Sunday School Lesson

1. Numbers 22-25
God Calls
God speaks through a donkey.
December 29, 2019
First Baptist Church
Jackson, Mississippi
USA
What’s the number one thing?
The glory of God!
1 Corinthians 10:31 NKJV
31 Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of
God.
The Talking Donkey Bible Story.
References
• MacArthur, John, The MacArthur Study Bible (Nashville, Nelson Publishing,
1997).
• Palmer, Edwin H., The NIV Study Bible (Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 1985).
• Missler, Chuck, Who is Balaam?, YouTube Video, Koinonia Ministries.
• www.GotQuestions.org
Introduction to Book of Numbers
• Written by Moses in 1405 BC during his last year of life to describe the
journey of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt to arrival at Canaan (the
Promised Land).
• Israel initially refused to enter Canaan because of fear of the enemies
living there.
‒ Numbers 14:1-10
• Israelites wander in the wilderness 40 years - until those who were 20 years
or older have died.
‒ Numbers 14:26-38

2. Introduction to Numbers 22-25
• The Israelites begin their journey to Canaan to claim the Promised Land.
‒ Numbers 20:1-13
• The king of Edom refused to allow Israel to pass through their land.
‒ Descendants of Esau, the brother of Jacob.
‒ Numbers 20:14-21
• God had forbidden Israel from engaging in warfare with Edom.
‒ Deuteronomy 2:4-6
• The Israelites detour around Edom and complain to the point of
blasphemy and God sends biting serpents as punishment.
‒ Numbers 21:4-8
• They are saved from death from serpents’ bites by looking at a bronze
serpent on a pole Moses lifts up for them to see.
Introduction to Numbers 22-25
• The arrival at Moab requires destruction of Amorites to continue journey to
Promised Land.
‒ Numbers 21:21-35
Israel Arrived at the Door
Numbers 22:1 NKJV
1 Then the children of Israel moved, and camped in the plains of Moab on the
side of the Jordan across from Jericho.
King Balak of Moab
Numbers 22:2-6 NKJV
2 Now Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites. 3 And
Moab was exceedingly afraid of the people because they were many, and
Moab was sick with dread because of the children of Israel. 4 So Moab said to
the elders of Midian, “Now this company will lick up everything around us, as an
ox licks up the grass of the field.” And Balak the son of Zippor was king of the
Moabites at that time. 5 Then he sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at
Pethor, which is near the River in the land of the sons of his people, to call him,
saying: “Look, a people has come from Egypt. See, they cover the face of the
earth, and are settling next to me! 6 Therefore please come at once, curse this
people for me, for they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat
them and drive them out of the land, for I know that he whom you bless is
blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.”

3. Messengers went to Balaam.
Number 22:7-8 NKJV
7 So the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the diviner’s fee
in their hand, and they came to Balaam and spoke to him the words of Balak.
8 And he said to them, “Lodge here tonight, and I will bring back word to you, as
the Lord speaks to me.” So the princes of Moab stayed with Balaam.
Who was Balaam?
• Balaam was a cultic false prophet who practiced magic and divination
among the Midianites.
• He was believed to have powers that allowed him to bless and curse your
enemies for your “advantage.”
• His activities were done for money and not to glorify God or help people.
• He had a speaking relationship with the God of Israel but did not follow
the ways of God.
God talked with Balaam.
Numbers 22:9-12 NKJV
9 Then God came to Balaam and said, “Who are these men with you?”
10 So Balaam said to God, “Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, has sent to me,
saying, 11 ‘Look, a people has come out of Egypt, and they cover the face of the
earth. Come now, curse them for me; perhaps I shall be able to overpower them
and drive them out.’”
12 And God said to Balaam, “You shall not go with them; you shall not curse the
people, for they are blessed.”
Balaam refused the offer.
• Balaam refused the offer from Balak because the Lord told him not to
curse the Israelite people.
• Balak increased the financial offer to Balaam.
Balaam went to Moab.
Numbers 22:20-21 NKJV
20 And God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “If the men come to call
you, rise and go with them; but only the word which I speak to you—that you
shall do.” 21 So Balaam rose in the morning, saddled his donkey, and went with
the princes of Moab.

