Prepare
Opening Prayer
God, thank you for your Word. Help us understand, trust you, and receive its meaning as your Holy Spirit applies it to our hearts. In Jesus' name, amen.
Read
Scripture Passage
Balak Sends for Balaam
22 Then the children of Israel moved, and camped in the plains of Moab on the side of the Jordan across from Jericho.
2 Now Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites. 3 And Moab was exceedingly afraid of the people because they were many, and Moab was sick with dread because of the children of Israel. 4 So Moab said to the elders of Midian, “Now this company will lick up everything around us, as an ox licks up the grass of the field.” And Balak the son of Zippor was king of the Moabites at that time. 5 Then he sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is near the River in the land of the sons of his people, to call him, saying: “Look, a people has come from Egypt. See, they cover the face of the earth, and are settling next to me! 6 Therefore please come at once, curse this people for me, for they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.”
7 So the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the diviner’s fee in their hand, and they came to Balaam and spoke to him the words of Balak. 8 And he said to them, “Lodge here tonight, and I will bring back word to you, as the Lord speaks to me.” So the princes of Moab stayed with Balaam.
9 Then God came to Balaam and said, “Who are these men with you?”
10 So Balaam said to God, “Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, has sent to me, saying, 11 ‘Look, a people has come out of Egypt, and they cover the face of the earth. Come now, curse them for me; perhaps I shall be able to overpower them and drive them out.’ ”
12 And God said to Balaam, “You shall not go with them; you shall not curse the people, for they are blessed.”
13 So Balaam rose in the morning and said to the princes of Balak, “Go back to your land, for the Lord has refused to give me permission to go with you.”
14 And the princes of Moab rose and went to Balak, and said, “Balaam refuses to come with us.”
15 Then Balak again sent princes, more numerous and more honorable than they. 16 And they came to Balaam and said to him, “Thus says Balak the son of Zippor: ‘Please let nothing hinder you from coming to me; 17 for I will certainly honor you greatly, and I will do whatever you say to me. Therefore please come, curse this people for me.’ ”
18 Then Balaam answered and said to the servants of Balak, “Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the Lord my God, to do less or more. 19 Now therefore, please, you also stay here tonight, that I may know what more the Lord will say to me.”
20 And God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “If the men come to call you, rise and go with them; but only the word which I speak to you—that you shall do.” 21 So Balaam rose in the morning, saddled his donkey, and went with the princes of Moab.
Balaam, the Donkey, and the Angel
22 Then God’s anger was aroused because he went, and the Angel of the Lord took His stand in the way as an adversary against him. And he was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him. 23 Now the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand, and the donkey turned aside out of the way and went into the field. So Balaam struck the donkey to turn her back onto the road. 24 Then the Angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side. 25 And when the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord, she pushed herself against the wall and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall; so he struck her again. 26 Then the Angel of the Lord went further, and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left. 27 And when the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam; so Balaam’s anger was aroused, and he struck the donkey with his staff.
28 Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”
29 And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have abused me. I wish there were a sword in my hand, for now I would kill you!”
30 So the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden, ever since I became yours, to this day? Was I ever disposed to do this to you?”
And he said, “No.”
31 Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the Angel of the Lord standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand; and he bowed his head and fell flat on his face. 32 And the Angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out to stand against you, because your way is perverse before Me. 33 The donkey saw Me and turned aside from Me these three times. If she had not turned aside from Me, surely I would also have killed you by now, and let her live.”
34 And Balaam said to the Angel of the Lord, “I have sinned, for I did not know You stood in the way against me. Now therefore, if it displeases You, I will turn back.”
35 Then the Angel of the Lord said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but only the word that I speak to you, that you shall speak.” So Balaam went with the princes of Balak.
36 Now when Balak heard that Balaam was coming, he went out to meet him at the city of Moab, which is on the border at the Arnon, the boundary of the territory. 37 Then Balak said to Balaam, “Did I not earnestly send to you, calling for you? Why did you not come to me? Am I not able to honor you?”
38 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.” 39 So Balaam went with Balak, and they came to Kirjath Huzoth. 40 Then Balak offered oxen and sheep, and he sent some to Balaam and to the princes who were with him.
