Second Epistle of Peter
WAY OF BAALAM
Scripture Reading: 2 Peter 2:15 (KJV)
In continuing to speak of these false teachers, Peter says here that they have forsaken the right way of the Lord and had gone the way of Balaam. As we will notice, he could not have chosen a more fitting illustration of these sinful men in all the Old Testament. He has twice accused these teachers of covetousness (vv. 3 and 14) and we know this was particularly the cause of the downfall of Balaam.
"forsaken the right way"
These men knew the covetousness. Some believe they were once saved, but fell away. Others believe that they had never been saved at all, but made an outward profession of Christianity without receiving a new life from the Lord. However it may be, Peter definitely pronounces eternal judgment upon them, and let no one presume that they can leave the path of decency and honesty and escape the wrath of God.
Some know that they should trust and obey Christ and follow Him, but because of loving sin, fame, wealth, etc., they never really commit themselves to Him, even though they may make an outward show of Christianity. However, in such a case it soon becomes evident that they are not faithful to Christ by the way they turn back into sin and follow the ways of Satan.
To deliberately choose the wrong way when the right way is known makes the sin of the offender all the worse. This is what Balaam did as well as the sinners of our chapter. No wonder Peter says in verse 17, "For whom the blackness of darkness has been reserved" (R.V.).
"the way of Balaam"
Balaam is one of the puzzles of Scripture. In every way he seemed to be a true prophet of the Lord, yet his base actions for gain would indicate that he loved money more than the will of the Lord. After Balak's men come to him, God asks, "What men are there with thee?" He tells Him they are men from Balak, who wanted him to curse Israel. The Lord then forbids him to curse Israel because He wanted them to be blessed (Num. 22:9-12). The Lord again speaks to him in Numbers 22:32-35 by means of His angel, and then again in Numbers 23:4, 5. In spite of all this hallowed association, how sad to see Balaam go contrary to the revealed will of the Lord. One would think that this personal acquaintance with the Lord would bind his heart to Him forever. Some today go contrary to what they know to be the Lord's mind as revealed in His Word, often because of covetousness.
Balaam was not afraid to acknowledge the Lord before others. He said in Numbers 22:38, "The word that God putteth in my mouth, that shall I speak." These were grand words for him to say. Evidently he meant them because when it came to openly cursing Israel, he would not do it. He said what the Lord told him to say and instead of cursing Israel he blessed them. A true and faithful servant of the Lord makes it his business to proclaim only the Word of the Lord.
The Lord put His own words directly into Balaam's mouth (Num. 23:5, 16). He makes some glorious prophecies in Numbers 23:18-24 and also in Numbers 24:3-9 and again in
Numbers 24:16-24. He even had a vision of the Almighty (Num. 24:3, 4) and that the Spirit of the Lord came upon him in Numbers 24:2. After all these things, one wonders how he could stoop into evil practices for paltry honor and gain, but he surely did. Probably on occasion we have met one or two in our day who, like Balaam, could use lofty heights of speech and yet sink into base actions. Let us beware lest we come short of our profession.
Balaam must have had a reputation as a prophet of the Lord, or Balak would have never called him to curse Israel. It is always dangerous for a servant of the Lord when the world offers him some reward for serving them. Usually they ask things which are not to the glory of the Lord, or to the benefit of the Lord's people. "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly" (Ps. 1:1). Let us seek to go only by the Word of God.
Because of the miraculous actions and speech of Balaam's beast of burden, some have sought to discredit the whole story of Balaam. They say it is the invention of some storyteller. One thing is sure, no Jew would ever invent a story in which such sublime words are put into the mouth of a Gentile. If not a true story, Moses would never have included it in his book of Numbers.
While our verse especially likens the teachers of our chapter to Balaam in his love for money, there are other striking parallels. First, note that Balaam and these teachers were professed religious leaders. There is nothing more terrible than to have those who are supposed to be lighthouses on the road to heaven, lead men down the way of death and hell. Peter calls these teachers, "children of the curse" in verse 14. Balaam dared not directly curse Israel, but his wicked counsel to Balak proved a curse to them. Finally, these wicked teachers induced the unstable to fall into sin, even as Balaam, by his counsel to Balak, induced the children of Israel to sin grievously.
In Numbers 22:7, we find the elders of Moab and Midian come to Balaam with the rewards of divination in their hands. How he would have liked to have had that money, but the Lord told him not to go. The men go back to Balak, but he sends other princes (more noble than the first) and promises more money to Balaam and honors besides, in fact, anything that he might desire. He wanted to go, so instead of saying "no" at once he again takes it to the Lord, asking that he be allowed to go. Then the Lord says he may go, but warns him to say nothing except what the Lord told him to say.
So Balaam goes, thinking that there might be further relenting on God's part and that he might yet be allowed to curse Israel and thus gain the reward. The incident of his own beast of burden speaking to him and the angel in the way could not stop his avarice. He was determined to go on and get the reward if there was any way to do it. He had a wicked desire to do what Balak wanted, even though he knew it was wrong to curse Israel. Like Simon Magnus in Acts 8:19, he wanted to turn the gift of God into worldly gain. Like Judas himself, he was ready to betray the Lord for a few pieces of silver. The Lord Jesus says, "Ye cannot serve God and Mammon," but Balaam was determined to try.
Some may think covetousness is not all that bad a sin, but the Lord calls it idolatry (Eph. 5:5). With some the love of money vies with the love of God. Some will stoop to almost anything to gain wealth. "The love of money is the root of all evil" (1 Tim. 6:10). A servant of the Lord need not be covetous, since the Lord has promised to meet all our needs. Let us learn to be content with what we have. Let us never like Balaam and prostitute our high office for mere paltry gain.
