Numbers Chapter 23
Balaam was a greedy prophet wanting to make as much money as he could, but he was not a false prophet. He repeatedly declared that he could not lie but could only tell the prophecies that God put in his mouth.
God never instructed this prophet to build sacrifices to him. That was an idea contrived by Balaam and King Balak. Balaam was not a man who strived to seek after the heart of God, but he did repeat exactly what God told him to say.
In this chapter and the next we will read what are called the oracles which were simply the times that God put His words into Balaam to speak. And what we learn about God in these oracles is that God never changes. What He said the first time through the prophet is what He said each time Balaam entreated Him. Somehow this King Balak knew about the sacrifices of Israel, and he thought if he sacrificed animals in these high places that he might appease the God of heaven and bend His will to benefit him.
Let's Reflect
1. According to verse 11 what was King Balak’s true intent in seeking the prophecy of Balaam?
2. From these high places that Balak and Balaam were at they could look down and see the nation of Israel. From this vantage point the Israelite nation was very numerous. According to verse 10 how large was their population?
3. Balaam was not a Hebrew and not an Israelite, but he was truly impressed by the number of Israelites that he saw from the mountain. King Balak thought he might be more willing to pronounce a curse on them if he saw them from a different vantage point where only a portion of the Israelites could be seen. The king prepared 7 more sacrifices and Balaam met with God once more. The oracle or prophecy that Balaam brought back to the king was not what he wanted to hear. Did this second attempt have any words even a hint of a curse upon Israel? And think about that for a moment. This king like many people today put his faith in the words of a man, who in his mind had powers of divination, instead of recognizing the power of God.
4. God had already declared long before this event that He was going to bless the nation of Israel. It had nothing to do with the people of Israel nor any other people group. God was the one who made the declaration of blessing upon the Israelites and there was nothing that could be said or done to change that. The favor of God rested upon the nation of Israel (despite the sins of Israel). In fact, God said to Balak through the prophet Balaam that God was not a man and He could not do what?
5. Balaam had received a command from God, and he could not reverse it despite the money the king paid him. What was the command that God gave to Balaam?
6. God told Balak that no sorcery could be used against His people. He told Balak that Israel was strong like a lion and as such what would the lion do?
7. King Balak was very frustrated with the words coming out of this prophet’s mouth. He told him that if you cannot curse these people, at least do not pronounce a blessing on them either. What was Balaam’s response?
