The theology of the balaam oracles: a pagan diviner and the word of god

pp. 53-67.

the cataleptic state into which Abdul Huda, an advisor of the Sultan of Tur-

key, used to fall. "Survivals of Ancient Semitic Religion in Syrian Centres

of Moslem and Christian Influence, " Expos., 6th series, XI (1905), 424.

Examples of divergent theories could be multiplied further, but

the point remains: the character and the role of Balaam are subjects of intense

debate.

166

There have been those, in the tradition of Tertullian and Jerome,

insisted that Balaam was indeed a prophet of God. Alexander

Whyte may be taken as a representative of this position. He writes:

In the first place, then, that True Light which lighteth every

man that cometh into the world kindled up in Balaam to an extraordinary

brilliance and beauty, Balaam stands out in the selectest rank of

those patriarchs and princes, those prophets and priests, who were

raised up outside of the house of Israel in order that men might

nowhere be left to live without a divine witness. To keep to the

Old Testament--Melchizedek, and Jethro, and Balaam, and Job were

all such divine witnesses to the profane lands in which they lived.

Balaam, then, in his place, and to begin with, was a true and greatly

gifted prophet of Almighty God. Just listen to some passages out of Balaam's prayers and prophecies and exhortations, and judge for

yourselves whether he was a man of divine gifts or no.¹

After citing many verses from the oracles of Balaam, Whyte asks, "Could

Moses, could Isaiah, could Paul himself have answered Balak better? No.

The Great Prophet Himself never answered Balak better than that."²

Another who regarded Balaam in a rather charitable light was

Samuel Cox. He wrote, "The Bible denies him no honour; it lavishes on

him all the signs and credentials of the true prophet, down even to contumely

and rejection, while yet it brands him as false to his prophetic vocation.”³

London and Edinburgh: Oliphants, Ltd., [ n. d. ] , pp. 264-65.

Kegan Paul, Trench, & Co. 1884), p. 38.

167

The same writer avers:

solution of our problem--thinking of him as at once a great prophet

and a false prophet; great in gifts but false in the use he made of

them--we can at least read his history in a just and generous spirit.

We need deny him no gift, nor grudge him any good act or word.

It is his very greatness which makes him so little, his very good-

ness which makes him so bad.¹

Cox, then, takes something of a mediating position between those who would

regard Balaam as a false prophet and those who would regard him as a true

prophet. For Cox, Balaam is a true prophet who was false to his gift.

We have already seen at some length² that the traditional

Jewish viewpoint expressed in the Talmud was to regard Balaam quite nega-

tively. The constantly recurring refrain was "Balaam, the wicked."

An approach that could only be made in the critical age is to

regard Balaam as a pagan mantic whom the narrator has transformed into a

prophet of Yahweh. This seems to be the viewpoint of Yehezkel Kaufmann

in his reconstruction of the History of Israel:

In the Balaam story (Num. 22-24) the pagan magician and

Israelite prophet are combined. Balaam the magician is a potent

dispenser of blessings and curses; this is the belief of Balak and

his officers, and is accepted by the Bible as part of its belief in

the reality of non-divine magical forces. Despite his uncanny

power as magician, however, Balaam cannot curse "one whom God

has not cursed." But he is also a prophet, in Israelite style, and

as such he speaks only the word of God.
¹ Ibid., 39-40..

² See above, pp. 43-51.

168

inspired men (corresponding to the magicians' spells) into prophecies,

and cultic blessing (corresponding to priestly incantations) into

commands of God. Thus Balaam's blessing is formally a prophetic

vision.¹

Along the same lines, but expressed a bit more pointedly, is

the estimation of Moriarty. He is of the opinion that the historical Balaam

"probably had never heard of Yahweh," but was transformed by the writer

"into a devout worshiper of the Lord."² Hence, for Moriarty the important

issue is not the historical figure, or the historical events; rather that which

is important for us today is what the writer wished to teach. His conclusion

is that the transformation of the pagan Balaam into the devout prophet, "is

the writer's way of telling us that even the decisions of a pagan diviner are

under the control of Yahweh."³

A rather whimsical approach to the complex problem of the

character of Balaam was taken by James Black in his book, Rogues of the

The University of Chicago Press, 1960), pp. 84-85.

