Numbers 24:15-25
Balaam’s Fourth Prophecy
15 So he took up his oracle and said:
“The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor,
And the utterance of the man whose eyes are opened;
16 The utterance of him who hears the words of God,
And has the knowledge of the Most High,
Who sees the vision of the Almighty,
Who falls down, with eyes wide open:
17 “I see Him, but not now;
I behold Him, but not near;
A Star shall come out of Jacob;
A Scepter shall rise out of Israel,
And batter the brow of Moab,
And destroy all the sons of tumult.
18 “And Edom shall be a possession;
Seir also, his enemies, shall be a possession,
While Israel does valiantly.
19 Out of Jacob One shall have dominion,
And destroy the remains of the city.”
20 Then he looked on Amalek, and he took up his oracle and said:
“Amalek was first among the nations,
But shall be last until he perishes.”
21 Then he looked on the Kenites, and he took up his oracle and said:
“Firm is your dwelling place,
And your nest is set in the rock;
22 Nevertheless Kain shall be burned.
How long until Asshur carries you away captive?”
23 Then he took up his oracle and said:
“Alas! Who shall live when God does this?
24 But ships shall come from the coasts of Cyprus,
And they shall afflict Asshur and afflict Eber,
And so shall Amalek, until he perishes.”
25 So Balaam rose and departed and returned to his place; Balak also went his way.
This last prophetic utterance of Balaam was distinctly Messianic after he had been moved by God’s Spirit and no longer by his own power or knowledge. He began by describing his calling by the LORD who opened his eyes to see God and his ears to hear the very words of the Almighty, falling down in worship of the Sovereign One who gave him this vision to speak blessings on God’s people and victory over His enemies. He therefore worshipped with eyes made wide open and proclaimed the Messiah who was to come. He described the star that would lead the wise men to His arrival in the flesh (Matthew 2:2) as the King of kings (1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 17:14, 19:16) to rule with the divine royal scepter (Genesis 49:10, Hebrews 1:8-9) to defeat the enemies of God’s people as a picture of the ultimate adversary, the devil (1 Peter 5:8), by His work of suffering sacrifice on the cross of the curse (Galatians 3:13, Hebrews 9:26) of our sin. He spoke further of those enemies who were real around them such as those of Moab and Edom who would become victoriously owned by God’s people as evil was to be defeated and His rule put in place with His dominion (Matthew 28:18, Ephesians 1:21-22, 1 Corinthians 15:26, 27-28) over all the world, seen and unseen. He also mentioned Amalek and the Kenites as proof of His dominion authority to defeat the mortal enemies as a precursor to the heavenly ones who held God’s people in their grip. The Messiah would come to set His people free at last! This is the promise we have and now know with eyes made wide open and ears given the words to hear and know our deliverance from sin in our hearts and minds through the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Lord of the universe and hope of the world. Our eyes also now see the star guiding them to the Messiah by the utterance of God’s word recording these things for our hearts, minds, and souls. Yes, we see the Star of the Messiah in Balaam’s prophetic utterance of God’s word of salvation now come to us in Jesus Christ.
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