Dr. Richard L. Strauss
August 11, 1974
Did it ever occur to you that while we sit here in church comfortably and peacefully worshipping the Lord, Satan could very well be devising some devious strategy to use against us? Now, I don't think I'm paranoid, and I'm not trying to scare you, but it is possible that he could be doing just that. I'm just as glad I don't know about it if he is doing it because I'd be tempted to worry a little, or maybe plan some fleshly defense against him that would surely fail. But it is possible.
While the children of Israel were serenely encamped on the plains of Moab, awaiting further instructions from God and the revelation of God's plan for the conquest of their land, Satan was making some plans of his own: a devious strategy to use against them. He moves a man named Balak, who is the king of Moab, to hire a heathen soothsayer from Mesopotamia to curse Israel. So we meet this strange character named Balaam. Satan knows that if Balaam can curse Israel, then all the fury of his demonic power will be unleashed against them. And they don't know a thing about it, not one single thing.
Now, Balaam wants to pronounce this curse. He wants to do it in the worst way. Oh, he wants to get his hands on that money that Balak has offered him! But he knows enough about Jehovah to realize that he cannot curse Jehovah's people without Jehovah's permission. And that's what he's trying to get. He's trying every means possible to secure that permission.
Our lesson today is a beautiful illustration of God's sovereign protection of His own people. Neither Satan nor any of his demonic hosts can touch the loved ones of the Lord outside of His direct permission, ultimately designed for their best good. Satan cannot lay a finger on the loved ones of the Savior.
Let's follow our Mesopotamian magician today—this covetous conjurer—as he tries to inveigle the Lord into letting him curse Israel and so capture Balak's riches. Certainly there is some fault with these people. There must be some reason that would deserve a curse of some kind or other. But he knows this is not going to be easy and he warns Balak that this isn't an ordinary case. There is a God involved here who is more powerful than all his wizardry.
"And Balaam said to Balak, 'Look, I have come to you! Now, have I any power at all to say anything? The word that God puts in my mouth, that I must speak'" (Numbers 22:38).
Balaam knows that he's at the mercy of the Lord of heaven and earth. But Balak has a little scheme of his own. He takes Balaam up to the high places of Baal, where Balaam can only see the rear guard of Israel's encampment. I think that's what's meant by the "extent of the people." You see that?
"So it was, the next day, that Balak took Balaam and brought him up to the high places of Baal, that from there he might observe the extent of the people" (Numbers 22:41).
The Hebrew commentaries say the "rear part of the people." I guess he figures that if Balaam can only see a part of the people, he'll be more apt to curse them than if he can see the full measure of their strength. So in his little devious scheme of his own, he just takes him where he can see one-fourth of the congregation of Israel. And that brings us to Balaam's first attempt to curse Israel, which cursing God turns to blessing.
There are going to be four of these, if you'd like to make a note of them. I think they're very interesting because they teach some great spiritual truths.
1. Balaam's Blessing from the High Places of Baal: The Pronouncement of Israel's Separation
(Numbers 23:1-12)
The subject matter of this blessing is Israel's separation. Now, elaborate preparations were made: Seven altars were built; seven rams and oxen were brought—one ram and one ox for each altar (Numbers 23:1-2). And then in verse 3 we read:
"Then Balaam said to Balak, 'Stand by your burnt offering, and I will go; perhaps the Lord will come to meet me, and whatever He shows me I will tell you.' So he went to a desolate height" (Numbers 23:3).
Now Balaam goes to presumably seek the mind of the Lord. How is he seeking? Through prayer? No, I'll tell you how. I want you to turn over to chapter 24. In this story of Balaam, we must take in the whole revelation of Scripture or we get hopelessly confused. In this reference, this is the third time Balaam goes to God:
"Now when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he did not go as at other times, to seek to use sorcery, but he set his face toward the wilderness" (Numbers 24:1).
The third time he doesn't seek to use sorcery. In other words, he was so impressed that God spoke through him the first two times that he didn't do it the same. "He did not go as at other times." That reveals that in seeking the mind of the Lord the first two times, Balaam didn't do it through prayer; he did it through divination. The NKJV says "sorcery" and the King James says "enchantments." The word is derived from the Hebrew word for "serpent." Balaam's action may have involved divination through the use of snakes. It was pagan divination. Yet, because it fulfilled God's purposes—this is amazing, but true—God reveals to this pagan soothsayer some great truths concerning His people Israel. And He turns this attempted curse into a blessing.
Now go back to chapter 23 and we go down to verse 7. Here now is what God told Balaam to say.
