As the story of Balaam and King Balak is so jam-packed with theological mystery and wonder, I have no choice but to wax philosophical a bit today.
Following on the heels of yesterday’s post where we pondered the meaning of what Balaam meant when in speaking of Israel he proclaimed “…. a people that will dwell alone and not think itself one of the nations“.
Well, based on this incredible statement alone, we learn that the Creator gave the Hebrews a tremendous resource that the rest of the world did NOT receive.
Do you have any idea what tremendous resource I may be referring to?
I’m talking about DIRECT REVELATION.
This is what separates the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob from any other god, religion or philosophy in the world.
The God of Israel has not left in the dark those who honestly and with a sincere and humble heart seek after Him.
It was Israel AND ONLY ISRAEL who had been given the Word of Truth, the same Word which we have been studying in earnest over the past couple of years now.
The result of this direct revelation is that Israel was separated from the GOYIM (gentiles) in word, thought and deed for all time and FOREVER.
Think about it.
The gentiles have no foundation for understanding the origin, purpose and consummation of life.
They are like blind men in a dark room, groping around, never knowing where they came from, where they are going, or how to live between those two points (of birth and death).
But, at this point in the Torah, the Hebrews no longer have that problem, whether they realized it or not.
At this stage, though they may be nothing but mere ragtag wanderers in the desert, the direct revelation they received from the Creator of the Universe was worth more than all the wealth of all the kingdoms in the world!!!
Unlike the gentile nations, Israel no longer had to wonder how the world began, where mankind came from or the meaning of human history…
…because HASHEM had directly given Israel that information in His Word.
The rest of the world, because they rejected the Creator in the beginning now live in perpetual darkness and are in essence worshipping the Evil One.
The gentile world struggles endlessly (and they will continue to struggle) to discover the meaning of life through their many false gods or philosophy.
Here’s the thing.
For those who trust God, His true prophets REPRESENT THE END OF MAGICAL OMENS AND DIVINATION!
Israel was just beginning to learn this new reality.
And how ironic that God communicated this truth through a gentile sorcerer named Balaam!
But again, the caveat is for those who trust Him.
It was not Israel’s duty to determine what was or was not truth in God’s Word.
It was ALL truth.
Israel’s duty was to trust and obey.
Unfortunately, we’re going to see that more than quite a few Israelites had a little difficulty with this “trust and obey” part and this led to dire consequences.
CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT
“Therefore, remember your former state:
you Gentiles by birth —
called the Uncircumcised by those who,
merely because of an operation on their flesh,
are called the Circumcised —
at that time had no Messiah.
You were estranged from
the national life of Israel.
You were foreigners to the covenants
embodying God’s promise.
You were in this world
without hope and without God.
But now, you who were once far off
have been brought near through
the shedding of the Messiah’s blood.”
-Ephesians 2:11-13
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