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The Beginning of the End
enemies of God:
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.
He closed by predicting the complete destruction of Moab and
Edom, of Amalek and the Kenites, and so left the Moabite king with
no ray of hope.
Disappointed in his hopes for wealth and promotion, and con-
scious that he had brought on himself the displeasure of God, Balaam
returned from his self-chosen mission. The controlling power of the
Spirit of God left him, and his covetousness took over. He was ready
to do anything to get the reward promised by Balak. Balaam knew
that the prosperity of Israel depended on their obedience to God.
There was no way to conquer them except by leading them into sin.
He immediately returned to Moab and told his plans to the king—
to separate the children of Israel from God by enticing them into
idolatry. If they could be led to engage in the sensually uninhibited
worship of Baal and Ashtaroth, their all-powerful Protector would
become their enemy, and they would be overcome by the fierce,
warlike nations around them. The king readily accepted this plan,
and Balaam remained to help in putting it into effect.
Balaam witnessed the success of his satanic scheme. He saw the
curse of God imposed on His people, and thousands falling under
His judgments. But the divine justice that punished sin in Israel did
not allow the tempters to escape. In the war of Israel against the
Midianites, Balaam was killed. He had sensed that his end was near
when he exclaimed, “Let me die the death of the righteous, and let
my end be like his!” But he had not chosen to live the life of the
righteous, and he died with the enemies of God.
The end of Balaam was similar to that of Judas. Both men tried to
unite the service of God with greed for riches, and met with notable
failure. Balaam acknowledged the true God; Judas believed in Jesus.
Balaam hoped to make the service of Jehovah the steppingstone to