"And he took up his oracle and said: 'Balak the king of Moab has brought me from Aram, from the mountains of the east. "Come, curse Jacob for me, and come, denounce Israel!" How shall I curse whom God has not cursed? And how shall I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?'" (Numbers 23:7-8).
Balaam cannot curse Israel. You see, to curse is to doom to wrath. But it's not possible to doom to wrath somebody God has destined to glory. That is not possible!
So he says, "For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him; there! A people dwelling alone, not reckoning itself among the nations" (Numbers 23:9).
Notice the last part of that verse: "a people dwelling alone, not reckoning itself among the nations." Israel is a separated people. Balaam recognized that they were different from the heathen nations around them. The great majority in this nation had personally trusted the Lord. They had a new nature, and divinely imputed righteousness. They were different. They were a holy people. They couldn't be lumped together with the other peoples of the earth; Israel was distinct. Israel was separated unto the Lord.
How true this is to be today of God's people as well: separated from sin, separated unto God. Not isolated from the world, but different and distinct. Set apart. Not one of the world—whether it's young people with their relationships with their friends and other people at school or other relationships... God says we're to be different. We are different if we know Jesus Christ; we belong to Him.
I wonder whether the world can see that, whether it's men and women at work, or in their communities, or in their social relationships, or whatever it is. God says we're a separated people. We've been set apart unto the Lord. God views us in Christ as sanctified, holy. Can the world see it? Does the world know it? God wants us to talk differently and act differently—and yes, in many cases, even to look different. We're a distinct people. Balaam had to admit to the righteousness of Israel.
"Who can count the dust of Jacob, or number one-fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my end be like his!" (Numbers 23:10).
After acknowledging that these people had grown to be like the dust of the earth in number—even as God promised they would be—Balaam expresses the wish that he might be among their number, particularly at his death, because he knows there is a great advantage to those who are righteous at the moment of their deaths. "Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my end be like his." Balaam is acknowledging the righteousness of this nation. They are a righteous people. God has blessed them. How can he curse them?
Now Balak is a little perturbed at this, as you might well imagine. He paid a lot of good money to get Balaam 600 miles from Mesopotamia over to do it.
"Then Balak said to Balaam, 'What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, and look, you have blessed them bountifully!' So he answered and said, 'Must I not take heed to speak what the Lord has put in my mouth?'" (Numbers 23:11).
That was a beautiful answer, wasn't it? It's not that he doesn't want to curse them, it's that he can't curse them. He can't do what God won't let him do in this instance. And if there's any doubt about that—and I'm driving this home because I feel like it's necessary to labor the point because it's not clear from this context, but look at God's commentary on what is happening here. Turn over to Deuteronomy chapter 23. This is the story of Balaam retold, and in verse 5 we read this:
"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 23:5).
Balaam tried to curse them. Oh, he wanted to curse them. But God turned the curse into a blessing. It's a famous story told again and again in the Old Testament and in the New. In the book of Nehemiah the story is reviewed for us in chapter 13.
"Because they had not met the children of Israel with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them. However, our God turned the curse into a blessing" (Nehemiah 13:2).
Oh, he wanted to curse them but God wouldn't let him. Praise His name! He's the same God today as He was in Numbers. He can still turn curses into blessing. And so, take heart. Maybe somebody is spreading some malicious gossip about you. Maybe they're speaking evil of you falsely. Maybe there are some ugly rumors that someone has started just to be unkind. God can take those curses and turn them to blessings. Just when Satan thinks he has the victory, God often steps in and twists it all around, and makes even the wrath of man to praise Him and brings glory to His name. That's the kind of a God we have. He loves and cares for His own. Israel was His own chosen people. They were His loved ones. And He turned the cursing into blessing.
Well, Balak decides the problem is the place. He's not in the right place. He made a mistake in showing Balaam a fourth part of the nation. Balaam needs to see the whole camp, and maybe when he sees how strong and powerful these people are, he'll know how much Balak needs his help.
2. Balaam's Blessing from Mt. Pisgah: The Pronouncement of Israel's Standing
(Numbers 23:13-26)
So this time he takes him to another place: Mt. Pisgah. Balaam's blessing from Mt. Pisgah is about Israel's standing.
I want you to notice, first, verse 13, because the King James version does mislead us a bit here.
"Then Balak said to him, 'Please come with me to another place from which you may see them; you shall see only the outer part of them, and shall not see them all; curse them for me from there'" (Numbers 23:13).
The original language says something slightly different. It doesn't say "you shall see only the outer part." Rather, it says "you see only the outer part but not them all"—the implication being that you don't see the whole thing, so let's go someplace else where you can see everything.
