Numbers 24

the Promised Land. On the first day of the fifth month of that fortieth year (33:38), Moses, Aaron, and Eleazar went somewhere on Mount Hor because it was now time for Aaron to die. Moses would say good-bye to a beloved brother and Eleazar to a revered father. Aaron was 123 years old (33:38–39).

However, Aaron’s death didn’t interrupt the ministry of the priesthood, for Eleazar took his place. As John Wesley used to say, “God buries His workmen but His work goes on.” In fulfillment of the law (Ex. 29:29–30), Moses took the holy garments from his brother, Aaron, and put them on Eleazar. He probably anointed him as well for the new office. When Moses and Eleazar returned to the camp without Aaron, and the people saw Eleazar dressed in the robes of the high priest, they knew that Aaron’s life had ended. They mourned for Aaron for thirty days, which takes us now into the sixth month.

Eleazar was the third son of Aaron (Num. 3:2); the first two, Nadab and Abihu, were slain by the Lord for defiling the tabernacle with false fire (Lev. 10). Before becoming high priest, he was the chief leader of the Levites for caring for the tabernacle (Num. 3:32; 4:16). He would assist Moses in taking the census of the new generation (26:1–3) as well as in commissioning Joshua to succeed Moses (27:18–23). When Israel had conquered the land, Eleazar helped Joshua assign each tribe its inheritance (34:17; Josh. 14:1; 19:15).

Moses has experienced two family funerals, two confrontations with critics in the camp, and a personal failure at Kadesh, yet he picks up his rod and goes right back to work. Victorious Christian service, like the victorious Christian life, is a series of new beginnings. No matter what mistakes we’ve made, it’s always too soon to quit.

1. The first oracle—22:26—23: a separated people 2. The second oracle—23:13–26 a conquering people 3. The third oracle—23:27—24: a prosperous people 4. The fourth oracle—24:15–19 a royal people 5. Three concluding oracles—24:20—25 1. The sin of Israel—25:1–9 2. The courage of Phinehas—25:10–15 3. The judgment of Midian—25:16–18 1. The way of Balaam—2 Peter 2: 2. The error of Balaam—Jude 11 3. The doctrine of Balaam—Rev. 2:

Before studying the details, you may want to read Numbers 22—25 at one sitting in order to get the overall picture. Note also the three important New Testament references in Part 4 of the outline, as well as the following Old Testament references: Numbers 31:8; Deuteronomy 4:3–4; 23:3–6; Joshua 13:22; 24:9–10; Nehemiah 13:1–3.

For the king to hasten out to meet the commoner shows how anxious Balak was to get started in his attack against Israel. Why had Balaam delayed his coming? Wasn’t Balak’s offer generous enough? Didn’t the prophet realize the seriousness of the situation? Balaam didn’t defend himself or explain his actions, but he did state clearly that all he could do was declare the words God gave him. The king offered sacrifices to his god Baal and probably gave Balaam some of the inner parts of the animals to use for divination.

The first oracle (22:39—23:12). The next morning, Balak took Balaam to Bamoth Baal (“the high places of Baal”) where they could see the camp of Israel and offer more sacrifices to Baal. Balaam used these sacrifices as part of his sorcery and soothsaying (24:1) and didn’t simply wait for God’s promised message. In His grace and goodness, God used this evil man and endured his duplicity because He had a special message to declare about His people Israel.

The message God gave to Balaam emphasized several basic truths about the people of Israel. First, God had especially blessed the people of Israel and they could not be cursed (23:7–8). This was part of God’s covenant with Abraham (Gen. 12:1–3) and it has been fulfilled throughout their history. God has judged every ruler and nation that has caused His people to suffer, including Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, and Nazi Germany.

No nation has been blessed of God like Israel, not only with material blessings and divine protection, but primarily with spiritual blessings to share with the whole world. Paul lists some of them in Romans 9:1–5. Israel gave the world the knowledge of the true and living God, the written Word of God, and Jesus Christ the Savior of the world.

Balaam’s second basic truth was that the Jews were chosen by God and therefore were a nation set apart from the other nations (Num. 23:9). The Lord had declared this to Israel at Mount Sinai (Ex. 19:5–6), and the laws that He gave them at Sinai made it possible for them to live like a special people. In his farewell message to Israel, Moses also emphasizes the uniqueness of Israel as the people of God (Deut. 4:20; 14:2, 21; 26:18–19; 32:8–9; 33:3, 28–29) and reminded them that God chose them because He loved them (Num. 7:6–8). See also Leviticus 20:26; 1 Kings 8:52–53; Amos 3:2; and Isaiah 43:21.