Balaam’s First Prophecy
41 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.
23 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Build seven altars for me here, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.”
2 And Balak did just as Balaam had spoken, and Balak and Balaam offered a bull and a ram on each altar. 3 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. 4 And God met Balaam, and he said to Him, “I have prepared the seven altars, and I have offered on each altar a bull and a ram.”
5 Then the Lord put a word in Balaam’s mouth, and said, “Return to Balak, and thus you shall speak.” 6 So he returned to him, and there he was, standing by his burnt offering, he and all the princes of Moab.
7 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!’
8 “How shall I curse whom God has not cursed?
And how shall I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?
9 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.
10 “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!”
11 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!”
12 So he answered and said, “Must I not take heed to speak what the Lord has put in my mouth?”
Balaam’s Second Prophecy
13 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.” 14 So he brought him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
15 And he said to Balak, “Stand here by your burnt offering while I meet the Lord over there.”
16 Then the Lord met Balaam, and put a word in his mouth, and said, “Go back to Balak, and thus you shall speak.” 17 So he came to him, and there he was, standing by his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab were with him. And Balak said to him, “What has the Lord spoken?”
18 Then he took up his oracle and said:
“Rise up, Balak, and hear!
Listen to me, son of Zippor!
19 “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?
20 Behold, I have received a command to bless;
He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it.
21 “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.
22 God brings them out of Egypt;
He has strength like a wild ox.
23 “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!’
24 Look, a people rises like a lioness,
And lifts itself up like a lion;
It shall not lie down until it devours the prey,
And drinks the blood of the slain.”
25 Then Balak said to Balaam, “Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all!”
26 So Balaam answered and said to Balak, “Did I not tell you, saying, ‘All that the Lord speaks, that I must do’?”
Balaam’s Third Prophecy
27 Then Balak said to Balaam, “Please come, I will take you to another place; perhaps it will please God that you may curse them for me from there.” 28 So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, that overlooks the wasteland. 29 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me here seven altars, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams.” 30 And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on every altar.
24 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. 2 And Balaam raised his eyes, and saw Israel encamped according to their tribes; and the Spirit of God came upon him.
3 Then he took up his oracle and said:
“The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor,
The utterance of the man whose eyes are opened,
4 The utterance of him who hears the words of God,
Who sees the vision of the Almighty,
Who falls down, with eyes wide open:
5 “How lovely are your tents, O Jacob!
Your dwellings, O Israel!
6 Like valleys that stretch out,
Like gardens by the riverside,
Like aloes planted by the Lord,
Like cedars beside the waters.
7 He shall pour water from his buckets,
And his seed shall be in many waters.
“His king shall be higher than Agag,
And his kingdom shall be exalted.
8 “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.
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.”
10 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! 11 Now therefore, flee to your place. I said I would greatly honor you, but in fact, the Lord has kept you back from honor.”
12 So Balaam said to Balak, “Did I not also speak to your messengers whom you sent to me, saying, 13 ‘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’? 14 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.”
Balaam’s Fourth Prophecy
15 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;
16 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:
17 “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.
18 “And Edom shall be a possession;
Seir also, his enemies, shall be a possession,
While Israel does valiantly.
19 Out of Jacob One shall have dominion,
And destroy the remains of the city.”
20 Then he looked on Amalek, and he took up his oracle and said:
“Amalek was first among the nations,
But shall be last until he perishes.”
21 Then he looked on the Kenites, and he took up his oracle and said:
“Firm is your dwelling place,
And your nest is set in the rock;
22 Nevertheless Kain shall be burned.
How long until Asshur carries you away captive?”
23 Then he took up his oracle and said:
“Alas! Who shall live when God does this?
24 But ships shall come from the coasts of Cyprus,
And they shall afflict Asshur and afflict Eber,
And so shall Amalek, until he perishes.”
25 So Balaam rose and departed and returned to his place; Balak also went his way.
The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Nu 22:1–24:25.
A — About
What Is This Passage About?
