Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Numbers 24:25
And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way.
Returned to his own place – i. e., among the Midianites to plot by new means against the people of God, and to perish in his sin Num 31:8, Num 31:16; Rev 2:14.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Num 24:25
Balaam rose up, and went, and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way.
The parting of Balaam and Balak: the separations of life
I. Balaam and Balak parted, having utterly failed in their designs.
II. They parted with characters considerably modified by their association with each other.
III. They parted, but not for ever. Those who have been associated in this present life will meet again in the great hereafter. Tempter and tempted, oppressor and oppressed, companions in evil designs and companions in noble enterprises–all will meet again. (W. Jones.)
The desires of evil men against the Church come to nothing
God disappointeth the policies of the ungodly against the Church; so that how cunningly soever they are contrived, He bloweth them away as with the wind, and He melteth them as wax with the fire. Many rest in vain hope, and put confidence in deceitful things. The Egyptians had a purpose to kill all the males of the Israelites, but see how wide they shot, and how far they missed (Exo 1:12). The enemies of Christ say in the pride of their hearts, Let us break their bands, and cast their cords from us; yet He that sitteth in the heaven laugheth them to scorn, and giveth to His Son the heathen for a possession (Psa 2:3). Hereunto cometh the saying of the prophet (Psa 7:14). When Christ had preached the gospel at Nazareth, they were filled with such wrath against Him that they rose up and thrust Him out of the city, and led Him even unto the top of the hill, whereon their city was built, that they might cast Him down headlong; but He passed through the midst of them and went His way (Luk 4:30). So we read in the Acts of the Apostles that certain Jews made an assembly, and bound themselves with a curse, saying, That they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul (Act 23:22). But they were disappointed, and their purpose, though closely contrived, was utterly disannulled. The reasons will make this truth more apparent.
1. If we consider this essential property of God that He is full of justice, He will reward as our works are. If we rest in vain and wicked practices He will not hold His peace, but throw down that which we build up, and He will disappoint that which we hope for.
2. The expectation of the wicked is vanity, because they can give no comfort or assurance.
The uses are next to be considered, as they arise from this doctrine.
1. We may conclude from hence the unhappy estate of them that have only eyes of flesh, to rest on things which they see with their fleshly eyes. If we regard and receive only present blessings, they are of small moment. If, then, we wait on lying vanities and forsake God, our strength and salvation, we are unhappy and most miserable.
2. We learn that no wisdom, be it never so deep; no understanding, be it never so politic; no counsel, be it never so prudent; no subtilty, be it never so hidden, shall overthrow the purpose of God, or prevail against His truth, or hinder the execution of His will. For His infinite wisdom is able to overmatch all the wisdom that is in the creatures, and to prevent whatsoever devices they have set abroach.
3. Let us not rely on vain things, for then all our expectations shall be in vain. Who is so simple, that to stay him up from danger would rest on the web of a spider, or the staff of a reed, or the strength of a rush? All the devices of men, the power of princes, the courage of horses, the help of creatures, are as a broken weapon to defend us, and unserviceable to deliver us. This the prophet teacheth us (Psa 146:3-5).
4. When we see the enemies conspire against the Church, let us, from this consideration of the vain confidence of the wicked, take occasion to comfort ourselves and to cheer up our hearts; all their expectation shall turn into smoke. Let them gather themselves together, and take crafty counsel one with another; He that ruleth in heaven shall scorn at their inventions, and frustrate them of their mischievous purposes.
5. Seeing all evil inventions and devices of the devil are disappointed, let us not stand in fear of any attempts made against us by his instruments. The enemies of the Church had hired a sorcerer and conjurer to waste and weaken them, yet we see his enchantments are defeated and come to nothing. (W. Attersoll.)
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Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 25. And Balaam – returned to his place] Intended to have gone to Mesopotamia, his native country, (see De 23:4), but seems to have settled among the Midianites, where he was slain by the Israelites; see Nu 31:8.
THOUGH the notes in the preceding chapters have been extended to a considerable length, yet a few additional remarks may be necessary: the reader’s attention is earnestly requested to the following propositions: –
1. It appears sufficiently evident from the preceding account that Balaam knew and worshipped the true God.
2. That he had been a true prophet, and appears to have been in the habit of receiving oracles from God.
3. That he practised some illicit branches of knowledge, or was reputed by the Moabites as a sorcerer, probably because of the high reputation he had for wisdom; and we know that even in our own country, in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, persons who excelled their contemporaries in wisdom were reputed as magicians.
