«How shall I curse whom God has not cursed? And how shall I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?» (Numbers 23:8).
BALAAM KNEW VERY WELL that as long as Israel was faithful to the Lord, no one could bring curses on them. Still, he lent himself to precisely doing this work of wickedness, Why?
Balaam agreed to curse Israel, on the orders of King Balak, because he «loved the wages of unrighteousness» (2 Peter 2:15). Balak’s flattering words—» ‘I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed’ » (Numbers 22:6)— along with the expensive gifts offered to him by the ambassadors, were more than enough for him who in the past had been a prophet of God to now accept the vile commission to curse the people of Israel. However, when he set out to do his wicked work, what words came out of his mouth? The ones that today’s verse points out: » ‘How shall I curse whom God has not cursed? And how shall I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?’ » (Numbers 23:8). Instead of curses, he could only pronounce blessings!
Then he tries a second time. What does he say then? » ‘God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Behold, I have received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it’ » (Numbers 23:19, 20). That is, more blessings! And he still tries to curse Israel for a third time. Now what does he say? » ‘How lovely are your tents, O Jacob! Your dwellings, O Israel! Blessed is he who blesses you, and cursed is he who curses you’ » (Numbers 24:5, 9).
Total failure! King Balak believed that he could manipulate God in the same way that pagan priests did with their deities; that is, through bribes. Why couldn’t he do it? Obviously, because God can’t be bribed. When He speaks, He will do (Numbers 23: 19). But there is another powerful reason here: When Balaam tried to curse God’s people, «he could not, by all his enchantments, bring evil upon them; for the Lord had not ‘beheld iniquity in Jacob,’ neither had He ‘seen perverseness in Israel.’ » —Patriarchs and Prophets, ch. 41, p. 457. In other words, he could not curse them because at that time Israel remained faithful to God.
What an encouraging message at the beginning of this new day! When God blesses you, there is no power in the whole universe that can nullify that blessing. But it is indispensable, my friend, that you remain in Gods ways, with your eyes fixed on Jesus. Hence, the importance of the following advice: «While we pray, ‘Lead us not into temptation,’ we are to shun temptation, so far as possible. «—Ibid., p. 458.
«[Lord,] uphold my steps in Your paths, that my footsteps may not slip» (Psalm 17:5).
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Taken from: Devotional Readings for Adults 2022
“GREAT IS OUR GOD!”
From: FERNANDO ZABALA
Collaborators: Xiomara Perdomo & Angelica Cuate