Balak repeatedly hires Balaam to curse Israel, but neither money, ritual, nor sorcery can overturn God's Word. The Lord turns each intended curse into blessing and promises a coming star and scepter from Jacob.
B — Best Verse
A Verse That Summarizes the Passage
Numbers 23:19
Distilled from the devotional exposition; the speaker did not explicitly name a best verse.
Bryan explicitly skips choosing from the long reading. Verse 23:19 best captures his concluding emphasis that God does not lie, change, or abandon what he has promised.
C — Called or Christ
C — Called to Do
Listen to God and obey his Word. Take comfort that the eternal covenant King cannot be bribed or manipulated; he faithfully and eternally loves those he has chosen to bless.
Devotional Study
Transcript of the devotion. Minor transcription errors may remain.
uh you ready uh all right well good morning good morning good morning welcome to coffee and devotions this where every weekday morning you and I we get together we have a little bit of I got coffee what what type of tea did you grab this morning Ginger Ginger to you and we'll have a little bit of coffee we'll get into God's word and we'll grow in our love for the Lord together in this year 2024 Lord willing will'll make it through the books of Numbers Deuteronomy and Hebrews and Olivia Deborah has been waiting and waiting and waiting for this passage she's been so excited to read it so we're going to read through all of it together so I saved this one just for Deborah because she was asking for it so let's have some coffee or tea we'll pray and we'll get into God's word maybe te all right don't burn yourself job now I do want to warn you before we pray and get into this this is going to be a longer one because we have multiple chapters to read but it's one whole complete story and so uh we'll kind of talk about it as we read through it okay but it's going to be longer so if you don't have time right now go ahead pause it come back later and follow along with Deborah and I later as we get into coffee and devotions here we go let's pray God we thank you for your word and we pray that you would please help us to understand it Lord we pray that it would be meaningful to us and that we would trust in you help us holy spirit apply these things to our hearts in Jesus's name amen all right so we're at beginning at Numbers chapter 22 so this is the story of balum so Numbers chapter 22 Deborah you just read until you're tired and then I'll read until I'm tired and we'll just switch back and forth and they kind of interrupt us to talk okay then the children of Israel moved and camped in the plains of Moab on the side of the Jordan across from Jericho now baac now BAC BAC s s the son of zior saw all that Israel had done to the amorites okay so bik is the son of zipper uh so they're on the plains of Moab across from Jericho so who is this Bic guy a moabit we see go ahead and keep reading um verse three and Moab was exceedingly afraid of the people because they were many and Moab was sick with Dread because of the children of Israel so Moab said to the Elders of Midian now this company will lick up everything around us as an ox look up the grass of the field and baac the son of zior was King of the moabites at the time okay so who is bik the king of the moabites all right and what's going on with Moab what's their what's going on in their hearts they're like the um these Israelites are take all of our land that's right good good all right verse five then he sent Messengers to balam balum the sons the son of Bor at pethor which is near the river in the land of the sons of his people okay so the river they're talking about there's Euphrates right so he gone him from a long way away to come good to call him saying look a people has come from Egypt see they covered the face of the Earth and are settling next to me therefore please come at once and curse the this people for the for me c people for me for they are too Mighty for me perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive out of the land for I know that he whom you bless is blessed and he whom you curse is cursed all right so what's balam's or what's uh bic's idea well if I get this balum guy over here and maybe well he could curse the children of Israel and then they can't get my land good good that's right you want to keep breeding so the the Elders of Moab and the Elders of Midian departed with the diviner fee in their hand and they came to balum and spoke to him in the words of baac and he said to them L your here tonight and I will bring back word to you as the Lord speaks to me so the princes of Moab stayed with bam now this is interesting notice how verse 8 is spelled Lodge here tonight and will bring back words to you as who speaks to me the Lord now how is Lord spelled well the oh it's Capital yeah it's all capital that's in Hebrew it's yod VAV it's the god whom Israel serves so he was like he was like a prophet of the lord well somehow he's he's going to go talk to the Lord to Jehovah himself right so he's not going to go to some other God he's going to go to the the Israelites God themsel like himself right so this is interesting that that's instead of going to chimos or going to uh molak or something like that he's going to go somehow prophesy and speak to the Covenant god of the Israelites to try to get the Covenant god of