Números 24
Leon Morris · Citado em PreceptAustin
Números 24
Morris - The reference to the "sceptre" (Numbers 24:17) and "dominion" also remind us of Jacob's Messianic prophecy regarding the coming Lion of the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:9, 10; Revelation 5:5). (DSB) Seth Postell writes that "Two of Balaam’s seven discourses, the third (Nu 24:5–9) and the fourth (Nu 24:17–19), are particularly significant passages in the history of interpretation, and have long been interpreted messianically. Though some scholars continue to espouse messianic interpretations of Nu 24:7–9 and Nu 24:17–19, the non-messianic interpretation of these passages has become far more common. (ED: NOT ON PRECEPTAUSTIN! THESE PROPHECIES ARE CLEARLY MESSIANIC!) (The Moody Handbook of Messianic Prophecy - excellent resource) Dominion (07287)(radah) means to have dominion, to rule, to dominate.To exercise authority over priests in Jer 5:31, slave owners in Lev 25:43, supervisors in 1Ki 9:23, a king in 1 Ki 4:24. . First used in Genesis for man to "rule over" the animal kingdom (Ge 1:26, 28). Radah is used in Messianic passages in Nu 24:19, Ps 72:8 (below), Ps 110:2. Radah - 23x in 23v - dominated(1), had dominion(1), have dominion(1), prevailed(1), rule(12), ruled(4), ruling(1), subdued(1), subdues(1). Gen. 1:26; Gen. 1:28; Lev. 25:43; Lev. 25:46; Lev. 25:53; Lev. 26:17; Num. 24:19; 1 Ki. 4:24; 1 Ki. 5:16; 1 Ki. 9:23; 2 Chr. 8:10; Neh. 9:28; Ps. 49:14; Ps. 68:27; Ps. 72:8; Ps. 110:2; Isa. 14:2; Isa. 14:6; Isa. 41:2; Jer. 5:31; Lam. 1:13; Ezek. 29:15; Ezek. 34:4 Here are 3 uses of radah in the context of the future dominion of the Messiah... Psalm 72:8 May he also rule from sea to sea And from the River to the ends of the earth. Psalm 110:2 "The LORD will stretch forth Your strong scepter from Zion, saying, “Rule (radah - a command; Lxx = katakurieuo in present imperative) in the midst of Your enemies.” Isaiah 41:2 “Who has aroused one from the east Whom He calls in righteousness to His feet? He delivers up nations before him And subdues kings. He makes them like dust with his sword, As the wind-driven chaff with his bow. One from Jacob shall have dominion also recalls Daniel's vision "I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him. And to Him was given DOMINION, Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His DOMINION is an everlasting DOMINION Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed." (Daniel 7:13-14+) And will destroy the remnant from the city - ESV = "and destroy the survivors of cities"
Números 24
Morris - In Numbers 24:21 and 24 Balaam prophesies the eventual disappearance of the nations of Assyria, the descendants of the Kenites and the descendants of Eber. The Kenites are long forgotten, of course, and the mighty Assyrian Empire eventually died, even though remnants may exist in modern Iraq. Eber was an ancestor of Israel, (Genesis 11:16-26), but since Balaam was not directing his prophecy against Israel, it may have been against the descendants of Eber's other son, Joktan (Genesis 10:25-30). These have all vanished or been assimilated by other nations long ago. The same apparently applies to other descendants of Eber, at least down to the time of Terah. (DSB) Numbers 24:25 Then Balaam arose and departed and returned to his place, and Balak also went his way. BGT Numbers 24:25 καὶ ἀναστὰς Βαλααμ ἀπῆλθεν ἀποστραφεὶς εἰς τὸν τόπον αὐτοῦ καὶ Βαλακ ἀπῆλθεν πρὸς ἑαυτόν NET Numbers 24:25 Balaam got up and departed and returned to his home, and Balak also went his way. NLT Numbers 24:25 Then Balaam and Balak returned to their homes. ESV Numbers 24:25 Then Balaam rose and went back to his place. And Balak also went his way. NIV Numbers 24:25 Then Balaam got up and returned home and Balak went his own way. KJV Numbers 24:25 And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way. YLT Numbers 24:25 And Balaam riseth, and goeth, and turneth back to his place, and Balak also hath gone on his way. LXE Numbers 24:25 And Balaam rose up and departed and returned to his place, and Balac went to his own home. ASV Numbers 24:25 And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place; and Balak also went his way. CSB Numbers 24:25 Balaam then arose and went back to his homeland, and Balak also went his way. NKJ Numbers 24:25 So Balaam rose and departed and returned to his place; Balak also went his way. NRS Numbers 24:25 Then Balaam got up and went back to his place, and Balak also went his way. NAB Numbers 24:25 Then Balaam set out on his journey home; and Balak also went his way. NJB Numbers 24:25 Balaam then got up, left and went home, and Balak too went his way. GWN Numbers 24:25 Then Balaam got up and went back home, and Balak also went on his way. Nu 24:11 Nu 31:8 Jos 13:22 Numbers 24 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries BALAAM LEAVES BALAK Then Balaam arose and departed and returned to his place, and Balak