Ed Urzi

“These false teachers have left the straight path and wandered off to follow the path of Balaam, son of Beor. Balaam loved what his wrongdoing earned him. But he was convicted for his evil. A donkey, which normally can’t talk, spoke with a human voice and wouldn’t allow the prophet to continue his insanity” (2 Peter 2:15-16 GW).

After failing to place a curse upon the people of Israel, here is what took place immediately after the prophet Balaam left the Moabite king Balak….

“While Israel was staying in the Acacia Grove, the people began to prostitute themselves with the women of Moab. The women invited them to the sacrifices for their gods, and the people ate and bowed in worship to their gods. So Israel aligned itself with Baal of Peor, and the Lord’s anger burned against Israel” (Numbers 25:1-3 CSB).

So Balaam could not collect on Balak’s promise of a payment to curse the people of Israel, at least not initially. However, it appears Balaam devised a trap that involved seducing the people of Israel into acts of idolatry and sexual immorality. Balaam’s strategy was apparently this: “If I can’t get God to harm the people, perhaps I can get the people to harm themselves.” Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened according to the opening verses of Numbers chapter twenty-five.

So what do we have in Balaam? Well, a few potential applications come to mind…

• Balaam serves as an example of a spiritual leader who is “only in it for the money.”
• He was someone who appeared religious, but actually had a hidden agenda.
• In Balaam, we have someone who was willing to sell others out for the right price.
• Finally, Balaam merchandised a God-given gift for personal gain. In the words of 2 Peter 2:15, Balaam was someone “…who loved the wages of unrighteousness.”

Now, before we conclude our look at Balaam’s life, we should take note of one final detail. That detail involves Balaam’s demise, as recorded for us in Numbers 31:8. During a battle against the people of Midian, that portion of Scripture tells us that the people of Israel defeated five Midianite kings. And then, almost as an aside, we read this: “They also killed Balaam son of Beor with the sword.”

Balaam’s death reminds us that judgment eventually comes to all. Like Balaam, we may disguise our true intentions from others, but we can never hide them from our Creator. Thus, we should remember Balaam’s example along with the words of Romans 2:6: “[God] will render to each one according to his deeds.”

“Forsaking the right way, they have gone astray. They have followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved gain from wrongdoing, but was rebuked for his own transgression; a speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness” (2 Peter 2:15-16 ESV).

Balak, a Moabite king, sought to enlist the prophet Balaam’s help in cursing the people of Israel; however, his efforts produced the opposite effect. The prophet he sought to hire to curse the Israelites responded with three blessings instead. That led to what happened next…

“King Balak flew into a rage against Balaam. He angrily clapped his hands and shouted, ‘I called you to curse my enemies! Instead, you have blessed them three times. Now get out of here! Go back home! I promised to reward you richly, but the Lord has kept you from your reward.’

Balaam told Balak, ‘Don’t you remember what I told your messengers? I said, ‘Even if Balak were to give me his palace filled with silver and gold, I would be powerless to do anything against the will of the Lord.’ I told you that I could say only what the Lord says!’” (Numbers 24:10-13).

If the Biblical account of Balaam’s life ended there, we might struggle to grasp the significance of this reference to “the prophet’s madness” here in 2 Peter chapter two. Unfortunately, the story of Balaam’s life didn’t end with that passage. By piecing together various portions of Scripture, it becomes apparent that Balaam’s interest in Balak’s money was greater than it seemed.

For example, the Biblical book of Deuteronomy conveys the following information regarding the Moabites and another Old Testament people group known as the Ammonites…

”…they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you. Nevertheless the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam, but the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loves you” (Deuteronomy 23:4-5).

So it seems that Balaam asked God to curse the people of Israel, but He refused to do so. Then there is Jesus’ message to the church community in the ancient city of Pergamos…

“But I have a few complaints against you. You tolerate some among you whose teaching is like that of Balaam, who showed Balak how to trip up the people of Israel. He taught them to sin by eating food offered to idols and by committing sexual sin” (Revelation 2:14 NLT).

Based on this information, it appears Balaam concluded he couldn’t curse Israel directly. So he devised an alternate plan. This portion of Scripture tells us that Balaam guided Balak towards an indirect means of destruction by leading the people of Israel into idolatry and sexual immorality. Not coincidentally, that is exactly what took place after Balaam departed from Balak, as we’ll see in the last installment of our sub-study into Balaam’s life.