the Israelites to turn his back on his people and his promises interesting right then God came to balum and said who are these men with you so balum said to God baac the son of zior King of Moab has sent to me saying look a people has come out of Egypt and they cover the face of the Earth come now and curse them for me perhaps I shall be able to overpower them and drive them out and God said to balam you shall not go with them you you shall not curse the people for they are blessed okay so uh right God says who are these guys B sent those guys with me and then what's balum say to God that uh he wants them to do and what's God say in verse 12 uh these are my people do not curse them yeah right they're blessed good you want to keep reading or want me to read um I'll keep reading okay um verse 13 so balum Rose in the morning and said to the princes of baac go back to your land for the Lord has refused to give me permission to go with you and the princes of Moab Rose and went to baac and said balam refuses to come with us then baac again sent princeses more numerous and more honorable were they and they came to Bam and and said to him thus says baac of zior please let nothing hinder you from coming to me for I will certainly honor you greatly and I will do whatever you say to me therefore please come and curse these people for me okay so uh balum says go home right yahovah is not going to let me do this and what how does Bayo take that well send him more good right yeah all right in then Verse 18 then bam said answered and said to the Servants of baac though baac were to give me his house full of silver and go gold I could not go be beyond the word of the Lord my God to do less or more now therefore please you also stay here tonight that I may know what more the Lord will say to me now interestingly right what is in verse 18 what does he say about the Lord um my Lord yeah so yehovah my God y my God he say I serve that one I'm not going to go beyond his word but yet seems like he may be getting enticed by this silver and gold even though he says right the B give me all the give me his house full of silver and gold and yet why does he go back why do you think in verse 19 he uh he said well you go ahead and stay here tonight I'll go talk to the Lord see what else he says to me he's like H I wonder if the Lord will change his yeah all right but go ahead and read verse 20 and God came to balam at night and said to him if the men come to call you rise and go with them but only the word which I speak to you that you shall do so balum Rose in the morning and saddled his donkey and went with the princess of Moab all right so God comes to balum at night and what's he say to him um fine go ahead but but only say what I tell you to say what do you think Bam's hoping hoping that he tells me to curse them so I can fall that's right that's right okay do you want to keep reading or do you want me to pick up um you can okay then God's anger was aroused because he went and the angel of the Lord took his stand in the way as an adversary against him and as he was riding his donkey and his two servants were with him now the donkey saw an angel of the Lord standing in the high in the way with his drawn sword in his hand and the donkey turned aside out of the way and went into the field so balum struck the donkey to turn her back on the road well hold on didn't God say go ahead and go do it so why is he why is he mad if he said yeah go ahead and go I wonder if the Lord knows that bam is going to probably disobey him and say what baac want to say oh maybe maybe that's going to happen H sometimes if God let us do things even though he doesn't necessarily condone it yeah right did he make us people with wills and Minds that we can do things freely yeah so just because he gives them permission doesn't mean that he allow this he's necessarily happy about this he's going to display his glory but he knows what's going on in Bam's heart so uh we'll pick up more on that as we go then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path between The Vineyards with a wall on this side and a wall on that side verse 25 and when the donkey saw the angel of the Lord she pushed herself against the wall and crushed balam's foot against the wall ouch so he struck her again then the angel the Lord went further and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left and when the donkey saw the angel of the Lord she lay down under balum so balam's anger was aroused and he struck the donkey with his staff all right so what's happening um he's uh he's mad cuz the donkey keeps seeing an angel which bam can't see so the donkey is stopping cuz he knows that if I get close to the angel the angel is going to kill both of us M that's right right good and can can I read yeah sure you can read then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey and she said to balam what have I done to you that you have struck me these three times and balam said to the donkey because you have abused me I wish there were a sword in my hand for now I would kill you so the donkey said to balam am I not your donkey on which you have ridden ever since I have became yours to this day was I ever disposed to do this to you and he said no okay hold on here what just happened the donkey talking so this like Shrek yeah okay but this is just a madeup story though just