also went his way - Sadly before Balaam left Balak, he set the wheels in motion for the horrible events in Numbers 25. Nu 31:16+ says " “Behold, these (MIDIANITE WOMEN) caused the sons of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, so the plague was among the congregation of the LORD." COMMENT - Balaam was killed with the Midianites so clearly he had come back from "his place" in Pethor and had counseled the Midianites as to how to weaken or defeat Israel. He came to receive the wages of unrighteousness from the pagans, but what he received was the wages of unrighteousness from Jehovah! (Ro 6:23+). Jensen - This was enough. The word of God had spoken, and there was none to deny it. Even the mouthpiece of God, Balaam, left the scene with the intention to return to his place, and Balak, who despised the word of God, “also went his way” (24:25). In the earlier chapters of Numbers God vindicated His leaders in the midst of rebellion from within. Now God had vindicated His people and protected them from enemies from without. No man can thwart His sovereign purposes. The nation of Israel, about to enter the land of plenty, had much more to learn about their gracious and omnipotent protector, even in experiences of trouble unknown to them. (Ibid) Balaam may have left without succeeding in cursing Israel, but he did not leave before he offer evil counsel to Balak which would bring great harm to Israel. We learn about this from Revelation 2:14+ where Jesus says to the church at Pergamum "But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block (skandalon) before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality." THOUGHT - What was the teaching of Balaam? Seduce the Israelites with your Moabite women, enticing them to commit idolatry and immorality. Note these two "I" words are intimately linked together throughout the Bible! If you are practicing immorality, you have placed something in your vision as your substitute god and you are worshipping it instead of the true God! FLEE immorality (1 Cor 6:18+) could also be coupled with the warning "FLEE idolatry" (1 Cor 10:14+) where both uses of flee are pheugo present imperative. Why do we need to continually "FLEE?" Because both are very seductive/enticing and will appeal to our flesh and draw us down before can even take another breath!!! So at the first enticing sight or sound, we must immediately FLEE! But praise God, He does not leave it totally up to our power to FLEE, but He has provided His Holy Spirit Who will give us the desire and the power to FLEE! (Php 2:13NLT+). See our need to depend on the Holy Spirit to obey commands like FLEE! Bush - There is an apparent contradiction between this passage, which seems to say that Balaam, after fulfilling his mission, immediately, and without tarrying on the road, returned and reached his home in safety, and Num. 31:8, 16 (comp. Josh. 13:22), according to which Balaam was killed by the Israelites in the war which they undertook against the Midianites, as a righteous punishment for the counsel given to that people with a view to lead Israel into sin. In the solution of this difficulty, which has been long since remarked, some have supposed that Balaam returned home, but made a second journey to the Midianites, though it is no easy matter to find sufficient time for this double journey. A far preferable mode of reconciling the apparent discrepancy is to understand the words in an inchoative sense, implying that he started with the purpose of returning home, but was detained by the Midianites. For instances of this phraseology see Ex. 8:18, Num. 14:40. This construction is favored by the fact that the original shoob properly signifies to turn from, to turn back, while the reaching the object aimed at is not included in the meaning of the word itself. So in like manner, Gen. 18:33, “And the Lord went his way as soon as he had left communing with Abraham; and Abraham returned back to his place,” where not so much the arrival as the direction is meant; he set out on his return. They parted each one his own way. So here also the parallelism leads us to suppose that not the end, but the direction, the course, is intended. Whether he reached the end of his journey or not, is indifferent to the object which the inspired historian had in view in relating the incidents. He could let him journey without troubling himself how it fared with him, and what he did further. This is intimated in the sequel quite incidentally. The writer began with telling how Balak had sent for the prophet in order to destroy Israel, and he closes his narrative with simply telling how the parting took place without the object being attained. BALAAM NON-PROFIT "PROPHET" FOR HIRE Warren Wiersbe in Be Counted - Living a Life that Counts for God (recommended resource for numbers) gives us an excellent summary - Balaam and Today’s Church As God’s people today, we must not think that the Old