4. God’s anger was aroused.
Number 22:22 NKJV
22 Then God’s anger was aroused because he went, and the Angel of the Lord
took His stand in the way as an adversary against him. And he was riding on his
donkey, and his two servants were with him.
The confusion of Number 22:20-22
• Even though God had given permission for Balaam to go, God knew that
his motive was not right.
• Thus, the anger of the Lord burned against Balaam because God knew
that he was not yet submissive to what He required.
• The result of God’s confrontation with Balaam was a reaffirmation to only
speak the words that God wanted him to speak.
The donkey saw the Angel of the Lord.
Numbers 22:23-27 NKJV
23 Now the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord standing in the way with His drawn
sword in His hand, and the donkey turned aside out of the way and went into the
field. So Balaam struck the donkey to turn her back onto the road. 24 Then the
Angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on
this side and a wall on that side. 25 And when the donkey saw the Angel of the
Lord, she pushed herself against the wall and crushed Balaam’s foot against the
wall; so he struck her again. 26 Then the Angel of the Lord went further, and stood
in a narrow place where there was no way to turn either to the right hand or to
the left. 27 And when the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord, she lay down under
Balaam; so Balaam’s anger was aroused, and he struck the donkey with his staff.
The donkey talked.
Numbers 22:28-31 NKJV
28 Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam,
“What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”
29 And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have abused me. I wish there
were a sword in my hand, for now I would kill you!”
30 So the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have
ridden, ever since I became yours, to this day? Was I ever disposed to do this to
you?”
And he said, “No.”
31 Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the Angel of the Lord
standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand; and he bowed his head
and fell flat on his face.

5. The Angel of the Lord talked to Balaam.
Numbers 22:32-33 NKJV
32 And the Angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey
these three times? Behold, I have come out to stand against you, because your
way is perverse before Me. 33 The donkey saw Me and turned aside from Me
these three times. If she had not turned aside from Me, surely I would also have
killed you by now, and let her live.”
• The donkey saved Balaam’s life by stopping.
Balaam’s attitude changed.
Numbers 22:34-35 NKJV
34 And Balaam said to the Angel of the Lord, “I have sinned, for I did not know
You stood in the way against me. Now therefore, if it displeases You, I will turn
back.”
35 Then the Angel of the Lord said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but only the
word that I speak to you, that you shall speak.” So Balaam went with the princes
of Balak.
Balaam arrived at Moab.
Numbers 22:36-40 NKJV
36 Now when Balak heard that Balaam was coming, he went out to meet him at
the city of Moab, which is on the border at the Arnon, the boundary of the
territory. 37 Then Balak said to Balaam, “Did I not earnestly send to you, calling for
you? Why did you not come to me? Am I not able to honor you?”
38 And Balaam said to Balak, “Look, I have come to you! Now, have I any power
at all to say anything? The word that God puts in my mouth, that I must speak.”
39 So Balaam went with Balak, and they came to Kirjath Huzoth. 40 Then Balak
offered oxen and sheep, and he sent some to Balaam and to the princes who
were with him.
• Balaam does not share the talking donkey story with Balak.
Balak took Balaam to the high places.
Numbers 22:41 NKJV
41 So it was, the next day, that Balak took Balaam and brought him up to the high
places of Baal, that from there he might observe the extent of the people.
• In Numbers 23-24, Balaam delivered four oracles (divine revelations from
God) from different mountaintops contrary to the urging of Balak to curse
the Israelites.

6. Numbers 23:1-12 Content of First Oracle
• Numbers 23:8 NKJV
8 “How shall I curse whom God has not cursed?
And how shall I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?”
‒ Balaam stated that Israel could not be cursed.
• Numbers 23:9b NKJV
9b “A people dwelling alone,
Not reckoning itself among the nations.”
‒ Israel is unlike any other nation in the world.
• Numbers 23:10 NKJV
10 “Who can count the dust of Jacob,
Or number one-fourth of Israel?
Let me die the death of the righteous,
And let my end be like his!”
‒ Balaam even wished to share in Israel’s blessings
• Numbers 23:11 NKJV
11 Then Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I took you to
curse my enemies, and look, you have blessed them bountifully!”
Numbers 23:19-20 Balaam’s Second Oracle
• Numbers 23:19-20 NKJV
19 “God is not a man, that He should lie,
Nor a son of man, that He should repent.
Has He said, and will He not do?
Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?
20 Behold, I have received a command to bless;
He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it.
‒ Balaam reaffirmed the Lord’s determination to bless Israel.
Numbers 24:1-14 Balaam’s Third Oracle
• Numbers 24:1-2 NKJV
1 Now when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he did not
go as at other times, to seek to use sorcery, but he set his face toward the
wilderness. 2 And Balaam raised his eyes, and saw Israel encamped
according to their tribes; and the Spirit of God came upon him.
What did Balaam see when he viewed Israel encamped according to their
tribes?
• Numbers 2-3 assigned the specific camping and tent arrangements.
• The arrangement of the camp would appear as a cross with the
Tabernacle in the center.
• Balaam would not fully understand the meaning of the symbol but would
speak prophecy from God about the significance.

