Numbers 23:21, commentary and pictures

The verse is the blessing God placed in Balaam's unwilling mouth, compelling a corrupt seeker of gain who longed to curse Israel for reward to proclaim instead rich blessings upon God's chosen people. To say no wrong is seen in them means God did not count them guilty and corrupt so as to withdraw His favor, and to say the Lord is with them with the shout of a king among them means His almighty presence was their protection and the source of their triumph and prosperity. Having commanded the blessing, God would not break His word or change His purpose like a man, so repeated efforts to turn it into a curse failed. That protection held while Israel stayed loyal and obedient, so no enchantment, divination, or curse could prevail against them, but when they yielded to temptation and broke His law their defense departed and they could not stand before their enemies. Therefore evil cannot overcome God's people while they follow righteousness and cherish no sin, which is why the foe sought to draw them into sin indirectly, and the same protecting care assures the faithful in every age and calls the congregation now to have Jesus in their midst in joy and victory.

Balaam's Unwilling Prophecy

The words belong to the blessing put in Balaam's mouth in favor of Israel, an unwilling prophecy of great poetic beauty in which rich and sublime blessings proclaim Israel as God's chosen people. Balaam was a corrupt and hypocritical seeker of gain, allured by rich rewards to practice enchantments and offer sacrifices in order to curse Israel for reward. He longed to pronounce the evil he desired to speak, but he was forbidden by the Spirit of God and constrained by God's power and control to pronounce blessing instead.

Having received commandment to bless, he could not reverse it because God had blessed. God will not break His word or alter His purpose concerning Israel, and it is vain to hope to obtain a curse against those He has promised to bless or to expect Him to reverse what He has promised. He is not subject to variation like man, so no enchantment or curse uttered by a diviner can have the least influence upon that nation. Repeated efforts to turn the blessing into a curse failed, just as repeated efforts to move Luther from his decision failed because divine power sustained him.

To behold no iniquity in Jacob and to see no perverseness in Israel means God did not regard them as guilty or corrupt so as to withdraw His favor. That the Lord his God is with him means His presence is the protection of Omnipotence while they are under His protection, so their enemies cannot prevail against them by curse or divination. That the shout of a king is among them marks that presence as the source of their triumph and prosperity and as the joy and victory of having the King in the midst of His people. The forced blessing thus declared the prosperity of His chosen and rebuked the folly and malice of their foes.

This display revealed God's goodness and mercy and gave Moab and Midian clear evidence that Jehovah was the God to be served, for they could see God's control of the prophet and God's almighty power as Israel's protection. It was the last ray of light shining upon a stiff-necked people set in defiance of God's will before their probation ended.

Protection While Obedient

The verse describes God's protection of His obedient people, that while Israel remained loyal and faithful and under His protection He was with them and their enemies could not successfully curse, overcome, or prevail against them by enchantment, divination, or curse. Balaam could not curse Israel because the Lord was with the people and they were faithful to Him, and a people whom God had blessed could not be cursed while God was with them under His protection. That protection depended on obedience and did not grant immunity after turning to sin. When Israel yielded to temptation and broke God's law, their defense departed, they separated themselves from God, and they could not stand against their enemies.

Because Balaam could not curse them directly, he sought to bring about indirectly what God had forbidden directly by using Moabite women to entice Israel into sin, so that God's blessing and presence would no longer protect them and their enemies would cease to fear them. The verse therefore teaches that Satan cannot overcome God's people while they follow righteousness, keep God's commandments, and do not cherish sin, and that his snares aim to weaken their unity and purity. God's favor toward Israel assures His obedient, faithful people in every age of His protecting care when evil people misrepresent, harass, or seek to destroy them. Just as repeated efforts to turn the blessing of Israel into a curse failed, so repeated efforts to move Luther from his decision failed because divine power sustained him.

The picture of the Lord present with Israel with the shout of the King among them marks His presence as the source of their triumph and applies to the congregation now as the joy and victory of having Jesus in the midst of His people. They should seek His presence among them and let the truth and the searching Spirit of God remove sin and shape them into an obedient people.