Day 71 - And so was the Fate of Balaam...

Today's Reading: Num. 30-31 and Acts 23

In Numbers 31 we find Balaam's fateful end...

This is the same Balaam who once stood on a mountain overlooking Israel and spoke out blessings, for he could not speak anything other than what God told him. However, later on, recognizing that his end might be near, he even cried out to God, "Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!" But as Ellen White writes, he had not lived the life of the righteous, and his destiny was fixed with the enemies of God. She goes on to make the following interesting parallels.

"The fate of Balaam was similar to that of Judas. Both men tried to unite the service of God and mammon, and met with signal failure. Salaam acknowledged the true God; Judas believed in Jesus. Salaam hoped to make the service of Jehovah the stepping stone to the acquirement of riches and worldly honor; Judas expected by his connection with Christ to secure wealth and promotion in that worldly kingdom which he believed the Messiah was about to set up. Both Balaam and Judas received great light, but a single cherished sin poisoned the entire character and caused their destruction. 

One cherished sin will, little by little, debase the character. The indulgence of one evil habit breaks down the defenses of the soul and opens the way for Satan to lead us astray. The only safe course is to pray, as did David, “Hold up my goings in Thy paths, that my footsteps slip not.” Psalm 17:5. (From Eternity Past, p. 319)

Solemn lessons from the life of Balaam.... However, on the other side of things, if God be for us, who can be against us. As Israel was counting the men of war again, after the battle with the Midianites, they found that not ONE MAN was missing (Num. 31:49). Not one man had been lost in the battle! God surely knows how to take care of His own.

Tomorrow's Reading: Num. 32-33 and Acts 24