“They have gone off the road and become lost like Balaam, the son of Beor, who fell in love with the money he could make by doing wrong; but Balaam was stopped from his mad course when his donkey spoke to him with a human voice, scolding and rebuking him” (2 Peter 2:15-16 TLB).

The Biblical book of Numbers relates the account of the prophet Balaam and his journey to visit a king who offered to hire him to curse the people of Israel. But unbeknownst to Balaam, the donkey he was riding refused to pass the angel of the Lord who stood before them. That led to the following encounter…

“Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the roadway with a drawn sword in his hand. Balaam bowed his head and fell face down on the ground before him. ‘Why did you beat your donkey those three times?’ the angel of the Lord demanded. ‘Look, I have come to block your way because you are stubbornly resisting me. Three times the donkey saw me and shied away; otherwise, I would certainly have killed you by now and spared the donkey.’

Then Balaam confessed to the angel of the Lord, ‘I have sinned. I didn’t realize you were standing in the road to block my way. I will return home if you are against my going.’ But the angel of the Lord told Balaam, ‘Go with these men, but say only what I tell you to say.’ So Balaam went on with Balak’s officials” (Numbers 22:31-35 NLT).

Upon his arrival, Balaam was taken to a place where he could curse the nation of Israel encamped below. But God instead gave him a blessing to invoke upon the people. That prompted an immediate response from Balak, the king who sought to hire him: “…’What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies. Instead, you have blessed them!’ But Balaam replied, ‘I will speak only the message that the Lord puts in my mouth’” (Numbers 23:11-12 NLT).

The king then escorted Balaam to another location where he could curse the Israelites. But once again, Balaam spoke a blessing upon the people. That led to the following exchange: “Then Balak said to Balaam, ‘Fine, but if you won’t curse them, at least don’t bless them!’ But Balaam replied to Balak, ‘Didn’t I tell you that I can do only what the Lord tells me?’” (Numbers 23:25-26 NLT).

The following verse tells us, “Then King Balak said to Balaam, ‘Come, I will take you to one more place. Perhaps it will please God to let you curse them from there” (Numbers 23:27 NLT). However, Balaam pronounced another blessing that ended with an echo of God’s promise to Abraham, the Old Testament patriarch: “Blessed is everyone who blesses you, O Israel, and cursed is everyone who curses you’” (Numbers 24:9)

And, as we’ll see, that’s when Balak really became enraged.

“They have wandered off the right road and followed the footsteps of Balaam son of Beor, who loved to earn money by doing wrong. But Balaam was stopped from his mad course when his donkey rebuked him with a human voice” (2 Peter 2:15-16 NLT).

While it’s hard to make a definitive statement, it appears God qualified His permission to allow the prophet Balaam to accompany a delegation of Moabites who approached him with a proposal to curse the Israelites. We find that qualification in Numbers 22:20: “If the men come to call you, rise and go with them…” (NKJV). However, the following verse tells us that Balaam rose the next morning and departed with the Moabite ambassadors seemingly of his own accord.

Balaam’s apparent readiness to act on an invitation to curse those whom God sought to bless may shed light on the events that followed…

“But God was angry that Balaam was going, so he sent the angel of the Lord to stand in the road to block his way. As Balaam and two servants were riding along, Balaam’s donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand. The donkey bolted off the road into a field, but Balaam beat it and turned it back onto the road.

Then the angel of the Lord stood at a place where the road narrowed between two vineyard walls. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it tried to squeeze by and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall. So Balaam beat the donkey again. Then the angel of the Lord moved farther down the road and stood in a place too narrow for the donkey to get by at all.

“This time when the donkey saw the angel, it lay down under Balaam. In a fit of rage Balaam beat the animal again with his staff. Then the Lord gave the donkey the ability to speak. ‘What have I done to you that deserves your beating me three times?’ it asked Balaam. ‘You have made me look like a fool!’ Balaam shouted. ‘If I had a sword with me, I would kill you!’” (Numbers 22:22-29).

The most noteworthy incident in this passage is open to debate. Was it the fact that God caused a donkey to speak a human language, or the fact that Balaam engaged in a conversation with a talking donkey as though there was nothing out of the ordinary?

