Please read the passage before reading the commentary.
In Balaam’s time the Israelites were poised at the border of the Promised Land. This was not good news for the King of Moab. He, therefore, sent for Balaam who had great power in calling down curses on people’s enemies. Three times Balaam refused to curse the Israelites. The fourth time he not only refused to curse them, but he blessed them.
Twice in this passage, the author gives us Balaam’s credentials. His eye is true, he hears what God says, and he knows what the Most High knows. We should, then, listen to the words of Balaam.
There is a message here. Our understanding of the message grows as we reflect on the passage throughout Hebrew history. If the Israelites were crossing the Jordan, they would make it. When things were so bad that the people needed a king, David’s star would rise. When exile threatened to destroy the people, God star would rise. Eventually the passage came to give the people hope for a Messiah. Later on, after the birth of Christ, some have seen allusions to the Star of Bethlehem, although this was not its primary significance.
We are poised on the edge of Advent and Christmas. There are nine shopping days left before Christmas. How does Balaam’s life and prophecy move us towards God? He had forewarned the King of Moab that he could only say what God told him to. Is our eye true? Do we hear what God says? Do we know what God knows? How does our life reflect the truth that is God?
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