4. That though he was a believer in the true God, yet he was covetous; he loved the wages of unrighteousness.
5. That it does not appear that in the case before us he wished to curse Israel when he found they were the servants of the true God.
6. That it is possible he did not know this at first. Balak told him that there was a numerous people come out of Egypt; and as marauders, wandering hordes, freebooters, c., were frequent in those days, he might take them at first for such spoilers, and the more readily go at Balak’s request to consult God concerning them.
7. That so conscientiously did he act in the whole business, that as soon as he found it displeased God he cheerfully offered to return and did not advance till he had not only the permission, but the authority of God to proceed.
8. That when he came in view of the Israelitish camp he did not attempt to make use of any means of sorcery, evocation of spirits, necromantic spells, c., to accomplish the wish of Balak.
9. That he did seek to find out the will of the true God, by using those means which God himself had prescribed, viz., supplication and prayer, and the sacrifice of the clean beasts.
10. That though he knew it would greatly displease Balak, yet he most faithfully and firmly told him all that God said on every occasion.
11. That notwithstanding his allowed covetous disposition, yet he refused all promised honours and proffered rewards, even of the most extensive kind, to induce him to act in any respect contrary to the declared will of God.
12. That God on this occasion communicated to him some of the most extraordinary prophetic influences ever conferred on man.
13. That his prophecies are, upon the whole, clear and pointed, and have been fulfilled in the most remarkable manner, and furnish a very strong argument in proof of Divine revelation.
14. That notwithstanding the wicked counsel given to the Midianites, the effects of which are mentioned in the following chapter, on which account he probably lost his life, (Nu 31:8), the badness of this man’s character has been very far overrated and that it does not appear that he was either a hypocrite, false prophet, or a sorcerer in the common acceptation of the term, and that he risked even life itself in following and fulfilling the will of the Lord!
15. That though it is expressly asserted, Nu 31:16, and Re 2:14, that Israel’s committing whoredom with the daughters of Moab was brought about by the evil counsel given by Balaam to cast this stumbling-block in their way, yet it does not appear from the text that he had those most criminal intentions which are generally attributed to him; for as we have already seen so much good in this man’s character, and that this, and his love of money (and who thinks this a sin?) are almost the only blots in it, it must certainly be consistent with candour and charity to suggest a method of removing at least some part of this blame.
16. I would therefore simply say that the counsel given by Balaam to Balak might have been “to form alliances with this people, especially through the medium of matrimonial connections; and seeing they could not conquer them, to endeavour to make them their friends.” Now, though this might not be designed by Balaam to bring them into a snare, yet it was a bad doctrine, as it led to the corruption of the holy seed, and to an unequal yoking with unbelievers; which, though even in a matrimonial way, is as contrary to sound policy as to the word of God. See Clarke on Nu 25:3 and “Nu 25:6“.
17. That it was the Moabitish women, not Balaam, that called the people to the sacrifice of their gods; and it argued great degeneracy and iniquity in the hearts of the people on so slight an invitation to join so suddenly so impure a worship, and so speedily to cast off the whole form of godliness, with every portion of the fear of the Almighty; therefore the high blame rests ultimately with themselves.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
To his place, i.e. to Mesopotamia.
Object: He went only to Midian, where he was slain, Num 31:8.
Answ. 1. He is said to return home, because he intended and began to do so, though he was diverted by the Midianites; for men in Scripture are oft said to do what they design or attempt to do, as Exo 8:18; Num 14:40.
Answ. 2. He did go home first, though afterwards he returned to the Midianites, either because they sent for him, or to recover his lost credit, and to do that by policy which he could not do by charms, to which purpose he gave them that devilish counsel which was put in practice, Num 25, and that by his advice, Num 31:16; Rev 2:14.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
25. Balaam rose up, and went . . .to his placeMesopotamia, to which, however, he did not return.(See on Nu 31:8).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place,…. The country from whence he came, that is, he went from Balak, according to his command, in order to return to his own land; for he seems not to have reached it, but stayed by the way among the Moabites and Midianites, and was slain in a battle between Israel and them,
Nu 31:8, or if he did reach Mesopotamia, he returned again, as Chaskuni says; and either before he left Balak, or in his journey homewards, or when he returned, he gave that advice, to seduce the Israelites first to whoredom, and by that to idolatry, the effects of which are observed in the following chapter, see Gill “Nu 24:14” and Balak also went his way; to his royal city, court, and family, attended, very probably, by the princes of Moab, who had been with him all this while; though how long these things were transacting is not certain.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
At the close of this announcement Balaam and Balak departed from one another. “ Balaam rose up, and went and turned towards his place ” (i.e., set out on the way to his house); “ and king Balak also went his way.” does not mean, “he returned to his place,” into his home beyond the Euphrates (equivalent to ), but merely “he turned towards his place” (both here and in Gen 18:33). That he really returned home, is not implied in the words themselves; and the question, whether he did so, must be determined from other circumstances. In the further course of the history, we learn that Balaam went to the Midianites, and advised them to seduce the Israelites to unfaithfulness to Jehovah, by tempting them to join in the worship of Peor (Num 31:16). He was still with them at the time when the Israelites engaged in the war of vengeance against that people, and was slain by the Israelites along with the five princes of Midian (Num 31:8; Jos 13:22). At the time when he fell into the hands of the Israelites, he no doubt made a full communication to the Israelitish general, or to Phinehas, who accompanied the army as priest, concerning his blessings and prophecies, probably in the hope of saving his life; though he failed to accomplish his end.