Fathers], 1960), p. 6. For an evaluation of the relationship between theo-

logical validation and verification in history, see now John Goldingay,

"'That You May Know That Yahweh Is God,'" TB, LXXII (1972), 80-81.

(New York: Harper & Brothers, Publishers, 1930), pp. 59-79.

169

have been, in his words, "immemorially criticised or condemned."^l

cerning the difficulties relating to the character of Balaam was to posit two

rather than one.

Now it is quite evident from the facts that the Bible tells us of

two quite distinct people--one, a noted righteous prophet, a native

of distant Mesopotamia, who knew and served the Lord Jehovah with

particular fidelity, and worshipped him sincerely, who indeed would

do nothing that in any way conflicted with God's will, and who at

the close of the great incident of the Blessing of Israel returned

openly and definitely to his own home and "his own people"; and

second, a soothsayer or oracle-monger of the Midianites who hated

Israel and tempted it to folly, who worshipped the brutal and immoral

God Chemosh and was slaughtered by the army of Moses when they

punished Moab and Midian for perverting the morals of Israel.²

Hence, the "good" Balaam has been wrongly maligned for millen-

nia. "It is our duty, therefore, as Christian people, " he writes, "to re-

habilitate the true Balaam and grant him a discharge from the world's calum-

nies."³ Far from being an enemy of God, the Balaam of Pethor should be

regarded as one of the heroes of the faith: How then does Black explain

the universal view that there was one Balaam, an evil man? He blames this

on Jewish prejudice.

Later Jews, who in the passionate exclusiveness considered Jehovah

their own private preserve, did not relish the idea that their Scriptures

painted such a hero as springing from a people whom they counted

"unenlightened pagans." They were only too glad therefore to iden-

tify him with the low conjurer who pandered to the obscenities

170

Bible itself, to rescue this man from an undeserved shame and

contempt. Even his great scene of renunciation has been sadly

coloured by our prejudice against his namesake. He has been the

most misunderstood and most slandered man in history--so much

so that the "Sin of Balaam" is denounced in the Revelation as the

last iniquity. It is the last iniquity--but it is not the iniquity of

Balaam of Pethor! [ Emphasis in original.]¹

The same author concludes one of the most novel approaches

to the problem of the character of Balaam by an accolade:

Our Balaam is a great white soul who loved the will of God to

his own worldly loss. He returned to his own people with his hands

empty and his heart full. Whatever he lost, he kept his Lord.

Rest well in Abraham's land, thou man of Abraham's faith!²

Perhaps the only justification for referring to this aberrant

approach in the present paper is that it suggests the necessity to deal with

the problem of the personality, character and role of Balaam. We may now

turn to more normative approaches, approaches which are based on an in-

duction of all the data relative to the character of Balaam, and which attempt

to deal with the text as it stands.
An Approach of Mediation: Hengstenberg

Hengstenberg faced the problem of the character of Balaam and

his role in prophetism by taking a view between the two extremes the

extremes of false and true prophet. He writes, "so kann nur eine unter

171

there are to be found in the person of Balaam elements of the knowledge of

God, but these elements are never to the point of actual conversion. There

were clear flashes of light by the Spirit of God, but "mann ihn den Propheten

nich beizahlen darf."²

A similar viewpoint seems to have been taken by Unger in his

book, Biblical Demonology. Unger, too, regards Balaam as a man with

limited knowledge of Yahweh. He was a pagan magician who had some

knowledge of the Lord and was under the overpowering influence of Yahweh

for a time; but he served Yahweh with the motivation of greed.

