Balak's Fears

From: Jonah and Balaam By: William Woldridge Fereday

• 4 min. read • grade level: 9

When Moses and the children of Israel sang their song of triumph on the shores of the Red Sea, they said: “the peoples shall hear and be afraid... the mighty men of Moab, trembling shall take hold upon them... fear and dread shall fall upon them” (Ex. 15:14-16¹⁴The people shall hear, and be afraid: sorrow shall take hold on the inhabitants of Palestina. ¹⁵Then the dukes of Edom shall be amazed; the mighty men of Moab, trembling shall take hold upon them; all the inhabitants of Canaan shall melt away. ¹⁶Fear and dread shall fall upon them; by the greatness of thine arm they shall be as still as a stone; till thy people pass over, O Lord, till the people pass over, which thou hast purchased. (Exodus 15:14‑16)). This was fulfilled to the letter when the King of Moab and his people beheld Jehovah's pilgrim host encamped upon their frontiers forty years later. There were in the camp of Israel 601,730 men able to carry arms; with women and children there were probably at least three million souls, admittedly a vast company. Balak was alarmed; the more so because Israel had recently destroyed three military Powers which had ventured to oppose their march. The King of Arad had gone down; likewise Sihon, King of Heshbon, and Og, King of Bashan (Num. 21). Sihon had some time previously waged a successful war with Moab, and had annexed some of her territory; how then could Balak hope to stand up against a nation which had destroyed his powerful neighbor? When men are in trouble, the proper thing is to turn to God in prayer. He is as truly interested in the affairs of nations as in the difficulties and sorrows of individual men and women; but Balak knew nothing of God. If the rulers of our own time would humbly spread out their troubles before God, much grief and destruction would be spared. Jehoshaphat and Hezekiah are two fine examples of kings turning humbly to God in moments of national peril (2 Chron. 20:2 Kings 6).

In reality Balak had nothing to fear. Jehovah had already said to Moses: “Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in battle; for I will not give thee of their land in possession” (Deut. 2:9⁹And the Lord said unto me, Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in battle: for I will not give thee of their land for a possession; because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession. (Deuteronomy 2:9)). Jehovah had in view a better portion for Israel than the land of Moab. Moab typifies the comfortable, self-satisfied man of the world— “at ease from his youth, settled on his lees” (Jer. 48:11¹¹Moab hath been at ease from his youth, and he hath settled on his lees, and hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither hath he gone into captivity: therefore his taste remained in him, and his scent is not changed. (Jeremiah 48:11)), proud and arrogant in consequence (Isa. 16:6⁶We have heard of the pride of Moab; he is very proud: even of his haughtiness, and his pride, and his wrath: but his lies shall not be so. (Isaiah 16:6)). God's saints today need not envy such, for they have a better and more enduring portion. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ” (Eph. 1:3³Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: (Ephesians 1:3)). Asaph, when he got out of communion with God, did envy the prosperity of the wicked; when he went into the sanctuary, and contemplated things there with God, he recovered his spiritual equilibrium (Psa. 73).

Knowing nothing of God, Balaam hastened to form alliances with Midian and Ammon (Num. 22:4⁴And Moab said unto the elders of Midian, Now shall this company lick up all that are round about us, as the ox licketh up the grass of the field. And Balak the son of Zippor was king of the Moabites at that time. (Numbers 22:4); Deut. 23:3-4³An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the Lord for ever: ⁴Because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt; and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor of Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee. (Deuteronomy 23:3‑4)). Not being satisfied that military power would suffice to withstand the conquerors of Sihon and Og, he sent messengers to a noted soothsayer—Balaam the son of Beor, living in Mesopotamia. Israel's victories were already being attributed by outsiders to divine power. Thus Rehab said to the spies: “We have heard how Jehovah dried up the water of the Red Sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt, and what ye did to the two Kings of the Amorites that were on the other side of Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. And as soon as we heard these things our hearts did melt” (Josh. 2:10-11¹⁰For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. ¹¹And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the Lord your God, he is God in heaven above, and in earth beneath. (Joshua 2:10‑11)). In sending for Balaam, Balak sought to oppose the supernatural by the supernatural. The Mesopotamian prophet was reputed to have influence with the invisible world “I know that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed...Come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people” (Num. 22:6⁶Come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people; for they are too mighty for me: peradventure I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land: for I wot that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed. (Numbers 22:6)).

This complex character had some knowledge of God—alas, no heart knowledge! He brought the name of the one true God into his nefarious practices in order to give them an air of respectability. Also, many persons would be more easily duped by his use of the name of God. Balaam was what is now called a “Spiritualist.” A very misleading name really; “Spiritist” or “Demonist” would be more correct. Modern Spiritualists seem to be divided into two classes: there are those who leave God quite out of their pretensions (which is at least honest); and there are also those who call themselves “Christian Spiritualists.” The latter class are particularly dangerous; for these are not Bible-reading days, and many souls are easily led astray by the use of the word “Christian.” In quite a number of cases the clergy tamper with this great evil and even recommend it as a useful adjunct to “preaching.” The truth is, there is no possible connection between Christianity and Spiritualism. God in His word—notably in Deuteronomy 18:9-14⁹When thou art come into the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. ¹⁰There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, ¹¹Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. ¹²For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee. ¹³Thou shalt be perfect with the Lord thy God. ¹⁴For these nations, which thou shalt possess, hearkened unto observers of times, and unto diviners: but as for thee, the Lord thy God hath not suffered thee so to do. (Deuteronomy 18:9‑14)—unsparingly condemns this iniquity in all its forms. It is apostasy—a turning away from God and His revealed truth. It is intercourse with demons, ruinous to all who practice it. The land of Canaan was full of this when the hosts of Israel marched in, and they were divinely charged to utterly exterminate it. Indeed, the prevalence of this particular evil was one of the principal reasons why the holy and righteous God could tolerate the seven Canaanitish nations no longer.

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