like Shrek it's just made up how does a donkey start talking and reasoning God H God can make a donkey talk he can make us talk yeah but I've never heard a doy talk I've never heard our dog talk I've never heard a cat talk that's Miracle oh you believe in miracles okay don't give me the stink ey girl okay you want me to read verse 31 or you want to keep going um sure then the Lord opened balam's eyes and he saw the angel of the Lord stand standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand and he bowed his head and fell flat on his face the angel of the Lord said to him why have you struck your donkey these three times behold I have come out to stand against you because your way is perverse before me the donkey saw me and turned aside from me these three times if she had not turned aside from me surely I would also have killed you by now and let her live okay so what's what happens the a um balum can now see the angel and he realizes that the angel is saying like the same thing that the donkey just said yeah yeah right the he was so mad at that donkey cuz he wanted to go but he doesn't realize that what he's doing is sinful right and the donkey's actually saving his life somehow okay so verse 34 um and balam said to the angel of the Lord I have sinned for I did not know you stood in the way against me now therefore if it displeases you I will turn back then the angel of the Lord said to balam go with the men but only the word that I speak to you that you shall speak so balam went with the princes of B okay so he's only allowed to say what the messenger or the angel of the Lord is allowing him to say good um now when B heard that balam was coming he went out to meet him in the city of Moab which is on the border of Aon Arnon Arnon the boundary of the Terr teritory then BAC said to balam did I not earnestly send to you calling for you why did you not come to me am I not able to honor you and balum said to baac look I have come to you now do I have power to say any at all to say anything the Lord the word that the Lord puts in my mouth that I must speak so balum went with baac and they came to here Jeth har and baac offered oxen and sheep and he sent some to balum and the princes that were with him okay so what's going on he's trying um bam comes to the border and bail like see I told you I could honor you I knew that you would come and and um Bam's like like I can't really say anything only say what the Lord tells me to say and baac is trying to like entice him out of his promise that he to the Lord okay okay so it was the next day that BAC took balum and brought him up to the high places of ooh up to the high places of what ba ba and from there he that he might observe the extent of the people then balum said to BAC build seven altars for me here and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven Rams so balum did just as or BAC did just as balum had spoken and Bao and balum offered a bull and a ram on each altar then balum said to bik stand by your burnt offering and I will go perhaps Jehovah will come to meet me and whatever he shows me I will tell you so he went to a desolate height and God met with balum and he said to him I have prepared seven the seven altars and have offered on each altar a bull and a ram now why do you think balam is offering these bulls and Rams because the Lord told him to nope the Lord didn't tell him to do this in the ancient East people thought if they offered sacrifices that maybe they could win the favor of the Gods almost like if you want Daddy to buy you a new bike maybe you should cook me a cake first right so something like that right he's he's trying to like bribe him off right that's how people almost thought about sacrifices with Gods verse five then the Lord put a word in balam's mouth and said Return to Bao and thus you shall speak so he returned to him and there he was standing by his burnt offering and all the princes of Moab then he took up his Oracle and said you want to read it or you want me to BAC the king of Moab has brought me from Aram from the mountains of the East come curse Jacob for me and come denounce Israel okay so far would B be like yeah yeah that's good that's good all right so verse eight and then he's like how shall I curse whom God has not cursed and how shall I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced for the top of the Rocks I see him and from the hills I Behold Him there a people dwelling alone not Reckoning itself itself among the Nations who can count the dust of Jacob or number 1/4 of Israel let me die in the death of the righteous let my end be like H then B said to S what what what have you done to me I took you to curse my enemies and look you have blessed them bountifully he answered and said must I not take heed to speak what yahovah has put in my mouth right so how's how's bik respond to balam's first uh words he's like well I mean the first part was good but couldn't you have just kept going on cuz now you've like basically like give not my city and my realm that's right good good you want to read 13 or you're mared um I think it's time for your turn oh okay then BAC said to him please come with one 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 so he brought him to the the field of Zim to the top of pisga and built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar then he said to