Numbers 22:15 - Meaning and Application

Here we have a second group of messengers sent to Balaam to bring him and make him curse Israel. It would be good for us if we were as eager and steady in doing what is right, even after setbacks, as Balak was in pushing this evil plan. The enemies of the church keep working hard against it, but the One who sits in heaven laughs at them.

Notice first the temptation Balak put before Balaam. He made this attack stronger than the first. Very likely, he sent more money with his messengers, but he also added honor to the offer. He was setting a trap not only for Balaam’s love of money, but also for his pride and desire for power. We should ask God every day to weaken those two old sins in us. People who learn to hold worldly wealth and status in low regard will find it much easier than most to keep a clear conscience.

See how carefully Balak handled the temptation. He sent more messengers, and men of higher rank, to Balaam (Numbers 22:15). He treated this diviner with as much respect as if he were a king, perhaps because he thought Balaam felt insulted by the small and unimportant first group. The request was also urgent. This powerful ruler came as a beggar, saying, “Please let nothing stop you” (Numbers 22:16), not even God, conscience, or fear of shame.

His promises were also very large. He offered Balaam great honor among the princes of Moab. More than that, he left the terms open, saying, “I will do whatever you say” (Numbers 22:17). In other words, “Name your price, and I will pay it.” Sinners will spend themselves, spend their money, and humble themselves deeply to satisfy greed or hatred. Should we then be slow or stingy in obeying the commands of virtue? God forbid.

Now look at Balaam’s outward resistance, and his real yielding to the temptation. In him, we can see a struggle between what he knew was right and what his corrupt heart wanted. His conscience told him to stay with God’s command, and he said the right words (Numbers 22:18). No one could have spoken better: even if Balak gave him a house full of silver and gold, he could not go beyond what the Lord his God said. He speaks respectfully of God as “the Lord my God.” Many people call God theirs when they do not truly belong to him. They speak well with their lips, but their hearts are elsewhere.

He also spoke well of God’s word, as one who meant to hold to it and never change it. He spoke lightly of this world’s riches, as though silver and gold meant nothing beside God’s favor. Yet the God who sees the heart knew that Balaam still loved the pay of doing wrong. It is easy for wicked people to say good things and put on a show of religion. We cannot judge people only by their words. God knows the heart.

At the same time, Balaam’s corrupt desires pulled him the other way. He seemed to refuse the temptation (Numbers 22:18), but even then he did not speak against it the way Christ did when Satan offered him the kingdoms of the world, or the way Peter did when Simon Magus offered money. Instead, it appears in Numbers 22:19 that he wanted to accept the offer. He asked to wait and hear what else God would say, hoping for a different answer. That was a wicked insult to God, as if God might change his mind and now allow what he had already said was wrong. Balaam was acting as if God were like himself. God had already made his will plain. Balaam should have accepted it, not asked for a second hearing on a matter already settled. It is a serious insult to God, and clear proof that sin rules the heart, when a person asks permission to do wrong.

Then God gave him permission to go (Numbers 22:20). God came to him, likely in anger, and told him he could go with Balak’s messengers if he wanted. In this way, God gave him over to the desire of his own heart. The meaning was this: “Since you are so set on going, then go. But know this, the journey will not bring you honor. You may go, but you will not be allowed to curse Israel, as you imagine. You will say only what I tell you to say.” God keeps wicked people under his control. They may go only as far as he allows, and no farther. In this way, he even uses human anger to serve his own purpose, while still holding it back from its full force.

God’s words to Balaam were spoken in anger, and Balaam seems to have understood them that way, because later he did not excuse himself by saying God had allowed him to go. Sometimes God, in love, denies the requests of his people. At other times, in judgment, he grants the wishes of the wicked.

Finally, Balaam set out on the journey (Numbers 22:21). God had given leave to go if the men called for him, but he was so eager that he did not wait for them to call. He got up early, prepared quickly, and went with the princes of Moab, who were proud that they had won him over. The apostle later describes Balaam’s sin as running greedily into error for reward (Jude 1:11). The love of money is still the root of all kinds of evil.