"the wages of unrighteousness"
If you would earn the wages of unrighteousness, you must do unrighteously. With the full knowledge of his wrong doing, Balaam received the rewards of unrighteousness. He said, "Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!" (Num. 23:10). Sad to say, while he wanted to die the death of the righteous he did not seem to want to live the life of the righteous. We read in Numbers 31:8 of his untimely end in the midst of enemies of the Lord's people.
As we read over Numbers 22 to 24, we might conclude that what Balaam did was not so bad. He certainly blessed Israel rather than cursing her. What did he do that was so wrong and which caused Balak to give him the reward after all? In Numbers 25 we read how the men of Israel committed whoredom with the daughters of Moab and how they were enticed to worship the Moabitish gods. This angered the Lord and many of the Israelites died by the sword and plague. Balaam had told Balak that he could not curse Israel, but advised him that if he would send his young women in among the children of Israel and allure them into fornication, that they would bring the curse of God upon themselves (Num. 31:16). This wicked counsel brought the money to Balaam, but terrible trouble to
Israel.
The false teachers of Peter's day were like Balaam. They posed as true and faithful brethren, teaching license in the name of freedom principally for the sake of money. They talked in Biblical language in order to lead their followers into a wicked life as Balaam suggested to Balak. Today, false teachers still lead some in the body of Christ into an unholy alliance with the world. This continues to beguile some and greatly weakens the testimony of the Lord.
Scripture Reading: 2 Peter 2:16 (KJV)
This verse brings in Balaam's beast of burden, through whom the Lord miraculously spoke in order to warn and stop the prophet in his folly. But Balaam was so set in his determination to do all in his power to gain this coveted reward, that even this did not stop him.
"rebuked for his iniquity"
Balaam's iniquity was so great that the Lord felt it necessary to rebuke him in a special way. Because of his covetousness, he set out to curse the people of God who had done him no wrong and had done nothing to deserve his curse. Certainly a servant of the Lord should never curse anyone, or be a curse to anyone. Like the Lord Jesus, he should always seek to bless and be a blessing. This should be true of the Lord's people. May each of us ask the question, "Am I a blessing or a curse to the world?"
"the dumb ass speaking"
This part of our verse could be literally translated, "the voiceless beast of burden speaking with man's voice." Some have belittled this miracle saying, "How could a voiceless animal speak? Wasn't there an angel of the Lord on the path? It is ridiculous to think that an angel could not do as much." Certainly Balaam's folly deserved a shock of this nature and it was not a difficult thing for the Lord to do.
It is well to remember that Balaam's covetousness brought on this rebuke. Let us beware of this sin. In Balaam's time most people were poor and could not afford a beast of burden. The fact that he had one indicates that Balaam was not poor and he need not have coveted this money.
We read this story of Balaam and his beast of burden in Numbers 22. Although strongly disapproving his going, the Lord gave Balaam permission to go. As the prophet journeyed, an angel stood in the path with a drawn sword in his hand. He was hidden from the eyes of Balaam, but the animal saw him and turned off the road into a field. Balaam then beat the poor animal to get him back on the road. Then the angel stood in the road in a place between two walls, and in an attempt to get by the beast crushed Balaam's foot against the wall. They managed to get by the angel, but the poor animal received his second beating. The third time the angel stood in a place where they could not get by him, and the beast fell down to the ground under Balaam. Then Balaam really got angry and beat the animal with a staff.
It was then the Lord put words into the mouth of the donkey saying, "What have I done unto thee that thou hast smitten me these three times?" Balaam answered, "Because thou hast mocked me: I would there were a sword in mine hand, for now would I kill thee." Then the Lord opened Balaam's eyes and he saw the angel with the sword in his hand, and Balaam was afraid and fell on his face. He said, "I have sinned," and also that if his way displeased the Lord he would return. Again the Lord gives him permission to go, but warns him to say only that which He told him to say. Instead of turning back, he goes on, still hoping, no doubt, that there would be some way to get that reward.
In many ways Balaam's beast was better than Balaam. In the first place the donkey saw things Balaam did not see. When the angel appeared, the animal turned out of the way, but Balaam persisted in his perverse way. This unclean animal was cleaner than the prophet and did no wrong; Balaam was obstinately disobedient. His actions were more asinine than those of his donkey. How awful it is to think that the Lord used an unclean animal to rebuke his oft inspired prophet.
The Lord can use His creatures as He sees fit. For instance, Peter had a cock to tell of his cowardice; Balaam a donkey to tell of his avarice. The Lord used a great fish to give Jonah a submarine ride and return him to the path of obedience. He used the ravens to feed His prophet Elijah.
"forbad the madness of the prophet"
The word translated "forbad" would be better "hindered" or "stayed" as in the Revised Version. The warning voice of the beast of burden hindered Balaam, but only in his method. His wicked counsel brought a curse upon Israel and eventually his own death (Num. 31:8). Our verse calls Balaam's sin "madness." His avarice caused him to act in a senseless manner, almost like a madman. Once having started on his headstrong course, nothing could stop him. In their rush to obtain things of this world, some today act almost the same way, only to be mocked thereby in the end. Judas obtained his thirty pieces of silver, but what did it get him? In remorse he went out and hanged himself.
"the prophet"
There is some controversy regarding whether Balaam was saved or not. Some of his statements are so sublime and evidently inspired of the Lord, that one wonders how he could stoop so low because of covetousness. Notice that at the very end of his statements about Balaam, Peter calls him "the prophet."
Judas was numbered with the apostles. It might be said: "Judas kissed the door of heaven, then turned around and went to hell." Similarly Balaam may have been so close as to be numbered with the prophets, saying inspired things directly from the mouth of God, and yet perhaps still be lost. Beloved, let us be sure we are not just close, but truly in Christ.
