like his!”
And Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, and behold, you have done nothing but bless them.” And he answered and said, “Must I not take care to speak what the LORD puts in my mouth?”
Balaam’s Second Oracle
And Balak said to him, “Please come with me to another place, from which you may see them. You shall see only a fraction of them and shall not see them all. Then curse them for me from there.” And he took him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar. Balaam said to Balak, “Stand here beside your burnt offering, while I meet the LORD over there.” And the LORD met Balaam and put a word in his mouth and said, “Return to Balak, and thus shall you speak.” And he came to him, and behold, he was standing beside his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab with him. And Balak said to him, “What has the LORD spoken?” And Balaam took up his discourse and said,
“Rise, Balak, and hear;
give ear to me, O son of Zippor:
God is not man, that he should lie,
or a son of man, that he should change his mind.
Has he said, and will he not do it?
Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
Behold, I received a command to bless:
he has blessed, and I cannot revoke it.
He has not beheld misfortune in Jacob,
nor has he seen trouble in Israel.
The LORD their God is with them,
and the shout of a king is among them.
God brings them out of Egypt
and is for them like the horns of the wild ox.
For there is no enchantment against Jacob,
no divination against Israel;
now it shall be said of Jacob and Israel,
‘What has God wrought!’
Behold, a people! As a lioness it rises up
and as a lion it lifts itself;
it does not lie down until it has devoured the prey
and drunk the blood of the slain.”
And Balak said to Balaam, “Do not curse them at all, and do not bless them at all.” But Balaam answered Balak, “Did I not tell you, ‘All that the LORD says, that I must do’?” And Balak said to Balaam, “Come now, I will take you to another place. Perhaps it will please God that you may curse them for me from there.” So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, which overlooks the desert. And Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me here seven altars and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
(ESV)
Numbers 23 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
This chapter reminds me of an encounter Elijah had with the prophets of Baal when they were seeking help from their “god.”
They took the bull that was brought to them, prepared it, and prayed to Baal until noon. They shouted, “Answer us, Baal!” and kept dancing around the altar they had built. But no answer came. [27] At noon Elijah started making fun of them: “Pray louder! He is a god! Maybe he is day-dreaming or relieving himself, or perhaps he’s gone off on a trip! Or maybe he’s sleeping, and you’ve got to wake him up!” [28] So the prophets prayed louder and cut themselves with knives and daggers, according to their ritual, until blood flowed. [29] They kept on ranting and raving until the middle of the afternoon; but no answer came, not a sound was heard.
1 Kings 18:26-29 GNB
The attitude of Balak is no different in this chapter of Numbers. He wanted God to serve him. He believed that Balaam could manipulate the God of Israel to meet the perceived need. They tried different locations and different sacrifices as if God did not hear them or speak clearly the first time. The truth of the matter was that they approached God as if He was a genie ready to grant their greatest request. With their attitude, they emasculated the Creator of the Universe.
Do we ever do this? Are we guilty of approaching God with a shallow and self-centered attitude?
The most unbelievable part of this story is that God shows grace by speaking truth through Balaam. I have to be honest, I don’t think I would have wasted my time. To me, a nice, clean solution would be to wipe Balaam and Balak off the face of the Earth for their disrespect and find a true prophet of God to speak encouragement to Israel. But, God doesn’t do things the way we think He should all the time, and that’s a very good thing!
For Israel and the rest of the nations observing, they would look upon this story and marvel at the power of the Lord. Our God can take someone hell-bent on manipulation and selfishness and use them to speak truth and life to those whom He loves. Our God is an absolute God. He is not able to be controlled or manipulated. His Word is true the first time. He is always faithful to His promises. He never grows weary or weak in His decisions. He is always consistent with His nature. Though others who have experienced an unreliable, pseudo-powerful, controllable, fake god will try and approach Him in this same manner, His track record speaks for itself.
Theologically speaking, this chapter hammers home a foundational truth. Our God delivers on His promises no matter what. Even when Israel had backslidden and generation after generation had cursed His name, He was still faithful. Even when pagan nations came forward seeking His help, He would not bend His decision to deliver His people into their Promised Land. There is no reason to doubt that if He did it back then, He will surely deliver His people today as well.