So they go to a new spot at the top of Mt. Pisgah. And they go through the whole rigmarole again: seven altars, seven rams, seven oxen. "You wait here; I'll go there, find out what God says, and come back and tell you." Same story all over again. So Balaam did that and came back and said this to Balak:
"'Rise up, Balak, and hear! Listen to me, son of Zippor! God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Behold, I have received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it'" (Numbers 23:18-20).
The second revelation from Mt. Pisgah is this: God doesn't change His mind. He's blessed Israel; He's refused to let Balaam curse her. That is final and unalterable, and there's not a thing Balaam can do about it. Here's the reason:
"'He has not observed iniquity in Jacob, nor has He seen wickedness in Israel'" (Numbers 23:21a).
Now that is a strange, strange statement in the Word of God. This nation was known for being stiff-necked, disobedient, rebellious, and sinful in God's sight. They tested God for nearly 40 years in the wilderness so that a whole generation was prevented from entering the promised land. In Numbers 25, we're going to see them fall into vile sin again, yet God says, "I can't see any iniquity in Jacob. I don't see any wickedness in Israel."
You know, when you read that it's almost like me standing up here today and saying, "I can't see any people in this room. I don't see a soul." I mean, to say "I don't see any wickedness in Israel" seems to be like God fooling Himself. But it isn't. This is a tremendous illustration of the great Biblical doctrine of imputed righteousness, which was true in the Old Testament as well as the New.
God is aware of the sin of His people. As a loving Father, He often chastens them and disciplines them to bring them to the place of confession and submission to His will, where they can be happy and joyful. But the moment the enemy accuses them, God stands in front of them and says, "I can't see any iniquity. I can't see any sin." How can He do this?
This isn't contradictory or deceitful. God's not fooling Himself. On the basis of His eternal provision for their sin—which was looked forward to in the Old Testament, but looked back to in this age—He can freely forgive His children and attribute to them His eternal, infinitely perfect righteousness. You see, these people were not righteous because of what they had done, but because of what God made them when they trusted Him. They stood clothed in His divine righteousness. And God could say, because He looked at them through His own righteousness, "I don't see any iniquity in Israel. They're acceptable unto Me."
New Testament passages teach us the same great truth.
"For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21).
"But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption" (1 Corinthians 1:30). We're not righteous; He is. And when we're in Christ, God views us as righteousness as His own Son is and so we're accepted unto Him.
"To the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved" (Ephesians 1:6).
"For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; you are complete in Him" (Colossians 2:9-10a).
It's not that we've done anything so great or wonderful, because we haven't. One of the great passages on this is in Romans 8. Let me read a few verses.
"What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?"—Balaam? Balak? Satan? Who? Nobody!—"He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us" (Romans 8:31-34).
God has given us who have trusted His Son His own eternal righteousness. Satan can point the finger at us and say we're not so great and Jesus says, "I know, but I paid for his sin and he trusted Me, and he's complete and perfect in Me." Our sin is forgiven. It's blotted out. It's removed as far as the east is from the west to be remembered no more. Nothing can separate us from that position in Jesus Christ. Nothing can separate us from His love according to the last part of that chapter in Romans 8. Oh, the wonder of God's grace!
Look on in Numbers 23. Balaam continues:
"God brings them out of Egypt; He has strength like a wild ox. For there is no sorcery against Jacob, nor any divination against Israel. It now must be said of Jacob and of Israel, 'Oh, what God has done!'" (Numbers 23:22-23).
Not "look how wonderful they are." Not "look what beautiful people they are." But "look what God has done!" If the safety of those Israelites depended on what they did, they would have been as good as dead at that moment. There would have been good reason for God to permit this demonic curse and they would have been destroyed. But you see, their safety depended upon what He did for them by His grace, and that's an unchangeable standing. Look what God has done!
Isn't that license for sin? No. We talked about that when we were discussing the epistle of Jude. Not at all. Not for anyone who has truly entered into an experiential knowledge of God's grace. When you really know how good God is and how gracious He's been to you, that's an incentive to yield your life to Him and grow in daily practice what you are by your eternal position in Jesus Christ.
Two revelations by a pagan soothsayer about God's people, and they're beautiful. The first one is about Israel's separation. The second one is about Israel's standing. But Balak's really shook up now. In verse 25 he says to Balaam, "If you can't do what I tell you to do, then keep your big mouth shut. Don't say anything at all. This is ridiculous. I brought you here and paid you all this money to curse them and all you do is bless them." But he decides maybe it's the location again. So he takes him from Mt. Pisgah to Mt. Peor.
