PROLOGUE — Seven Altars, and Words No One Expected
Numbers 23 records the first two of three attempted curse rituals conducted by Balak and Balaam. Each time, Balak prepared an elaborate ceremony; each time, blessing rather than curse flowed from Balaam’s mouth.
ACT ONE — The First Attempt: Seven Altars and Seven Offerings (verses 1–12)
“And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven oxen and seven rams.”
Seven altars, seven oxen, seven rams. Balaam prepared a remarkably elaborate and costly ritual — a method commonly used in ancient Near Eastern divination traditions. But the word he received from God was completely different from what he expected.
“How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? or how shall I defy, whom the LORD hath not defied?… Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it.”
I cannot reverse it. Balaam himself acknowledged the absolute nature of this prophecy. He had no power to change its direction. This oracle carried a remarkable blessing directed at Jacob — the entire people of Israel.
“For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him: lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations.”
Shall dwell alone. Israel’s distinct separateness — an identity that would not blend in with other nations — was prophesied through the mouth of a foreign prophet.
ACT TWO — The Second Attempt, Still Blessing (verses 13–26)
Undeterred, Balak believed that changing location would change the outcome.
“And Balak said unto him, Come, I pray thee, with me unto another place, from whence thou mayest see them: thou shalt see but the utmost part of them, and shalt not see them all: and curse me them from thence.”
Thou shalt see but the utmost part of them. Balak believed that if he moved to a spot where only part, not all, of Israel was visible, the curse might succeed — a superstitious, manipulative approach. But God’s word was never subject to human position or line of sight.
This second oracle contains one of the most powerful theological declarations in this chapter.
“God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?”
God is not a man. This verse stands as one of the clearest declarations in all of Scripture of God’s unchanging faithfulness. Human beings can change their minds, lie, and regret — but God never does.
Balaam declared once more, unambiguously.
“Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it. He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel: the LORD his God is with him.”
He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob. Not because Israel was perfect — they had, in fact, rebelled repeatedly even quite recently — but because God’s gracious perspective covered their faults.
REFLECTION — A Word from God That Human Intention Cannot Change
What Numbers 23 teaches us is that God’s blessing and promise cannot be overturned by any human manipulation or attempt. Balak tried money, ritual, and changing his vantage point to force a different outcome, yet God’s word never wavered.
Do you still trust the promise God has already spoken, regardless of circumstances or the attempts of others to change it?
NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW
Numbers Chapter 24 — Balaam’s final oracle unfolds, along with the remarkable messianic prophecy of a star that would arise out of Jacob.
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