Israel’s great temptation was in wanting to be like the other nations, and this is what led to their downfall and captivity. Instead of rejoicing in their uniqueness as the people of the true and living God, they imitated their neighbors in their worship and conduct, and God had to discipline them. Instead of letting God rule as their King, they asked for a king “like all the nations” (1 Sam. 8:5), and this brought the nation into all kinds of trouble.

Unfortunately, many people in the church today have the mistaken idea that being like the world is the way to reach the world. They forget that the church is the people of God, a very special people, saved by His grace. Instead of maintaining separation (2 Cor. 6:14—7:1) they promote imitation (1 John 2:15–17; Rom. 12:2), so that it’s becoming more and more difficult to distinguish the people of God from the people of the world. And yet, as Campbell Morgan reminded us, “The church did the most for the world when the church was the least like the world.”

Balaam’s third emphasis was on the vastness of Israel’s camp, even though he was seeing only a small part of it (Num. 22:41). His use of the word “dust” reminds us of God’s promises to Abraham and his descendants that they would multiply and become as numerous as the dust of the earth (Gen. 13:16; 28:14). Nations come and go, but in spite of their many trials, the people of Israel have never been destroyed. Instead, they have multiplied and today are found all over the world.

Balaam was sent to curse Israel, yet he ended his oracle by declaring that he wanted to be like Israel! “Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his” (Num. 23:10). But you don’t die the death of the righteous unless you live the life of the righteous, and that was something Balaam wasn’t prepared to do. His love of money so controlled his life that he would do anything to get wealth. Balaam died with the wicked when Israel defeated the Midianites (31:8), and his end was eternal judgment.

When Balak complained about the oracle, Balaam had only one reply: the words came from God and that’s what he had to speak. Balaam could have invented a curse and fooled Balak, but the Lord wouldn’t allow him to do it, for these oracles would one day be part of God’s Holy Word.

The second oracle (vv. 13–26). To encourage Balaam to do what he was hired to do—curse Israel— Balak asked his hired prophet to get a different perspective. He took him to the top of Mount Pisgah where again they offered sacrifices to their gods (vv. 13–14; see Deut. 34:1–4). The fact that Balaam participated in these pagan occult rituals shows the wickedness of his heart. He spoke the Word of God and longed for a righteous death, yet he thought nothing of using enchantments and consorting with Satan (Num. 24:1). He was a double-minded man whose chief desire was to make as much money as possible by marketing his skills.

The first oracle pictured Israel as a chosen people because of the love of God, and the second oracle presents them as a conquering people because of the faithfulness of God. God doesn’t lie, so all His promises and covenants are sure; He doesn’t change, so His character remains the same. He isn’t weak but is able to fulfill what He promises; nobody can manipulate Him or control Him. God was with the people of Israel and reigned as their King.

It was God who gave Israel their victories, beginning with their exodus from Egypt. The nation was like an ox in its strength and like a lioness and a lion in its determination to catch its prey and kill it. Therefore, no sorcery could succeed against God’s people because God was at work in them and through them. “Oh, what God has done!” (23: nkjv).

When God looked upon Israel, He didn’t behold iniquity or wickedness and therefore have reason to judge them. They were “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (19:6), even though He had to chasten them for their unbelief and disobedience. Believers today are God’s chosen people (Eph. 1:4), hidden in Christ (Col. 3:3), clothed in His righteousness (2 Cor. 5:17, 21) and seated with Him in the heavenlies (Eph. 2:4–6). Because we are “in Christ,” God sees us as His own special people (1 Peter 2:5, 9–10), and He deals with us accordingly.

Once again, God turned the curse into a blessing!

The battles God’s people fight today are not with flesh and blood on earth but with Satan’s hosts in the heavenlies (Eph. 6:10ff.), and we can’t win the victory in our own strength. We must first of all see ourselves as the people of God, purchased by the blood of Christ, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, and “more than conquerors” through Christ (Rom. 8:37). Our protection is the “whole armor of God,” and our chief weapons are the Word of God and prayer (Eph. 6:13–20; Acts 6:4).

As long as Israel walked with God and obeyed His will, they were an undefeated people and God did great wonders for them. “And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith” (1 John 5: nkjv).

Balaam and God’s message (Num. 23:27—24:25) Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, a mountain identified with the pagan god Baal (25:3, 5; Deut. 4:3; Ps. 106:28–29; Hos. 9:10). The usual altars were built and the animals sacrificed, but this time Balaam didn’t try to use his sorcery. Instead, he gazed out at the camp of Israel and the Spirit of God came upon him and gave him the third oracle.