3. Balaam's Blessing from Mt. Peor: The Pronouncement of Israel's Splendor
(Numbers 23:27--24:14)
Balaam's blessing from Mt. Peor is about Israel's splendor.
Now this time Balaam doesn't even try the hocus pocus stuff. The Spirit of God actually takes control of this man and we have a magnificent description of Israel's glory and splendor.
"How lovely are your tents, O Jacob! Your dwellings, O Israel! Like valleys that stretch out, like gardens by the riverside, like aloes planted by the Lord, like cedars beside the waters" (Numbers 24:5-6).
Now, prophetically, that pictures Israel peacefully settled in her land; she isn't yet. But she will be when this revelation is given—the conquest of the land followed by the peaceful settlement in the land. You know, it's interesting that the writer to the Hebrews uses Israel's occupation of her land as a picture of the abundant and blessed Spirit-filled life (Hebrews 3 and 4): the life of somebody who is resting in the Lord, trusting His promises, fellowshipping with God, and enjoying the presence of the Lord Jesus in his life. The abundant life. And we see some very interesting parallels here. Israel in her land, and the Spirit-filled life.
For one thing, it's a thing of beauty. "How lovely are your tents, O Jacob!" How beautiful. So with the believer, trusting in the Lord; resting in His promises; not going to pieces when the problems come but just believing that He is in control and God does work things together for good. That's beautiful. That's what attracts people to Jesus Christ.
Not only is it a beautiful thing, but it's fruitful, "like valleys that stretch out, like gardens by the riverside, like aloes...like cedars." The aloe tree was known for its fragrance and it was used in incense. Cedars were known for their stately height and their durable wood. And so the believer—filled with the Spirit, resting in the Lord, believing His promises, trusting in Him—is fruitful, spiritually fragrant and strong.
Not only is he beautiful and fruitful, he is a blessing to others.
"He shall pour water from his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters" (Numbers 24:7).
The water spilling out of the bucket seems to imply blessing on others. Maybe that refers to the promise God made to Abraham in Genesis 12:3—"In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." And so it is with the Spirit-filled Christian, just spilling over blessing to everyone around him. Yes, there may be deep problems in his life but his faith in God is so radiant and so firm that people are just blessed in his presence.
How beautiful. How fruitful. What a blessing to others. And there is victory.
"God brings him out of Egypt; he has strength like a wild ox; he shall consume the nations, his enemies; he shall break their bones and pierce them with his arrows" (Numbers 24:8).
Yes, for the Spirit-filled Christian there shall be victory over the enemy. For the Christian depending on divine power, enjoying the presence and power of the Lord Jesus in his life, there is victory over the foe—over the world, the flesh, and sin, and Satan. There is triumph in Jesus Christ. Walk by means of the Spirit, Paul says, and you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh (Romans 8:13).
What a beautiful picture of Israel's splendor, and by application, the believer's glorious walk in Jesus Christ today. But note the progression in verse 9.
"He bows down, he lies down as a lion; and as a lion, who shall rouse him? Blessed is he who blesses you, and cursed is he who curses you" (Numbers 24:9).
Now, note. In the first prophecy, Balaam refused to curse Israel. In the second prophecy, Balaam blesses Israel. In the third prophecy, Balak gets cursed. There's a progression here. "Cursed is he [e.g., Balak] who curses you [i.e., Israel]."
You can imagine what Balak does now. He goes berserk.
"Then Balak’s anger was aroused against Balaam, and he struck his hands together; and Balak said to Balaam, 'I called you to curse my enemies, and look, you have bountifully blessed them these three times! Now therefore, flee to your place. I said I would greatly honor you, but in fact, the Lord has kept you back from honor'" (Numbers 24:10-11).
And Balaam answers.
"Did I not also speak to your messengers whom you sent to me, saying, 'If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the Lord, to do good or bad of my own will. What the Lord says, that I must speak'?" (Numbers 24:12-13).
That's kind of pious, isn't it? You would almost think that Balaam was a man of God, only willing to do God's will and nothing else. But what we learn of him in our next lesson will show that these words were once again nothing more than pious platitudes. He would have cursed Israel if he could. And he finally does find a way to defeat her and to earn Balak's money. But before his final downfall, he does manage to slip in one more prophecy. Balak didn't even ask for this one but he gets it anyway. And it's still from Mt. Peor; they don't have time to move.
4. Balaam's Second Blessing from Mt. Peor: The Pronouncement of Israel's Savior
(Numbers 24:15-25)
Balaam's second blessing from Mt. Peor is about Israel's Savior.