(Note: It is possible, however, as Hengstenberg imagines, that after Balaam’s departure from Balak, he took his way into the camp of the Israelites, and there made known his prophecies to Moses or to the elders of Israel, in the hope of obtaining from them the reward which Balak had withheld, and that it was not till after his failure to obtain full satisfaction to his ambition and covetousness here, that he went to the Midianites, to avenge himself upon the Israelites, by the proposals that he made to them. The objections made by Kurtz to this conjecture are not strong enough to prove that it is inadmissible, though the possibility of the thing does not involve either its probability or its certainty.)
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
(25) And returned to his place.Balaam probably set out with the intention of returning home. He. turned towards his place. The sequel shows that he remained amongst the Midianites, and perished with them.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
25. Balaam returned to his place Not to Mesopotamia. Literally, he turned toward his own place. This he never reached. Having privately advised Balak to ensnare Israel into idolatry and its vices by the blandishments of the women of Moab and Amalek, (Num 31:16,) he lingered in the vicinity to see the result of his wicked counsel, and was slain in battle when Jehovah, avenging the Israelites, ordered them to war against Midian. Num 31:8. Hengstenberg suggests that Balaam, smarting under the indignity of his summary dismissal by Balak, went into the camp of Israel, rehearsed to Moses his prophecies in hope of a reward, was coolly treated, and, goaded on by disappointed ambition and covetousness, went to the Midianites, and counselled the seduction of Israel to whoredom and idolatry.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place; and Balak also went his way.’
The affair of Balaam was now concluded. Israel remained blessed and Balak went one way and Balaam another, with the latter ‘returning to his place’. However to his cost he would return to give assistance to the Midianites and would die for his pains (Num 31:8).
As we have sought to draw out in the narrative this Balaam cycle contains many lessons. It reveals that God is above the occult and that such cannot hurt His people. It reveals Him as uniquely unlike the so-called ‘gods’ of the nations. Through the mouth of Balaam it provides us with prophetic announcements about God’s purposes. It reveals that there is no limit to what God can do. And to the Israelites it would be a spur, giving a new incentive to enter the land knowing that they need fear neither god nor man. To us it is another reminder of the coming of the Messiah prophesied long before.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Num 24:25. And Balaamreturned to his place i.e. say some, he set forward for Mesopotamia, after having given the prince that detestable counsel, the issue of which we shall see in the next chapter; but being detained in the country of Midian, he perished, as we read in the 31st chapter. Others think that he returned again from Mesopotamia to Midian; but nothing is more uncertain than this inquiry. It will be of more importance to consider, before we leave the subject, first how Moses obtained this remarkable piece of history; and, secondly, why God chose to employ so wicked a Man 1:1. How came Moses to the knowledge of these transactions? “I answer,” says Dr. Jortin, “that as there is no such intimation given, so there is no reason to imagine, that he had his knowledge by revelation: he had it then by information, which he might easily obtain concerning an event, in his own time, and in the neighbourhood. Balaam himself must have related to the Moabites, what befel them on his journey; and when the spirit of the Lord was upon him, and he delivered his prophesies concerning the people of Israel and other nations, the Moabites who stood by took down his discourses; or he himself might afterwards commit them to writing, and so they came into the hands of Moses.” Jortin’s Dissert. 5: But, though this will very well account for the matter; why may we not also conceive, that the same power, which inspired Balaam involuntarily to deliver these prophesies, revealed them also to Moses, whom we must allow to have been inspired for the writing of these sacred books?But, 2. Why did God employ a man of so infamous a character?Most probably, because one of a better would not have answered the end proposed; and such a one’s blessing Israel, instead of cursing them, might have been looked upon as the effect of his zeal for that favourite nation of providence, and his hatred for those idolatrous notions and rites of the Moabites and Midianites. Whereas a person of Balaam’s unbounded ambition and avarice, and addicted also to the reigning sorceries and inchantments of those times, being forced, against his own inclination and interest, to bless those whom Balak would have bribed him at any rate to curse, could not but convince them, as well as all the rest of his behaviour on this occasion did, that he was