Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

There stands Balaam, king Balak, and the princes of Moab, all on the hill of Bamoth Baal looking down and over the people of Israel. Balaam asks for seven altars with seven bulls and seven rams – Balak had just sacrificed the night before to his pagan god. Here Balaam offers these sacrifices to Adonai. Balaam tells the king to stand over by the offering he had made the night before, and Balaam would see what God said. Balaam walked further up to a different place (not near anything dedicated to idols) and waited. God showed up and told Balaam ‘here’s my word, go speak it to Balak’. And he did.

Even though he was brought special, how can he curse someone God hasn’t cursed? He can see them from on high, a people set apart, almost uncountable. He wishes his ending would be like the Israelites’ (spoiler: it was not).

Balak was NOT happy. He wasn’t paying for blessings. But Balaam’s hands were tied. He had to pay attention and only speak what God said to speak. Balak took him to a different spot where you could only see some of them – perhaps thinking that Balaam got overwhelmed by the vast number in sight at this spot.

They go through it again. Seven rams and seven bulls on seven altars in the field of Zophim on the top of Pisgah. Balaam goes over a ways, God shows up, gives Balaam a word and tells him to speak it to the king. Balaam does.

“God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of humankind, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? And has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?” (Numbers 23:19)

Balaam says what God says, I cannot reverse. He is blessing and it will BE a blessing. God sees no iniquity in these people – which is quite the statement and shows God’s view of us is NOT ours AND that He is not looking to smite us. Balaam said that the Lord God was with them. They will be like lions and won’t lie down until they eat their prey. The king is not happy with this. He demands Balaam not to bless them if Balaam won’t curse them. Balaam repeats he can only say what God gives him.

Balak takes Balaam and the princes of Moab to a third place – the top of Peor, which looks toward Jeshimon. Seven more altars, rams, and bulls. This time, though, it’s so obvious what God wants that Balaam just blesses Israel. He declares them beautiful, like cedar trees, and they will be exalted. He declares that those who bless them will be blessed and those who curse them will be cursed (Genesis 12:3).

Balak is angry. He tells Balaam to flee. That he’d get nothing. And he blames God for keeping Balaam from honour. Balaam retorts that he said from the beginning that he would only do what God allowed, only say what God gave him to say. Then he says that he will advise them as to what will happen in the future.

First thing he does is declare a Messianic prophesy about Messiah coming from Judah like a star (Matthew 1:1-6, 16-18; Luke 3:31-34; Revelation 22:16). That He (Messiah) would crush the corners of Moab (Psalm 83). Some translations say crush their foreheads. God is not crushing foreheads or cursing them (Romans 16:20). They – the Moabites – are bringing a curse upon themselves. His (Messiah’s) enemies will be his possessing (Armageddon). Edom and Seir will be his (Messiah’s) possessions. From Jacob (Isaiah 52:10) will come someone (Messiah) to rule and have dominion.

Balaam noticed Amalek and prophesied their end. He noticed the Kenites and prophesied their end as captives to Ashur (Iran/Iraq). He prophesied about ships – that most scholars believe are Rome (Kittim, also in Daniel 11) – coming to conquer everyone. Then Balaam went home and the king went home. Neat and tidy. But remember that bit yesterday about the only way to bring a curse on blessed people is to get them to curse themselves? Well, Balaam loved money (1 Timothy 6:10) and wanted the king’s reward (Jude 11). Numbers 31:16 and Revelation 2:14 tells us Balaam instructed Balak to use the temple prostitutes (women) to lure the men into idolatry (eating food sacrificed to idols, worshipping them, and then mating with the Moabites), which would lose them the Blessing. The women were obeying their king and doing things how they did them in their pagan worship. So the FAULT is not on them, but the men who should have known better. Perhaps they should have paid attention to their tzitzit with the sapphire cord. It should have reminded them to look up and realise that God is always with them, always watching, and it would have been easier to stand true. This was all Balaam’s idea. He got the reward he was lusting for (2 Peter 2:15) and a bad end (Joshua 13:22).

This is exactly what happens. They mix. They mix sexuality and worship – joining to the Baal of Peor. They moved out from under the blessing (cause) by being idolatrous. The effect of idolatry is death (Deuteronomy 17:2-7; Exodus 22:20). Moses summoned the judges of Israel at the Lord’s request, and they were to kill the men who aligned themselves with the Baal of Peor. So they did. And people came and wept/wailed at the tent of meeting because of this just and terrible punishment.

Zimri, son of Salu, a leader of the Simeonites, brought Kozbi, the daughter of Zur, a chief of his people (Midianites, not Moabites), and they strutted past the assembly and Moses and the tent of meeting, and they went into their tent to have sex. The Midianites had gotten involved as well, coming down to the Israelites. Zimri was doing what he wanted and thumbing his nose at the commandments. Phinehas – a son of Eleazar the High Priest, a son of Aaron – found himself a spear, entered the tent, and killed them while they were copulating. All told, twenty-four thousand men perished.

Phinehas struck with righteous anger, so he was not punished by God but blessed. God spoke to Moses and said this was an act of war from the Midianites toward Israel. He was to treat them as foes. Don’t mix with them and be hostile to them. Why didn’t God say this about Moab? Because Israel went after Moab, but the Midianites came after Israel on their own. Israel bore the punishment of their own sin. Midian bore punishment for tricking Israel.

If we don’t keep God as our center and stay unified with one another as His children, staying focused on Him – then we’ll focus on the enemy and the pagan practices of the nations around us. I think there’s real value in these remedies God set for His people, don’t you?

Summary

Key Players: God, Balaam, Balak, Phinehas

Key Themes: Curses and Blessing, Love of Money, Separated to God

Key Verse(s): Numbers 23:12, 26; 24:1-2, 12-13; 25:1-3, 9, 16-18