"And now, indeed, I am going to my people. Come, I will advise you what this people will do to your people in the latter days" (Numbers 24:14).
Latter days. Notice, we're moving to the future now.
"So he took up his oracle and said: 'The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor, and the utterance of the man whose eyes are opened; the utterance of him who hears the words of God, and has the knowledge of the Most High, who sees the vision of the Almighty, who falls down, with eyes wide open: I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; a Star shall come out of Jacob; a scepter shall rise out of Israel, and batter the brow of Moab, and destroy all the sons of tumult. And Edom shall be a possession; Seir also, his enemies, shall be a possession, while Israel does valiantly. Out of Jacob One shall have dominion, and destroy the remains of the city" (Numbers 24:15-19).
Notice that Balaam is projecting himself to the future. He says, "I see Him but, not now. I behold Him, but not near." He's not saying "I will see Him," as if Balaam will live to see that day. He's saying "I do see Him" in prophetic vision. Balaam saw the Savior! The Star out of Jacob, the Scepter out of Israel could be none other than the Savior who came not only to deliver Israel but to provide a world redemption for a world in sin.
Trusting Jesus as Your Savior
Wherever we turn in the Word of God we find Him. Even from the mouth of this pagan soothsayer comes a glorious revelation about the Lord Jesus Christ. If you've not trusted Him as your own personal Savior, I would imagine you've confronted Him many times. Why put it off any longer? Why not acknowledge your sin and trust Jesus now, right here, today? Don't forget the Word of God says, "How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?" (Hebrews 2:3a).
The Star of Jacob. The Ruler in Israel. The One who shall have dominion over the whole earth someday is the same Lord Jesus who died for our sins. Won't you trust Him?
A Word to Christians
But I want to conclude this message with just a word to believers. We learned that God turned a curse into a blessing. Do you know why? Over in Deuteronomy we read it. "Because the Lord your God loves you" (Deuteronomy 23:5b).
Israel was the object of God's love. In fact, in Jeremiah 31 God assures Israel that He loves her with an everlasting love—a love that shall go on forever. As a believer in Jesus Christ today, you are just as much the object of God's loving care as the nation Israel ever was. Of the Lord Jesus it was said, "Having loved His own, He loved them unto the end" (John 13:1a). And He loves you today. He loves you just as much as anybody could ever love, in fact, more: He loves you with a divine love, an unselfish love. A love that not only sent Him to Calvary's cross to die for your sins, but a love—if you've trusted Him—that just keeps on caring for you and providing for you, and meeting your every need. You are the object of His constant care. He can even turn the cursings into blessings.
Oh, if only we would learn to trust Him and rest in Him. Why not believe Him? Why not take His Word at face value and really believe that God's in control of your life, and He's caring for you as one of His precious loved ones, and find rest for your troubled soul. Let's pray.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for the way You speak to us through Your Word. Thank You for the way You cared for ancient Israel. Thank You for the way You care for us. Lord, You've proven Yourself true. You've never failed us. There have been moments when we weren't sure why you were permitting certain things in our lives but ever and always we were able to look back and say, "Thank You, Lord, for what You taught us through that crisis. Thank You, Lord, for the triumphs and victories that came out of that seeming defeat. Thank You, Lord."
God, help us to trust You and believe that You really mean what You say in Your Word. And Father, we pray that if there are some without the salvation of Jesus Christ, that You will convict them of sin and show them that Israel's Messiah is the One who can deliver them from the guilt and penalty—yes, the eternal penalty—of sin. Father, we pray that some may trust You today.
A Word to Unbelievers
While we're praying together quietly, maybe there are some who do need to trust Jesus Christ as Savior. You are in that category. You've heard the Gospel. You've been confronted with the claims of Christ but you've resisted Him. Won't you take advantage of this opportunity right here and now to receive Jesus Christ as your Savior? He's alive. Yes, He died for your sins, but He's alive today and He wants to come into your life in the Person of His Holy Spirit. And when He comes, He brings forgiveness and eternal salvation. But you have to receive Him. You have to believe that; trust Him. Not putting trust in your own good works, but in His willingness to impute to you His own righteousness, because He paid for it on the cross. Will you trust Him? Quietly in your heart, make this great transaction. "Lord Jesus, I know I'm a sinner. I know You died for me. I need You. Come into my life and save me." And He'll do it.
Closing Prayer
Oh, Father, we pray that some may trust You for Jesus' sake. Amen.
Continue to BL-3: The Wages of Unrighteousness