Testament narratives are past history and simply interesting stories for us to read. Until the New Testament was written, the only Scriptures the first-century church had was the Old Testament; and from it they were able to get encouragement and enlightenment. These events in Jewish history serve as warnings to us not to disobey the Lord (1 Cor. 10:1–13, 14) as well as encouragements to build our faith (Heb. 11:1-40) and hope (Ro 15:4). Balaam is mentioned by three different New Testament writers: Peter (2 Peter 2:15–16), Jude (v. 11), and John (Rev. 2:14). Romans 15:4 For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. “The way of Balaam” (2 Peter 2:15–16+). The second chapter of 2 Peter focuses on the danger of false teachers secretly entering the church and leading people astray. Peter promises that God will judge these deceivers (v. 3), but he also warns the believers to exercise spiritual discernment lest they be taken captive by false doctrine. These false teachers are like Balaam in that they knew the right way but turned from it, they were covetous, and they led people into immorality (2 Peter 2:14). In fact, as you read the chapter, you will see the characteristics of Balaam exposed. The “way of Balaam” is Balaam’s lifestyle as a soothsayer and false prophet. His motive was to make money and he used his opportunities, not to serve God and His people, but to satisfy his craving for wealth. In other words, he was a hireling who sold himself to the highest bidder. He used “religion” only to make money and to cover up his sinful cravings. He also used “religion” to entice people to sin. Balaam knew that God didn’t want him to go with the delegation and serve King Balak, but he maneuvered around God’s declared will and went to Moab. The British minister F.W. Robertson said, “He went to God to get his duty altered, not to learn was his duty was.” No matter what he said with his lips, Balaam had a hidden agenda that really wasn’t hidden from God at all. If God isn’t allowed to rule in a person’s life, He overrules and accomplishes His purposes just the same, but the disobedient servant is the loser. God used the “dumb animal” to rebuke Balaam and try to get him on the right track, but Balaam’s heart never changed. The sight of the Angel of the LORD may have frightened him, but it didn’t bring him to surrender and faith. Balak had promised him great wealth and he was going to get it one way or another. When are we walking on “the way of Balaam”? When we deliberately rebel against the revealed will of God and try to change it. When we have selfish motives and ask, “What will I get out of it?” When we cause other people to sin so we can profit from it. Paul may have had Balaam in mind when he wrote 1 Timothy 6:9–10, words that need to be taken seriously today. “Religion” is “big business” today and it’s easy for preachers, musicians, executives, writers, and others in Christian service to become more concerned with money and reputation than spiritual values and Christian character. 1 Timothy 6:9-10+ But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. “The error of Balaam” (Jude 11+). Like Peter, Jude wrote to warn the church about false teachers (Jude 3–4). In fact, Jude’s letter is an echo of what Peter wrote in 2 Peter 2, so the Lord has given us a double warning. This shows us how serious the danger is and how great is our responsibility to detect and defeat these insidious false teachers. Unfortunately, many professed believers care little about Bible doctrine and easily fall prey to heretical influences. It’s a known fact that many members of false cults were once members of orthodox churches. Cultists don’t try to win lost souls, because they have no salvation message for the lost. Instead, they capture new converts and bring them into bondage (vv. 18–19). Balaam’s error was not only thinking that he could disobey God and get away with it, but also in thinking that those he enticed to sin would get away with it. The false teachers in the days of Peter and Jude preyed upon ignorant people and tried to lead them into sin (vv. 10, 13, 18; Jude 4, 8, 18–19), all the time covering everything over with a cloak of “religion.” If the greatest evil is the corruption of the highest good, then these false teachers were indeed the greatest of sinners, for they used the Christian faith as a cloak for their wicked deeds. Of course, “reward” was the motivation behind what they did (Jude 11), and this could mean a number of things: money, power over people, popularity, and personal sensual pleasure. Judas Iscariot used ministry for personal gain (John 12:6) but ended up a suicide. “The doctrine of Balaam” (Rev. 2:14+). This is the doctrine Balaam followed when he enticed Israel to attend the idolatrous feast at Baal Peor and commit immorality with the Midianites (Nu 25:1-18). The world would express it, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Don’t