April 29, 2020

Because they had heard that their God was exceedingly strong, the kings of Moab were scared of Israel, a nation who at the time were obedient to the Lord. A man named Balaam was rumored to have magical powers so the kings bribed him to curse the Israelites. Since he lived afar, God told Balaam to not go with the Moabite kings. However, the kings offered Balaam more money so he decided to work with them.

When Balaam was going to Moab, an Angel of the Lord stood in the road blocking his path. Balaam was so focused on getting his huge spoil that he didn’t see the angel but his donkey did. To get Balaam’s attention, the animal crushed his foot against a wall and Balaam beat the beast till he fell to the ground. Shockingly, God let the donkey talk through a miracle and he asked why Balaam was beating him. Balaam said, “Because you’re mocking me.” The donkey replied, “Have I ever done anything to you?” Then Balaam answered no. Finally, the wicked magician spotted the angel, who explained, “I won’t kill you if you go to Moab and only tell the kings exactly what God tells you to say.”

Three times the kings asked Balaam to cast a damning spell on the Israelites, but Balaam did what God instructed him to do which instead blessed them. Balaam was also blessed because he repented to God, showing that following God’s ways is the best path to follow.