BAC stand here by your burnt offering while I meet with the Lord over there then the Lord met balum and put a word in his mouth and said go to BAC and thus you shall speak so he came to him and there he was standing by his burnt offering and the princes of Moab were with him and BAC said to him what has Jehovah spoken then he took up this Oracle and said rise up baac and he listen to me Son of zor 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 a it good behold I have received a command to bless he has blessed and I cannot reverse it he has not not observed iniquity in Jacob nor has he seen Wicked wickedness in Israel the Lord his God is with them and has and the shout of a king is among them God brings them out of Egypt he has strength like a wild ox for there is no sorcery against Jacob nor any de de divination divination against Israel it now must be said of Jacob and of Israel oh what God has done look a people Rises like a lionist and lift itself up like a lion it shall not lie down until it devours the prey and it drinks the blood of the slain then BAC said to B balum neither curse them or at all nor bless them at all but balum answered and said to B did I not tell you saying all that yahovah speaks that must I do right so what's this prophecy he like especially like verse 19 and 20 Israel is going to be like a lion and God can't like be like o I made a mistake bam you were supposed to curse them yeah is God is is God a liar nope is god like people that he has to change his mind and repent NOP is is God going to uh speak a good word and then turn it on its head make it bad nope is God going to command someone to bless it and then turn around and say no go ahead and curse them nope no he's not like shifting Shadows right when he makes a covenant he's going to keep his Covenant and then uh he has not observed iniquity in Jacob but weren't there evil people in Israel mhm but he got rid of them nor has he seen wickedness in Israel oh hold on aren't there Wicked people isn't Moses Wicked didn't he beat the Rock didn't he murder someone yeah yeah but he chooses he chooses still right does do you have sin do I have sin and yet does he look upon our iniquity no he looks upon his son right the Lord his God is with him the shout of a king is among them God brings them out of Egypt he has strength like a wild ox if God redeems his people he's going to love them okay you want to read verse 27 then B then Bao said to balum you said 27 yeah verse 27 well we didn't read 25 now yeah I did oh we did then BAC said to balam please come I will take you to another place perhaps there it will please God that you may curse them for me then so balum so belac baac took balum all the B bu to the top of peor which o that overlooks the Wasteland and balum said to baac build for me here seven altars and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven Rams and baac said did everything that balam said and offered a bow and a ram on every altar okay so okay so same amount of altar same amount of Ram same amount of lambs but a different place maybe may maybe a third times a charm and maybe the fourth time he Pro prophesies he'll curse them now when balum 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 towards the Wilderness and balum raised his eyes and saw Israel encamped according to their tribes and the spirit of God Came Upon him then he took up his Oracle and said the utterance of balum the son of beor the utterance of the man whose eyes are opened the utterance of him who hears the words of God who sees the vision of the Val of the almighty falls down with eyes wide open how lovely are your tents oh Jacob your dwellings o Israel like valleys that stretch out like Gardens by the Riverside like allows planted by by yehovah like Cedars beside the waters he shall pour water from his buckets and his seed shall be in many Waters his King shall be higher than egag and his kingdom shall be exalted 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 his bows down he bows down he lies down as a lion and and as a lion who shall Rouse him blessed is he who blesses blesses you and cursed is he who curses you sounds like a love letter doesn't it and he's also saying like yeah I have a feeling it's going to go bad with me if I could feel well yeah but it's a spirit of this is the spirit of God right these are the words this is how God feels about his people right bic's a afraid of them he hates them he wants to curse them he wants them to die right but God loves his people this is how God feels about them and so when balum has a spirit of God come upon him it's like oh oh maybe something's going to change I wonder how B's going to respond to that you want to read verse 10 then bac's angler was aroused at balum and he struck his hands together and baac said to balam I called you to curse my enemies and look you have bountifully bless them these three times now therefore flee to your place I said you I said I would greatly honor you but in fact the Lord has kept you back from honor whoa whoa whoa hold on Bay says God's kept him back from honor so now he's attacking him in his character he said I'm going to honor you but forget it the Lord's kept you from honor you think Bam's got any concern for the Lord nope nope okay verse 12 so balam said to baac did I ALS did I not also speak to your Messengers who whom you sent me