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Full Episode
Hey Bible Readers, I'm Tara Lee Cobble and I'm your host for the Bible Recap. Yesterday, Balaam and his donkey arrived on their journey to meet with Balak, king of Moab. It was an ancient belief in the Canaanite culture that you could speak things into existence. So Balak hired Balaam to curse the Israelites because he was afraid they would defeat him and take the land of Moab.
But at their first stop, God gives Balaam a word to speak about Israel, and much to Balak's dismay, it's a blessing. In 23.9, Balaam references Israel's set-apartness, calling them a people dwelling alone and not counting itself among the nations. Balak doesn't like the sound of this, so he says, let's take a look at them from a different angle. Maybe you'll see something worth cursing then.
But the same thing happens. Balaam can only pronounce blessing. In 2320, he says his words don't have power to undo what God has done. Our words may have an impact, but they can't overrule the plan of God. Nothing is weightier than His will.
And not only does Balaam know that now, but in 24-1 we also see that through this experience, he abandons the sorcery he has relied on and learns to seek God's face instead. But it's only temporary. But for now, the Spirit of God was empowering his words, not evil spirits. But Balak is still not satisfied, of course, and he's like, third time's a charm.
Let's go do this again, but how about this time you don't say anything good or bad? He's really grasping at straws here. But again, Balaam has nothing but good words, and in fact, words that are terrifying to Balak, because they go against everything he was hoping to hear. He says, "'He shall eat up the nations, his adversaries, and break their bones in pieces.'" Yikes!
But Balaam reminds him that he can only say what God tells him to say. And in fact, his third blessing closes with the words spoken to Abraham by God roughly 700 years earlier. Blessed are those who bless you, and cursed are those who curse you. Which ultimately means God is pronouncing a curse on Balak himself as well. The thing he was aiming for turned back on him.
Balak is furious, but also helpless. Striving is cumbersome, exhausting work. During this whole scenario, Balak tries bargaining, manipulation, stalling, and threatening. These three instances in the wilderness between Balaam and Balak remind me of the three times Satan tempts Jesus in the wilderness, and nothing budges either time.
For all Balak's fear, control, manipulation, bargaining, negotiating, stalling, and threatening, for all his mountain climbing and altar building and animal sacrificing, Balak did not budge the will of God. For all it cost in frustration and effort, striving still only results in the preordained will of God.
After getting stiffed for his work, Balaam closes out with a final oracle about Israel, highlighting some military victories that will take place. Then we cut back to the Israelites at the bottom of the mountain where Balaam had been prophesying. And what are they up to? Idolatry, naturally.
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