be a ‘holier than thou’ isolationist. Be a good neighbor and a good sport. After all, you live in a pluralistic society, so learn to respect the way other people believe and live.” But from God’s point of view, what Israel did was compromise and a violation of their covenant made at Sinai. The problem at Pergamos was that the false teachers had gotten into the church and were enticing people to attend the feasts at the idol temples. (The Jerusalem Conference tried to settle this problem Acts 15:19–29, and Paul dealt with it in 1 Corinthians 8–10. The cheapest meat was sold at the pagan temples, and the guilds (ancient labor unions) often had their meetings and dinners there, so it was tempting to Christians to go along with the crowd.) As at Baal Peor, their sin was a combination of idolatry and immorality, but the false teachers didn’t present it that way. They taught that God’s grace gave His people the freedom to sin, but Jude called it “turning the grace of God into lasciviousness” (Jude 4; and see Ro. 6:1ff). The Jews were God’s chosen people, set apart from the rest of the nations to serve and glorify Him. They were not to worship the gods of their neighbors or share in their pagan festivities. When they entered the Promised Land, they were to tear down the pagan temples and altars and destroy the idols (Deut. 7; Josh. 23), lest Israel be tempted to turn from the true and living God and start imitating the heathen neighbors. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened after the death of Joshua (Jud. 2:10–3:6). Editorial Addendum - There are 63 mentions of Balaam in 59 verses in Scripture: Num. 22:5; Num. 22:7; Num. 22:8; Num. 22:9; Num. 22:10; Num. 22:12; Num. 22:13; Num. 22:14; Num. 22:16; Num. 22:18; Num. 22:20; Num. 22:21; Num. 22:23; Num. 22:25; Num. 22:27; Num. 22:28; Num. 22:29; Num. 22:30; Num. 22:31; Num. 22:34; Num. 22:35; Num. 22:36; Num. 22:37; Num. 22:38; Num. 22:39; Num. 22:40; Num. 22:41; Num. 23:1; Num. 23:2; Num. 23:3; Num. 23:4; Num. 23:5; Num. 23:11; Num. 23:16; Num. 23:25; Num. 23:26; Num. 23:27; Num. 23:28; Num. 23:29; Num. 23:30; Num. 24:1; Num. 24:2; Num. 24:3; Num. 24:10; Num. 24:12; Num. 24:15; Num. 24:25; Num. 31:8; Num. 31:16; Deut. 23:4; Deut. 23:5; Jos. 13:22; Jos. 24:9; Jos. 24:10; Neh. 13:2; Mic. 6:5; 2 Pet. 2:15; Jude 1:11; Rev. 2:14 Numbers 31:8; 16 (8) They killed the kings of Midian along with the rest of their slain: Evi and Rekem and Zur and Hur and Reba, the five kings of Midian; they also killed Balaam the son of Beor with the sword. (16) “Behold, these caused the sons of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, so the plague was among the congregation of the LORD. “No Ammonite or Moabite shall enter the assembly of the LORD; none of their descendants, even to the tenth generation, shall ever enter the assembly of the LORD, 4 because they did not meet you with food and water on the way when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you. 5 “Nevertheless, the LORD your God was not willing to listen to Balaam, but the LORD your God turned the curse into a blessing for you because the LORD your God loves you. 6 “You shall never seek their peace or their prosperity all your days. The sons of Israel also killed Balaam the son of Beor, the diviner, with the sword among the rest of their slain. COMPARE - Dt 18:10 - “There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel, and he sent and summoned Balaam the son of Beor to curse you. 10 ‘But I was not willing to listen to Balaam. So he had to bless you, and I delivered you from his hand. On that day they read aloud from the book of Moses in the hearing of the people; and there was found written in it that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever enter the assembly of God, 2 because they did not meet the sons of Israel with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them. However, our God turned the curse into a blessing. 3 So when they heard the law, they excluded all foreigners from Israel. “My people, remember now What Balak king of Moab counseled And what Balaam son of Beor answered him, And from Shittim to Gilgal, So that you might know the righteous acts of the LORD.” My people, recall how King Balak of Moab planned to harm you, how Balaam son of Beor responded to him. Recall how you journeyed from Shittim to Gilgal, so you might acknowledge that the LORD has treated you fairly." (Micah 6:5NET) 2 Peter 2:1-3, 15-16 2:1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. 2 Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; 3 and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep. 15 Forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; 16 but he received a rebuke for his own transgression, for a mute donkey, speaking with a voice of a man, restrained the madness of the prophet. Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. ‘But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality.