Passage: Numbers 22-24
As the Israelites move into the more populous regions of Canaan, they are met with increasing hostility. The locals aren’t all that friendly, and aren’t all that interested in having a whole nation move into their back yards. The Israelites engage in a series of armed conflicts. They emerge victorious, and their reputation begins to precede them. All the nations in the vicinity are on high alert, not knowing when they’ll find themselves in the path of the advancing hoard. Several nations adopt very creative approaches to dealing with the Hebrew threat.
Perhaps the most creative of these is Moab, whose king, Balak, recruits a prophet named Balaam to curse the Israelites on their behalf. It turns out that Balak is at least semi-legitimate. No sooner have the Moabites come knocking than God himself bends Balaam’s ear. “Balaam,” says the LORD, “who are your visitors?” Balaam knows God well enough to recognize the sound of his voice. He doesn’t know God well enough to know that God already knows the answer to the question. Balaam responds, “Funny you should ask. They’re Moabites, and they want to pay me to put a curse on the Israelites.” God says, “Don’t go with them. The Israelites are blessed. You can’t curse them.” Balaam dutifully goes back to the delegation and says, “Sorry, I can’t help you. The LORD won’t let me.”
Apparently Balak is a man who won’t take “No” for an answer. He sends a larger group of more important dignitaries to persuade Balaam to help him out. Balaam listens to their pitch, and says, “It doesn’t matter if your king offers me the royal treasury. I’m helpless to do anything against the will of the LORD my God.” Shortly thereafter, however, God reverses his previous order and tells Balaam, “Go with them, but do only what I tell you.” Balaam seems not to realize he’s being set up.
He sets out first thing in the morning astride his trusty donkey. No sooner have they gotten on the road, however, than the donkey starts to exhibit a previously unseen rebellious streak. First she veers off the road into an open field. Balaam has to beat her with his staff to get her back on track. Then, as they pass between two walled vineyards, she presses to one side, grinding Balaam’s leg into the wall. Balaam beats her again as best he can, pinned as he is. Finally the donkey lays down in the middle of the road, and refuses to get up no matter how hard Balaam hits her or how loud he curses.
And then the LORD intervenes on the donkey’s behalf. She says to Balaam, “Why are you beating me?” Balaam is so mad he doesn’t stop to reflect on the new skill his beast has acquired. Inside he points out to her what a fool she’s made of him. She responds, “In all the years we’ve had together, have I ever behaved this way before? Do you think I might be trying to tell you something?”
And then Balaam eyes are opened to the reason for his donkey’s behavior. An angel stands in the road, sword drawn. “You should pay better attention to your donkey,” the angel says. “She just saved your life.” Balaam puts on a proper show of humility. The angel continues: “Since you weren’t willing to listen to the donkey, you’ll have to hear it from me. I’ve been sent here to interrupt you. God sent you on this journey, but you’ve embarked recklessly. You’re planning on running the show down there in Moab. That’s God’s job. You just do what he says.”
This delay causes Balaam to show up in Moab later than expected. Balak meets him at the border. He’s a little worked up. “Where have you been?” he asks the prophet. Balaam tries to act nonchalant. “Hey, I’m here now.” Then he remembers the angel. He sits taller in his saddle, and adopts a tone of authority. “Don’t forget, now. I can only say what God tells me to say.”
“Sure. Whatever,” says the king. “I think this’ll be a good place to curse the Israelites from.”
Altars are built. Cattle and sheep are slaughtered. The time comes for Balaam to deliver the agreed-upon curse. Balak rubs his hands together gleefully; elbows some of his closest advisors and nods in the prophet’s direction. He can’t wait to hear what Balaam has cooked up. Balaam launches in. And Balak’s expression changes from eager anticipation to confusion; confusion to concern; concern to rage. Balaam is gearing up for a repeat of the chorus,
How can I curse those whom God has not cursed?
How can I denounce those whom the LORD has not denounced?
when he turns and catches a glimpse of the faces of his employers. They’re looking at him like he’s a hockey player who’s just scored on the wrong goal during the gold medal match. “What?” he says.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” says Balak. “Did I say 'bless?' What I meant to say was CURSE THE ISRAELITES! Now try again before I lose my temper.” Balaam does try again. Two more times, in fact. Each time, Balaam says only what God tells him to say. Each time Balaam spits out ever-increasing blessings upon the Israelites.
Finally Balak, who is apoplectic with rage, says, “Enough! Just stop talking! Every time you open your mouth you just make it worse!” Balaam says, “Hey, I told you up front that I’d only say what God told me to say. But oh no, you were all, ‘Just get up there and do your thing.’ By the way, when do I get paid?” Balak gets his only moment of satisfaction when he responds, “Um, I think the LORD’s telling me to tell you to get bent. Scram.”
Balaam scrams, but not before he gives one last oracle. This time it’s neither a curse nor a blessing directed at Israel. Instead, it’s a dire prediction about what God will do to all the Israelites’ enemies. The prophet and the king listen intently, equally taken aback. They forget their differences momentarily. Because both their homelands are named in the prophecy. Both belong to nations that, if God is true to his word, will be overturned. And God has proven himself nothing if not true to his word. In silence, Balaam and Balak go their separate ways.
At the beginning of the story Balak had said to Balaam, “Come and curse the Israelites. Because I know that those you bless are blessed, and those you curse are cursed.” Recall God’s promise to Abraham:
I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.
God is the only one with the power to bless and to curse. And no one on earth can resist the will of God. God’s will is done, time and again, in spite of human effort to the contrary. Nowhere is this more clearly demonstrated than in the passion narratives of the gospels. In the story of Jesus’ betrayal, arrest, and death we see the forces of evil align themselves against God. And for a moment it seems as though they’re victorious. Then what was intended to be evil’s most powerful curse is turned into God’s greatest blessing. God uses the intentions and actions of those bent on evil to undo his enemies. God co-opts the curse of death to unleash the power of eternal life upon the world. Even when people think they are resisting God, they are merely playing into his hands.
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