CITATIONS OF BALAAM'S PROPHECIES

No one who has read Numbers 22-24 would treat Balaam as the model prophet of God. In the first place, he wasn't even an Israelite. Secondly, he was a prophet-for-hire for any nation that had enough money to afford him. Thirdly, we see in this story that he is determined to curse Israel so that he can earn the hefty fee Balak of Moab has promised him. Fourthly, he feels that he can somehow trick God into letting him do that even when he has been repeatedly warned by Him.

But despite this portrait of Balaam as more an anti-prophet than a prophet, it is amazing that Balaam's prophetic words are actually quoted favorably elsewhere in the Bible. The reason, of course, is that it is not the speaker of prophecy that counts, but the inspiration behind that prophesying instead. Remember the example of the high priest Caiaphas who justified the unlawful killing of Jesus with the words: “You do not understand that it is better for you to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed.” (John 11:50). John explains in vv. 51-52 that this was an inadvertent prophecy put into Caiaphas' mouth by God.

Thus, we should perhaps view Numbers 22-24 as the story of two inspired jack-asses, not just one. And in both cases, they were both speaking God's words, not their own. So there should be no surprise to learn that the seven oracles spoken by Balaam are later quoted or alluded to by OT and NT writers alike in a favorable manner.

Schnittjer lists five long poems in the Pentateuch which “interpretively look backward and forward. One is Numbers 24:3-9. He notes that Numbers 24:9 blends together language from the Abrahamic promise in Genesis 12:3; 27:29b and the blessing of Judah in Genesis 49:9 so as to identify the two together. “The correspondence of the fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant by the expected Davidic ruler finds it fullest expression in Ps. 72.”

“The Old Testament teaching that true prophetic speech comes through God's Spirit was commonplace in early Christian teaching.” (Ciampa and Rosner) For example, see Numbers 24:2-3 and I Corinthians 12:3.

“ Using rich poetic language, the first part of the [third] oracle depicts Israel as a land of beauty, fruitfulness, and prosperity (24:5-7a) – language reminiscent of the Song of Songs. Israel is foreseen living in a land filled with palms, gardens, aloes, cedars, and water.” (Stubbs)

In discussing Numbers 24:7b-9, Stubbs states that this passage “foresees that the king and kingdom of Israel will be exalted over the surrounding nations. It is an oracle of victory over the enemies of God's people. Victory over King Agag of Amalek was first accomplished by Saul (I Sam. 15), with greater victories by David and Solomon over the Amalekites. On one level this oracle seems to have been fulfilled. But as with many messianic oracles, the oracle is taken up by later Israelite and Christian interpreters in an open-ended fashion.”

Additionally, Schnittjer says that “Numbers 24:7 expresses the expectation for a king; this yearning is expressed again in Deuteronomy 17:17.” On the other hand, the sometime voiced proposal that the enemy Agag in that verse in Numbers is the same as “Gog” in Ezekiel 38-39 is a less likely possibility. He also sees a parallel between Numbers 24:9 (and 24:10?) and Nehemiah 13:2 as well as pointing out that Deuteronomy 23:5 is an abridgment of that verse.

Moving to definite NT usages, the story of the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4) has Jesus talking about the water of eternal life which he will provide in plenty (vv. 13-14). This could be an allusion to several OT texts, but Kostenberger feels that the most likely is Numbers 24:7 which talks about “water flowing from his buckets.” This is a likely possibility since the Samaritans only accepted the Pentateuch as valid Scripture. The same may be true of John 7:38 when Jesus says, “Out of the believer's heart shall flow rivers of living water.” However, a closer reference may be found in Numbers 20:2-13 according to O.M. Hendricks.

In discussing I Timothy 2:5, Towner notes: “The mediator is identified with the unusual phrase '[the] man Christ Jesus.' But in describing the mediator with this phrase, Paul also accesses the theme within developing messianism of 'a man to rule the nations' (Num. 24:7, 17LXX) and 'a man who will save' (Isa. 19:20).”

The sixth oracle in Numbers 24:15-19 is perhaps the most quoted during later times. Words found in Psalm 110 that are in common with this prophecy include “oracle” (24:15 and 110:1); “rule” (24:19 and 110:2); and “crush, scepter, heads” (24:17 and 110:6). Thus, Wenham feels that the psalm may have been loosely based on this prophecy. “All Christian commentators see in this oracle the announcement of the Christ...The sole disagreement is between those holding to a literal messianic prophecy and those holding to a typological one...We have have very good example of the fuller sense, a really literal sense hidden in the text, which is only discovered gradually through the meditation of successive generations.” (de Vaulx)

But before turning to the NT references, Schnittjer detects parallels within the Old Testament. For example, he feels there is a probable interpretive allusion to Numbers 24:17 in Psalm 2:6-8. Even more likely is a passage in Jeremiah. Numbers 24:17b talks literally about Israel crushing “the foreheads of Moab, and the skulls of all the people of Sheth” whereas Jeremiah 48:45-46 speaks of a blaze consuming “the foreheads of Moab, and the skulls of the noisy boasters.” And in Isaiah 25:10-12, the prophet “may be interpreting Balaam's oracle [Num. 24:17] together with the curse against the serpent in Gen. 3:15.”

Wenham sees possible allusions to this oracle in Matthew 2:1-10; Luke 1:78; I Corinthians 15:25; and Revelation 2:26-28, 22:16. Some of these allusions warrant further explanation:

    Blomberg: “The star that guided the magi [Matt. 2:2] might have called to mind Num. 24:17, a messianic text in Jewish apocalyptic thought, in which a metaphorical star would come from Jacob or a scepter from Israel. In this event, the magi may replace Balaam as unlikely Gentile witnesses to God's redemption.” Similarly, Stubbs says, “The prophecy of the star [24:17] is associated [in Christian art] with the wise men of the east (often understood as the descendents of Balaam) following the star to Bethlehem.”

    And then Carson notes concerning II Peter 1:19, “The imagery of the morning star probably derives from Num. 24:17...The oracle in which it is set (Num. 24:15-19) is introduced with Balaam's announcement of what Israel will do to Balak's people 'in the latter days'...The phrase regularly signals something in the future but also something with eschatological overtones...”

The final references to Numbers 22-24 appears in the Book of Revelation. Beale and McDonough discuss Revelation 2:28: “The star most likely is representative...of messianic rule...This meaning of the image is confirmed from Num. 24:14-20, where the future eschatological ruler of Israel is described as a 'rising star' and 'scepter'...In addition to the parallel between Ps. 2 and Num. 24, the Numbers prophecy is a natural fit to combine with that of Ps. 2 in Rev. 2:26-28, since the prophecy was issued by Balaam, and Balaam is a symbol in Rev. 2:14 for the same heresy as is mentioned in Rev. 2:20. Numbers 24:17 is also interpreted messianically in Judaism.”

“Revelation 22:16 (cf. 2:28; 2 Pet. 1:19) also refers to this prophecy of Jesus [i.e. Num. 24:17]...The idea of Christ as both root and descendent of David refers to Christ's preexistence before his incarnation...Psalm 110 shares many words and themes with this oracle and is reasonably understood to be loosely based on it.” (Stubbs)

Numbers 24:23-24 is the final oracle in the series. Payne explains, “The power from the Mediterranean to the west is not named, but as this prophecy is elaborated in Dan 11:30 it can refer only to Rome.”