driven to it by a superior, or rather an irresistible power; as, on the other hand, had he been less than a real prophet, or had he been, as many learned men have supposed him, only a mere conjurer or enchanter, all that he uttered in favour of the Israelitish people might have been imputed either to his want of skill, to a sudden inward fear of bringing some heavy resentment from them upon his head, or to any other cause, rather than to such a divine and irresistible impulse. See Psalmanazar’s Essays. It seems less strange, that God should employ such a man as Balaam, than that Balak should trust so little to his own gods at home, as to send so far as Mesopotamia for a prophet. Certainly Balaam’s reputation must have run very high, or there must have been some very peculiar reason for that uncommon method of proceeding. Perhaps they imagined, that the gods of their own country were not able to defend them against the God of Israel, having so lately seen what the Israelites had done to the Amorites their neighbours; or they might fancy that Balaam had an interest with all kinds of gods, and might engage them all to come in to their assistance. Or rather, I incline to think, says Dr. Waterland, that they knew Balaam to be a prophet of the same God whom the Israelites worshipped, and that, therefore, by his means, they hoped to draw off the God of Israel, whom they were so much afraid of, from assisting the Israelites, and to incline him to favour the Moabites and those who were joined with them.
Our notes on these chapters have been extended to so great a length, that we cannot subjoin, as we proposed, any practical reflections, The reader will find many such either in Bp. Butler’s or Dr. Waterland’s Sermons on the subject, or in Dr. Jortin’s Diss. 5: to which we refer; concluding with Mr. Saurin,”Happy is the man whose mind is enlightened by God! but more happy the man whose heart God purifies, and whom he inspires with sentiments of piety; without which the most sublime knowledge will only aggravate the miseries of those who have been so enlightened.” Incline my heart, O Lord! unto thy testimonies, and not to covetousness.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
REFLECTIONS
READER! do not take a farewell review of the history of Balaam and Balak, without first imploring grace from GOD to take with you the several most interesting improvements which it holds forth. Learn first, what lengths bad men will proceed to, like Balak, in order to accomplish their devices against the righteous. The seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent are, and ever must be, hostile to each other. But oh! for grace to be as much alive in the cause of GOD and CHRIST, as the foes of JESUS are in their fruitless attempts to overcome the Israel of GOD. Learn next, Reader, from the character of Balaam, what a miserable state mast those be in, who minister in divine things with a mere head knowledge, void of heart influence. It is precious indeed to see, that our gracious head of his church is always superintending the government of it. And he can and will arrange and order even the ministry of bad men, so as to promote, in defiance of their wishes and inclinations, his own glory, and his people’s welfare. But what must be the end of those men, and what can the wages of unrighteousness be but death, even spiritual and eternal death. And lastly, and above all, let the history of Moab’s vain attempt to crush Israel, and the wonderful interposition of their covenant GOD, as is here most delightfully related, teach the Reader, (and may the instruction be impressed upon the Writer’s heart also), how eternally safe and secure the fold of JESUS is through all the eventful periods of this world’s pilgrimage. Yes! thou precious GOD of thy people, who art the same yesterday, and today, and forever; thy promise is like thyself; thy people shall never perish neither shall any pluck them out of thine hand. Unworthy, undeserving, and ill and hell-deserving as they are in themselves, they are beloved for thy sake, and they are beloved for the FATHER’S sake. Oh! may we ever remember on what account it is our mercies are secure; and begin now, ere we come to sing it louder in glory, the song of salvation to GOD and the LAMB.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Num 24:25 And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way.
Ver. 25. Returned to his place. ] Homewards he went, but stayed amongst the Midianites, and soon after came back to them, to receive money of them, saith Chazkuni, when he heard say of the plague which had been in Israel by his counsel: but as Shimei sought his servants, and lost his life, so Balaam.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Num 24:11, Num 31:8, Jos 13:22
Reciprocal: Gen 31:55 – returned 2Sa 19:39 – returned
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Num 24:25. Balaam went to his place To Mesopotamia; though afterward he returned to the Midianites, and gave them that wicked counsel which was put in practice, chap. 25. And it appears, from Num 31:8, that he was slain among the Midianites.