Numbers 22
image by Phillip de Vere
(1) Moab is Scared of Israel
Then the Israelites moved out and set up camp in the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan river, across from the city of Jericho. [Moab was where the descendants of Lot’s son lived.]
Moab’s king, Balak (Zippor’s son), saw what Israel did to the Amorites, so all the Moabites were scared of how many Israelites there were. Terrified, the Moabites told the Arabian elders,
“This horde will consume everything around us, in the same way that an ox eats all the grass in a field!”
(5) Balak Wants Balaam to Curse Israel
So king Balak sent some messengers to Balaam (Beor’s son) at the town of Pethor, which is near the Euphrates river. The messengers told him,
“An army of people came from Egypt, and they stationed themselves right next to me. There are so many of them that they cover the entire region. Please come place a curse on them, because they’re too powerful for me. If you do that, I might be able to defeat them and drive them out of the area. I know that whoever you bless is blessed, and whoever you curse is cursed.”
(7) Balaam Refuses to Curse Israel
So the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian [Arabia] took Balak’s witchcraft order to Balaam and delivered the king’s message. After hearing their request, Balaam told them,
“Spend the night here, and I’ll let you know what the Existing One tells me.”
So Moab’s leaders stayed with Balaam. Then God came to Balaam and said,
“Who are these people with you?”
Balaam answered,
“Moab’s king, Balak (Zippor’s son) sent me a message saying that a ton of people came from Egypt. He wanted me to curse them so he’d have a chance at defeating them.”
God told Balaam,
“Don’t go with those guys, and don’t curse the people, because they are blessed.”
So Balaam got up the next morning and told Balak’s leaders,
“Go back to your country, because the Existing One has refused to let me go with you.”
So Moab’s leaders went back to Balak and told him that Balaam refused to come back with them.
(15) Balaam Goes with Second Group
So Balaam sent another group of leaders—this time the group was larger and the leaders were more prominent. When they arrived, they told Balaam,
“We have a message for you from Balak (Zippor’s son). He says,
‘Please don’t let anything get in the way of you coming to me. I’ll reward you richly and do whatever you tell me to. Please just come curse these people for me.”
Balaam replied,
“Even if Balak were to give me his entire house full of silver and gold, I wouldn’t be able to do anything that goes against what the Existing One, my God, says. I wouldn’t even be able to do something small. So please stay the night, and I’ll see if the Existing One tells me anything else.”
God came to Balaam that night and told him,
“If they came to get you, you can go with them, but dont do anything unless I tell you to.”
So Balaam woke up that morning, saddled his donkey, and went with Moab’s leaders.
(22) Balaam’s Donkey Confronts Him
But God was mad at Balaam for going, so the Existing One’s representative stood in his way, opposing him. While he was on his way with his two servants, his donkey saw the Existing One’s representative standing in the way, holding a sword. The donkey veered off from the road, walking into the field, but Balaam hit the donkey to turn it back toward the road.
Then the Existing One’s representative stood in the vineyard’s narrow pathway with a wall on either side of him. When the donkey noticed, it veered toward one of the walls, smushing Balaam’s foot against the wall. So he hit his donkey again.
The Existing One’s representative persisted and stood in a narrow place where there wasn’t any room to turn right or left. When the donkey saw, it laid down while Balaam was riding it. Frustrated, Balaam hit the donkey with his stick.
Then the Existing One opened the donkey’s mouth, and it asked him,
“What did I do to you to make you hit me these past three times?”
Balaam replied,
“Because you’re making a fool out of me! If I had a sword in my hand, I would have killed you by now!”
The donkey said,
“But aren’t I your donkey who you’ve ridden on your entire life up until now? Have I ever done you wrong before?”
He said,
“No”
(31) God’s Representative Confronts Balaam
Then the Existing One opened Balaam’s eyes, and he finally saw the Existing One’s representative standing in the road holding the sword. When Balaam saw him, he bowed low to the ground, and the representative asked him,
“Why did you hit your donkey those three times? I came here to oppose you since you were doing things your own way. Your donkey saw me and veered to the side these three times. If she wouldn’t have done that, I would have killed you just now and she would have lived.”
Balaam told the representative,
“I made a mistake. I didn’t realize you were standing in the road, blocking me. If I’ve wronged you in any way, I will turn around and go back.”
But the Existing One’s representative said,
“Go with these guys, but only tell them whatever I tell you to.”
So Balaam went with Balak’s leaders.
(36) Balak Welcomes Balaam
When King Balak heard that Balaam was coming, he went out to meet him at the city of Moab, which is on the border marked by the Arnon river. He asked Balaam,
“What took you so long? Why didn’t you come the first time I summoned you? Did you think I wouldn’t be able to honor you?”
Balaam responded,
“As you can see, I’m here now, but I actually can’t say whatever I want. I can only say whatever God tells me to.”
So Balaam went with Balak to the City of Streets [Kiriath-Huzoth]. Balak sacrificed some oxen and sheep, and sent some to Balaam and the leaders who were with him.
(41) Balak and Balaam See the Israelites
The next morning, Balak took Balaam to the mountains where Baal was worshiped. From there, he could see a bunch of the Israelites.
