Harvest of Asher
Akko, Israel
Why was Moab’s King Balak so afraid that he sent for Balaam to come and curse the Israelites – this powerless people who had been wandering in the desert?
Did he understand that all his military might and past victories would not be enough to succeed against them?
Was it obvious that God was with these people who had been cared for throughout their desert journeys, provided with food, led by a pillar of fire at night and covered by a cloud during the day?
As told in Numbers 22-24, Balak felt he had no other alternative but to turn to idols, witchcraft and a non-Israelite prophet and diviner known for his success in cursing. Soon Balak would wish he had known of God’s promise to Abraham, “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12:3). Even today, many have forgotten these words, whether in neighboring Muslim lands or far away in bastions of so-called progressiveness.
King Balak was prepared to give Balaam position, wealth, and honor just to get rid of the Israelites. Even though Balaam said he could not curse the Israelites, for the next three chapters we read how Balak and Balaam moved from one mountain lookout to another, all around the Israelite camp; but each time Balaam opened his mouth it was to bless Israel.
Balaam went on to prophesy about the coming King Messiah in the last part of Numbers 24. What a peculiar spot and an odd spokesman to give a bona fide Messianic prophecy! After that in chapter 25 we read how the Israelites prostituted themselves with the Moabite and Midianite women and their idols. God and sin cannot abide in the same place. In the end, what Balaam could not do by cursing the Israelites, the nation brought upon themselves. The Israelites didn’t come to this situation entirely on their own; nor was Balaam as God-fearing as he seemed; nor did he go unpunished. We gain a better understanding of the sin in the camp and the price paid in Numbers 31:16, Joshua 13:22, and Revelation 2:14.
Israel then and now?
I can’t help but ask the question, “What’s the difference between Israel then and now?” Israel, at the moment when Baalam was called to curse them, was living in holiness and under God’s protection.
Israel of today is still chosen, though not living in holiness; and Israel has still experienced much of the covering God promises! We (and our modern day enemies) would do well to ponder Balaam’s words.
Balaam said:
“How shall I curse whom God has not cursed?
And how shall I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?
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.
“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!
“...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.
“He has not observed iniquity in Jacob,
Nor has He seen wickedness in Israel.
The Lord his God is with him,
And the shout of a King is among them.” (Numbers 23 NKJV, emphasis mine)
