"They have left the straight way to follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved the wages of wickedness" (Second Peter 2:15).
The books of Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Nehemiah, Micah, Second Peter, Jude, and Revelation each have references to this prophet-for-hire. Balaam's infamy was bound in his willingness to accept money from the Moabites in return for speaking a curse upon the nation of Israel. (For those of you who want a refresher course, you can find much of Balaam's story in Numbers chapters 22 through 24.)
What an unusual prophet Balaam was. In one moment he would say, in effect, "I can only do what God allows me to", and in the next moment he would take the money from Israel's enemies and travel with them- even in the face of the LORD having warned him not to travel with the Moabites.
At the end of it all, the LORD did not permit Balaam to pronounce a curse on the Israelites. However, Balaam counseled the Moabites on another way to bring destruction to Israel: idolatry and sexual immorality (see Revelation 2:14).
Where do we fit in this picture? We must beware of using our spiritual giftings in the service of the enemy. We must be careful not to counsel people in a way that leads to the destruction of the people of God. We must take care not to allow the offer of wealth to cloud our judgement or cause us to compromise what we believe.
Balaam did his thing and went home. And Israel lived with the consequences.
What did Balaam's treachery cost? 24,000 lives (see Numbers 25).
Lord, we understand You have called us into prophetic community. Please, give all of us grace to walk in full obedience to You, without compromise or confusion. Purge us of any love or desire for the gifts of the enemy.
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