Balaam’s Scheme

In Numbers chapters 22-25, we find the greatest crisis the Israelites faced on the plains of Moab. They had been on a winning streak, having defeated several enemies, and their morale was high. King Balak of Moab was terrified, so he hired a sorcerer from Aram named Balaam to curse Israel in the name of the Israelite God. However, every time Balaam tried to curse the Israelites, his curses turned into blessings. Balak was furious that Balaam’s plan to curse Israel kept failing.

Finally, Balaam came up with a way to earn his reward. He advised King Balak of Moab to send beautiful women to the Israelites (Numbers 25:1-3; Revelation 2:14). In the face of this temptation, the Israelites fell. Because of Balaam’s scheme, the Moabite and Midianite women seduced the Israelite men into sexual immorality and into worshipping their gods. This angered the Lord and resulted in a plague that punished God’s people.

However, a man in the Israelite camp named Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron and the son of Eleazar, earned God’s approval. When a man and a woman engaged in sexual immorality right at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, Phinehas took a spear and killed them both on the spot. He was the only one who stood up for justice in the face of what was happening before God’s sanctuary. From that day on, Phinehas and his descendants were given a perpetual covenant of priesthood.

Balaam was later killed in the war when God punished Midian, serving as a negative example. In the New Testament book of Jude, the examples of Korah and Balaam are also mentioned. Describing those who indulge in selfish desires, are motivated by greed, and are arrogant, the author writes: “Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay they have rushed headlong into Balaam’s error, and they have perished in Korah’s rebellion” (Jude 11). Today, we Christians must also learn from the Israelites’ failure and cultivate a reverence for God.

Edited and compiled based on the Chinese Union Version of the Bible and a comprehensive biblical interpretation.