Either way, Balaam’s donkey responded to him with a perfectly logical question…

“’But I am the same donkey you have ridden all your life,’ the donkey answered. ‘Have I ever done anything like this before?’ ‘No,’ Balaam admitted” (Numbers 22: 30).

So far, Balaam’s donkey has demonstrated greater composure than Balaam himself. But then again, Balaam’s donkey knew something he didn’t, as we’ll see next.

“They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Bezer, who loved the wages of wickedness. But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey–an animal without speech–who spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness” (2 Peter 2:15-16 NIV).

After meeting with the emissaries of a Moabite king named Balak, the prophet Balaam weighed their offer to hire him to curse the people of Israel. Balaam then responded by saying, “‘Stay here overnight,’ Balaam said. ‘In the morning I will tell you whatever the Lord directs me to say.’ So the officials from Moab stayed there with Balaam” (Numbers 22:8).

The following verses continue by saying…

“That night God came to Balaam and asked him, ‘Who are these men visiting you?’ Balaam said to God, ‘Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, has sent me this message: ‘Look, a vast horde of people has arrived from Egypt, and they cover the face of the earth. Come and curse these people for me. Then perhaps I will be able to stand up to them and drive them from the land.’

But God told Balaam, ‘Do not go with them. You are not to curse these people, for they have been blessed!’ The next morning Balaam got up and told Balak’s officials, ‘Go on home! The Lord will not let me go with you'” (Numbers 22:9-13).

But that saga was far from over…

“Then Balak tried again. This time he sent a larger number of even more distinguished officials than those he had sent the first time. They went to Balaam and delivered this message to him: ‘This is what Balak son of Zippor says: Please don’t let anything stop you from coming to help me. I will pay you very well and do whatever you tell me. Just come and curse these people for me!’

But Balaam responded to Balak’s messengers, ‘Even if Balak were to give me his palace filled with silver and gold, I would be powerless to do anything against the will of the Lord my God. But stay here one more night, and I will see if the Lord has anything else to say to me’

That night God came to Balaam and told him, “Since these men have come for you, get up and go with them. But do only what I tell you to do'” (Numbers 22:15-20).

Perhaps Balaam was a little too eager to meet with a king who was willing to pay him to curse the same people God wanted to bless. That (and the lure of some easy money) may explain what happened next.

“They have forsaken the right way and gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; but he was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet” (2 Peter 2:15-16).

A cursory reading through the Scriptures reveals an amazing number of Biblical personalities who displayed some genuine character issues. One such individual was a prophet named Balaam. He will complete our final character sub-study here in 2 Peter chapter two. In looking at the events of Balaam’s life, we should find encouragement to apply the words of 1 Corinthians 10:11: “These things happened to them as a warning to us. All this was written in the Scriptures to teach us who live in these last days” (CEV).

Balaam’s account begins in chapter twenty-two of the Old Testament book of Numbers. At that point in Biblical history, the nation of Israel had already defeated two Amorite kings along with their armies. The next monarch destined to be overthrown was a Moabite king named Balak. As you might expect, Balak was anxious about being the next in line to face elimination, as is evident from the following passage…

“Balak son of Zippor, the Moabite king, had seen everything the Israelites did to the Amorites. And when the people of Moab saw how many Israelites there were, they were terrified. The king of Moab said to the elders of Midian, ‘This mob will devour everything in sight, like an ox devours grass in the field!’”

“So Balak, king of Moab, sent messengers to call Balaam son of Beor, who was living in his native land of Pethor near the Euphrates River. His message said: ‘Look, a vast horde of people has arrived from Egypt. They cover the face of the earth and are threatening me. Please come and curse these people for me because they are too powerful for me. Then perhaps I will be able to conquer them and drive them from the land. I know that blessings fall on any people you bless, and curses fall on people you curse.'”

“Balak’s messengers, who were elders of Moab and Midian, set out with money to pay Balaam to place a curse upon Israel. They went to Balaam and delivered Balak’s message to him” (Numbers 22:2-7 NLT and following).

So Balak sent some of his top ambassadors to a prophet named Balaam to request his assistance. We’ll look at Balaam’s response to that request next.