7. Key Verse in Balaam’s Third Oracle
• Numbers 24:9 NKJV
9 He bows down, he lies down as a lion;
And as a lion, who shall rouse him?’
“Blessed is he who blesses you,
And cursed is he who curses you.”
‒ Jacob used the exact phrase about a lion referring to the
ultimate King who will come from Judah, the Messiah in Genesis
49:9.
‒ The Lion of Judah is also referenced in Revelation 5:5.
Numbers 24:15-24 Balaam’s Fourth Oracle
• Numbers 24:17 NKJV
17 “I see Him, but not now;
I behold Him, but not near; (Revelation 1:7)
A Star shall come out of Jacob; (Matthew 2:2)
A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, (Genesis 49:10)
And batter the brow of Moab,
And destroy all the sons of tumult” (Jeramiah 48:45)
‒ Balaam predicted the coming Messiah and fate of Moabites and
Edomites.
Balaam gave up, but Balak found another way to weaken Israel.
• Numbers 24:25 NKJV
25 So Balaam rose and departed and returned to his place; Balak also
went his way.
‒ Balaam was killed by the Israel Army in Numbers 31:8.
• Numbers 25:1-2 NKJV
1 Now Israel remained in Acacia Grove, and the people began to commit
harlotry with the women of Moab. 2 They invited the people to the
sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their
gods.
Balaam’s reputation for greed mentioned in the New Testament.
• 2 Peter 2:15-16 NKJV
15 They (false teachers) have forsaken the right way and gone astray,
following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of
unrighteousness; 16 but he was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb donkey
speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet.
• Jude 1:11 NKJV
11 Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily
in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.

8. Balaam’s reputation for greed mentioned in the New Testament.
• Revelation 2:14 NKJV
14 But I have a few things against you (Pergamos Church), because you
have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to
put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed
to idols, and to commit sexual immorality.
Lesson Applications from Numbers 22-25.
1. God can use nonbelievers such as Balaam to speak truths (oracles) that
affect our lives in a positive way.
2. God can speak to us in unusual ways that no one else can believe or
understand.
3. Sometimes God has to put a roadblock in our path to stop us from going in
the wrong direction.
4. Others may see danger ahead that we cannot see.
Lesson Applications, about Israel, from Numbers 22-25.
1. God is protective of Israel, as His chosen people.
2. God has always maintained a remnant of Jews to carry His purposes
forward throughout history.
3. In the “end times” God will bring the saved Jews who place their trust in
Jesus to the Promised Land to enter the millennium (Romans 11:26; Isaiah
4:3; Matthew 25:31-32; Ezekiel 20:34-38).
Closing Scriptures
• Micah 6:1, 5, 8 NKJV
1 Hear now what the Lord says:
5 “O My people, remember now
What Balak king of Moab counseled,
And what Balaam the son of Beor answered him,
From Acacia Grove to Gilgal,
That you may know the righteousness of the Lord.”
8 He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you,
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God?

9. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
John 3:16-17 NKJV
16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not
send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him
might be saved.”
John 14:6 NKJV
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through Me.”
Romans 3:23 NKJV
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans 6:23a NKJV
23a For the wages of sin is death,
• Death in this life (the first death) is 100%.
• Even Jesus, the only one who doesn’t deserve death, died in this life to
pay the penalty for our sin.
• The death referred to in Romans 6:23a is the “second death” explained in
Revelation 21:8.
Revelation 21:8 NKJV
8 “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral,
sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with
fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”
• Anyone who’s lifestyle is one or more of the sins listed in Revelation 21:8,
will experience the “second death,” if they do not repent.
• To Repent means to turn around, to go in the opposite direction, to turn
away from sin and believe in Jesus.
Romans 5:8 NKJV
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners,
Christ died for us.
Romans 6:23b NKJV
23b but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Revelation 21:7 NKJV
7 “He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be
My son.”
• Romans 10:9-10 explain to us how to be overcomers.

10. Romans 10:9-10 NKJV
9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that
God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one
believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation.
Romans 10:13 NKJV
13 For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Do you have questions?
Would you like to know more?
Please, contact First Baptist Church Jackson at 601-949-1900 or
http://firstbaptistjackson.org/contact/