Balaam's case is indeed a strange anomaly. He knew the

Lord, Jehovah of the Israelites, but his knowledge was dimmed

and distorted by heathenistic corruptions, and vitiated by covetous-

ness. Such a combination of paganistic magic and personal greed

with the service of Jehovah could not be permanent or static. It was

compatible only with a transitional state in his experience of the

divine dealing.³

Unger concludes that for a time Balaam was used by God to the point that

he became a genuine prophet of Yahweh, but then he "rejected his chance

and chose base gain."⁴

Press, 1952), p. 125.

"We conclude, therefore, that Salaam was a soothsayer, and as such Balak

172

A question that is debated at length in the literature concerns

question is poorly worded and wrongly directed. If one means by the question,

was Balaam used by Yahweh as a messenger of His word? --the answer would

have to be "yes." But if the question is phrased to ask, was Balaam a

genuine Yahwist? --the answer would have to be "no." We are best advised

to take a mediating course between the extremes of the "true prophet view"

and the "false prophet view." Balaam was a pagan diviner; it is also true

that he was used of Yahweh to mediate His word.

Of the large number of studies of Balaam that have been pub-

lished to date, two stand out as definitive treatments concerning the role

and character of Balaam. It is to these two studies that we now turn.
An Interpretation of His Character: Butler

The first of the two definitive treatments of the person of

Balaam that is before us is the famous sermon by Joseph Butler (1692-1762),
sent for him to come and curse Israel. He was temporarily used by Jehovah

which made his contact with the kingdom of God momentary. He did not

become a prophet An the truest sense of the term. . . . The true prophet

is found in Moses and not in Balaam. He is an illustration off not only how

far a little good in a man may go but the extent to which a little bad may

develop." Guy F. Winstead, "The False Prophets of the Old Testament"

(unpublished doctor’s dissertation, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary,

1931) pp. 32-33. The comparison that Winstead makes with Moses in

this remark is to the point, and will he developed in the present paper.

173

text is Numbers 23:10, "Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my

last end be like his." He suggests that these words lead us immediately to

thoughts of the different ends of good and bad men in a general sense. But

he hastens to add that it is his purpose to consider these words with "a par-

ticular reference or respect to him who spoke them," and he notes that they

may afford some "reflection of use and service to ourselves."²

Butler summarizes the occasion of Balaam having been hired by

Balak and then compares his craft to that of certain Roman cultic functionaries,

except that "there was somewhat more particular in the case now before us;

Balaam being looked upon as an extraordinary person, whose blessing or curse

was thought to be always effectual,"³ Butler quotes the first oracle (Num. 23:

7-10), and then turns to the word "righteousness" found in verse 10. He

states that Balaam must have known well what is meant by righteousness as

may be seen in Micah 6:5-8, the entirety of which we are to regard, he suggests,

as a quotation of a confrontation between Balaam and Balak that is not given

to this sermon by many writers in the nineteenth century. Recently it has been

cited by W. H. Gispen in his article, "Balaam, " The Encyclopedia of Christian-

ity, I, 515 (1964). See above, p. 164, for full data of publication.

² Butler, Works, II, 74-75.

³ Ibid., II, 75. The concept of the effective curse will be dis-

cussed below.

174

in the Numbers account.

which is here referred to, though another part of it, the account of

which is not now extant; as there are many quotations in scripture

out of books which are not come down to us. Remember what Balaam

Butler suggests that this putative conversation between Balaam

and Balak shows a contrast between a good man as distinct from a dishonest

and superstitious man. "From hence appears what he meant by the righteous

6:5-8 is an exegetical flaw. Verses 6-8 are not to be taken as part of the

conversation between Balaam and Balak. Balaam and Balak are mentioned in

verse 5 as part of a series of historical examples in Yahweh's rib, with Israel. Verses 6-7 may be regarded as a rhetorical device whereby the prophet allows

the people of Israel to speak to the prophet. His own response is given in

verse 8. Compare, e. g., Carl Friedrich Keil, The Twelve Minor Prophets

(C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch series), trans. by James Martin (2 vols.; reprint;