The third oracle (23:27—24:14). The emphasis here is on the contentment of God’s people in their own land. The conquest of Canaan is over (24:8–9), their enemies have been defeated, and Israel is enjoying the abundance of God’s provision in “the land of milk and honey.” The Promised Land is a paradise with an abundance of water, an important commodity in the East, and Israel’s dwelling places are situated like beautiful flowers and trees in a garden. Beauty and bounty are seen in the land because of the blessing of the Lord.

In the second oracle, Balaam saw God as Israel’s King (23:21), but now he sees the nation ruled by its own king who is greater than Agag (24:7). Since the name Agag shows up centuries later (1 Sam. 15:9), it may have been the official name of the rulers of the Amalekites, such as “Pharaoh” in Egypt and “Abimelech” in Gerar (Gen. 20; 26). When Israel was on the way to Sinai, the Amalekites attacked them and were defeated by Moses’ prayers and Joshua’s soldiers, and the Amalekites became the sworn enemies of the Jews (Ex. 17:8–16).

Which Jewish king is referred to in this prophecy? Certainly not King Saul, who failed to exterminate the Amalekites and died in disgrace. Possibly, it may be David, but certainly it points to Jesus Christ who is “higher than the kings of the earth” (Ps. 89:27). There seems to be a dual prophecy here, for during the reign of Jesus Christ over the promised messianic kingdom, the land of Israel will become like the garden of Eden (Isa. 35).

Balaam repeats the images of the ox and the lion (Num. 24:8–9; see 23:22, 24), and closes his oracle with a quotation from God’s covenant with Abraham (24:9; Gen. 12:3; 27:29). Balak didn’t like what he said, especially the threat of being cursed if he cursed Israel. He told the soothsayer to go home, and because Balaam didn’t do the job right, he wouldn’t be paid. Because Balaam listened to the Lord and spoke only His Word, King Balak concluded that the Lord had robbed Balaam of his reward!

Balaam agreed to return home, but not until he had delivered his fourth oracle. However, Balaam remained with Balak long enough to engineer the seductive feast that led to the defilement and defeat of Israel. He couldn’t curse Israel but he could tempt them into compromise.

The fourth oracle (vv. 15–19). The preface is similar to that of the third oracle (vv. 3–4), emphasizing that what Balaam saw and heard came from the Lord. It was so overwhelming that it left the prophet prostrate on the ground. You would think that such a remarkable experience with the living God would have brought Balaam to the place of submission and faith, but it did not. It only shows how close an unbeliever can come to the knowledge of the Lord and still reject the truth (Matt. 7:15–23).

The vision is brief and to the point; it focuses on the coming Messiah of Israel and His conquests “in the latter days” (Num. 24:14). The images of the star and scepter speak of Messiah’s kingship and reign (Gen. 49:10; Rev. 22:16), and “out of Jacob shall he come who shall have dominion” certainly refers to Messiah (Num. 24:19; Ps. 72:8; Zech. 9:10; Rev. 1:6). While a part of this vision may have been fulfilled in a lesser way in the conquests of David, Jesus the Son of David will fulfill them completely when He returns to conquer His enemies and establish His kingdom on the earth (Rev. 19:11—20:6).

But the soothsayer wasn’t finished. As he stood on the top of Peor, he had visions concerning other nations and predicted their destiny. Amalek (Num. 24:20) was the first nation to attack Israel after their exodus from Egypt (Ex. 17:8–16), but they would be finally defeated and wiped out by David (1 Sam. 27:8–9; 2 Sam. 8:11–12). The Kenites (Num. 24:21–22) were a nomadic people who lived among the Midianites. They lived in the mountainous regions, but their “nest” wouldn’t protect them from the invading Assyrians (Asshur) who would take them captive. The fate of the nations is in God’s hands (Acts 17:24–28), and no nation or individual could survive apart from His mercy (Num. 24:23).

The predictions in verse 25 are difficult to interpret, but as Dr. Roland B. Allen states, “[O]ne nation will rise and supplant another, only to face its own doom. In contrast there is the implied ongoing blessing on the people of Israel and their sure promise of a future deliverer who will have the final victory.” It is a remarkable thing that God gave this vision to a covetous Gentile soothsayer instead of to a dedicated Jewish prophet. But He is sovereign in all His ways, and His ways are higher than our ways (Isa. 55:8–11).