saying if baac were to give me his house full of silver and gold I could not go beyond the word of go of the Lord to do any good or bad of my own will what the Lord says that I must speak and now indeed I am going to my people come and I will advise you to do what this people will do to your people in latter days and so he took up this Oracle and said the utterance of balum the son of Bor and the utterance of the man whose eyes are open 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 scepter shall rise out of Israel and batter the brow of Moab and destroy all the sons of tolet and Edom shall be his possession sear also his enemies shall be his possession while Israel does valiantly out of Jacob one shall have dominion and destroy the remains of the city he then looked on amalec and he took up this Oracle and said amalec was first among the Nations but shall be last until he perishes then he took up the looked upon the kenites and he took up this his Oracle and said firm is your dwelling place and your nest is set in the Rock nevertheless Cain shall be burned how long until Asher carries you away captive then he took up this his Oracle and said alas who shall live when God does this but ships shall come from the coast of Cyprus and they shall afflict Asher and and afflict Eber and so shall amalec until he perishes so balam Rose and departed and returned to his place and BAC also one his own way pouting like a little freee pouting like I don't think that's on the text Okay Okay so we've talked we've got we've read through lots of chapters now you tell me how would you explain this to Mom or Grandma what's this about um that um bam learned that riches aren't as good as God's Providence God's word and he can't go against God's word or it will go bad with him okay so he can't go against God's word because it's going to go bad for him right we actually don't know yet what happens to balum other than he goes home right maybe we'll pick up the next part next and we'll talk about that but right it's as far as right now all we know is that is God going to curse his people is God going to curse his own people nope is God going to turn back on his promises nope is the Lord going to abandon his Covenant nope that's I think what balum learned can God be bought over with money can he can he be forced to change his mind by having sacrifices or something no no but he was going to raise up one who would have complete Victory who do you think ultimately that is God yeah I think it's specifically Jesus right notice verse 19 out of Jacob one shall have dominion and destroy the remains of the city again and again it's it seems like there's a star shall come out of Jacob verse 17 a septer shall rise out of Israel right so I think there's a near fulfillment of this and the destruction of Moab but also the far fulfillment of this in Jesus being that star being that lion I'm guessing the um moabites though didn't know that and so they were shaking in their boots when Saul became king well they're shaking in their boots in a little while but we're going to get to that so all right well let's go ahead we're going to skip over best verse cuz that's a lot in here but let's go ahead and talk about what would you say you are called to do how does this affect your life um that we should bless those who God blesses not curse them okay good what what does it call you to do relating to God himself um listen to him and do what he tells you okay listen to him do what he tells you to do you know what I take away from this what I can take a lot of comfort because if God has blessed me can anybody make him change his mind did God love me because I first loved him no right whom God decides hey I'm going to love God's going to love them forever is God going to say you know hey Deborah I loved you yesterday but not today I I decided I don't love you anymore actually I'm going to this guy gave me some some sheep he burned them they smell really good it was a nice barbecue so instead I'm going to let them kill you is that how God treats us no right that's a huge blessing to know that God is Not fickle God can't be bought off whom God loves he loves eternally that's what I'm taking from this yep you ready to be done yeah okay let's pray God we thank you you so much that you are our Eternal Covenant King Lord we thank you that you are not a man that you should repent or a son of man that you should lie but Lord what you have said you will do and father we thank you that no sorcerer or trickery or bribing would get you from turning away from your Covenant or your people thank you that you look upon your people and you see the is beautiful I pray that we would have trust and confidence in you in Jesus's name amen well may God bless you may you know that if you are his people you have no need to fear or he will always love you I'll see you next time you want say bye bye bye thanks for listening to this week's message from God's word for you a Ministry of Sharon RP Church in rural Southeast Iowa we pray that the message would be used by God to transform your faith and your life this week if you'd like to get more information about us feel free to go to the website Sharon rpcg we'd love to invite you to worship with us our worship time is 10:00 a.m. every Sunday at 25204 160th Avenue Morning Sun Iowa 52640 may God rich bless you this week [Music]