Grand Rapids: Wn B, Eerdmans Publishing Company, [n. d.] ), I, 492-97;

A. Cohen, The Twelve Prophets: Hebrew Text and English Translation, With

Introductions and Commentary, "Soncino Books of the Bible," ed. A Cohere

(London: The Soncino Press, 1948), 180-82; E. Leslie Carlson, "Micah,"

Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible," ed. P. R. Ackroyd,

A. R C. Leaney, J. W. Packer (Cambridge: At the University Press, 1971),

181-86.

whose death he desires to die" [emphasis in original].¹ Nevertheless, these

excellent sentiments were not expressed in the life of the one who uttered them.

The iniquity of his heart began to disclose itself when he did not demure from

the later ambassadors of the king after being warned by God in Numbers 22:12.

Balaam thus showed himself to be less than honest.

A thorough [sic] honest man would without hesitation have repeated his

former answer, that he could not be guilty of so infamous a prostitution

of the sacred character with which he was invested, as in the name of

a prophet to curse those whom he knew to be blessed.²

So Balaam goes with the ambassadors after God gives him the

permission he desired. Then, by the use of sacrifices and enchantments he

seeks to receive permission from God to curse the people. He does not receive

this permission, but neither is he under supernatural restraint, "He is plainly

presented to be under no other force or restraint, than the fear of God."³ He

knew that Israel was "a people of virtue and piety” (cf., Num. 23:21), yet he

still wished to curse them. "So that the state of Balaam's mind was this: he

wanted to do what he knew to be very wicked, and contrary to the express

command of God."⁴

Butler continues his classic development of the theme by sug-

gesting that since Balaam was unable to curse Israel he then attempted to find

another way "to reconcile this wickedness with his duty. How great a paradox

176

very account which the scripture gives us of him."¹ Hence, Balaam becomes

the contriver of the crime of Israel as recorded in Deuteronomy 4, Numbers

25 and Revelation 2.

This was the man, this Balaam, I say, was the man who desired

to die the death of the righteous, and that his last end might be like

words.

in the world; a very wicked man, under a deep sense of God and religion, persisting still in his wickedness, and preferring the wages

of unrighteousness, even when he had before him a lively view of

death, . . . Good God, what inconsistency, what perplexity is here!

[ His emphasis, for quotation.]²

He absolutely denied to curse Israel, yet he chose to do the

worse. "What fatality is here:"³ Yet this very strange behaviour is not

altogether uncommon. "Nay, with some alterations, and put a little lower,

it is applicable to a very considerable part of the world."⁴ Butler observes,

"there is no account to be given in the way of reason, of men's so strong

attachments to the present world: our hopes and fears and pursuits are in

degrees beyond all proportion to the known value of the things they respect,"⁵

Though less than concise, perhaps the clearest summary of

Butler's position regarding the character of Balaam may be seen in the follow-

ing words:
^l Ibid., II, 79. ² Ibid., II, 80. ³ Ibid., II, 81.

⁴ Ibid. ⁵ Ibid.

177

him what he, for the sake of a reward, had the strongest inclination

to: he was likewise in a state of mind sober enough to consider death

and his lest end: by these considerations he was restrained, first

from going to the king of Moab; and after he did go, from cursing

Israel. But notwithstanding this there was great wickedness in his

heart. He could not forego the rewards of unrighteousness: he

therefore first seeks for indulgences; and when these could not be

obtained, he sins against the whole meaning, end, and design of the

prohibition, which no consideration in the world could prevail with

trim to go against the letter of. And surely that impious counsel he

gave to Balak against the children of Israel, was, considered in itself,

a greater piece of wickedness, than if he had cursed them in words.¹

In response to the question as to how such a decision could be

made by one who had expressed the hope of dying the death of the righteous

Butler concludes: "Consciousness of the wickedness of his heart must neces-