Numbers 23 Devotional

No Change of Mind

“God is not a man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Does He speak and not act? Does He promise and not fulfill?”Numbers 23:19 (BSB)

Balak builds altars and offers sacrifices (23:1-2). When Balaam comes back with a blessing instead of a curse, Balak takes him to another hilltop where he will see only part of the camp, as if a different angle might change the outcome (23:13). Both times the LORD puts his word in Balaam's mouth (23:5, 16).

At the center of the second oracle stands a statement about God's character. He does not lie the way people do, and he does not reverse himself; his words and his actions always match (23:19). Balaam cannot reverse a blessing God has given (23:20). Remember who Israel is at this point: a people who had spoken against God only a short time before (21:5). Their blessing rests on God's word, not on their record. Paul writes of the hope of eternal life promised by God, who never lies (Titus 1:2). What God has spoken to his people in Christ will not be moved by any hilltop, sacrifice, or curse, so you can rest on it.

To think about: Which of God's promises do you treat as if it might change, and what would it mean to rest on it today?