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Discussions Torah

Numbers 23–24: Balaam’s 4-fold warning for the end-times generation

The New Testament has multiple warnings about the “error of Balaam” (Jude 11) and “teaching of Balaam” (Rev. 2:12–17), specifically for the Body of Messiah at the apocalyptic time around the Day of the LORD.

But what does the amazing account in Torah reading בָּלָק Balak (Numbers 22:2–25:9) of a talking donkey and double-agent prophet have to teach us today? In short, remember who we are as “treasures” of the Kingdom of Heaven, why that’s special, and whether we are being transformed into people who have the character and heart of the Messiah.

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Discussions Torah

Numbers 22–24: Beware of self-loving, double-speaking prophets

It’s important to respect yourself as one who bears the image of God, but when does self-love cross over into conceit? And when that conceit is in the heart of a prophet that practices deceit, it’s a sobering warning. The lesson of Balaam told in Torah reading בָּלָק Balak (Numbers 22:2-25:9) and expanded upon in Micah 5:6–6:8 and Jude 3-16 is a warning and a contrast between a true prophet of God, namely Messiah Yeshua (Christ Jesus), and a false prophet.

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Discussions Torah

Numbers 22:1-25:9: God sent emissaries to the Gentiles too

The prophet Bilam (Balaam) is not an isolated individual, an anomaly in Scripture. He was not the first or last emissary to the Gentiles. God did not leave them without guidance. Bilam is a foreshadowing of the ministry of Saul of Tarsus, aka the apostle Paul, whose experience on the road to Damascus echoes the account in the Torah reading בָּלָק Balak of Bilam’s experience with a “recalcitrant” she-donkey.

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Discussions Torah

Numbers 22:1–25:9: Stubborn as a donkey about true prophecy

Everyone loves a story about talking animals, especially smart ones. But the account in the Torah reading בָּלָק Balak isn’t just fodder for a fun animated kids’ movie. It’s an important lesson that God wants us to recognize false prophets and not follow them.

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Discussions Torah

Numbers 23-24: The unintended prophesy of Balaam, part 2

Bilam (Balaam) is not a member of God’s covenant and was a foreigner to them, although he was from the land of Aram, the ancestral homeland of Abraham. Yet, God saw fit to give him His words, His visions and to Bilam and use Bilam as God’s instrument among the people.

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Discussions Torah

Numbers 24: Balaam’s Vision of Israel’s Future Glory

The cryptic lines of Balaam’s reluctant blessing of Israel contains pictures of what Israel should expect in its Messiah.