Num. 23-25
Balaam repeatedly told Balak that he could only say what the LORD put in his mouth to say. When he repeated this after his third blessing on the people of Israel, he added that he could say neither good nor bad “of my own will.” This, coupled with the fact that something clearly changed just prior to this third oracle, makes me wonder if, up until this point of change, he was still hoping that he would be able to fulfill Balak’s request (curse Israel) and receive the reward of honor promised to him.
Balaam’s words indicated what he knew – that he had no choice but to say what God allowed him to say – but it seems that maybe his heart didn’t really turn to the will of God until right before this third oracle. It wasn’t until then that he seemed more interested in pleasing God than in receiving his reward.
Mark 16
Why is the Truth so hard for us to recognize and believe? Jesus told his disciples that He would rise from the dead after three days. Yet when some of His followers told the rest that He had risen and appeared to them, the rest did not believe their report. How stubborn do we have to be? It is easy to sit and judge the disciples for their lack of faith but, in truth, we do the same all the time.