Saith he, hearing the words of God, Beholding the vision of the Almighty: he beholdeth -falling down - and

with open eyes! How good are thy tabernacles, Jacob, Thy dwellings, O Israel -Like (watered) valleys they

stretch, like gardens by a river, Like aloes Jehovah planted, like cedars by the waters.32

Flow waters from his twin buckets - and his seed by many waters, Higher than Agag33 shall be his king -

and his kingdom be exalted. God brings him from Egypt - his the unwearied strength of the buffalo -He shall

eat the nations (Gentiles) his enemies - and their bones shall he gnaw - and his arrows shall he split.34 He

coucheth, lieth down like a lion and like a lioness - who shall rouse him? Blessed he that blesseth thee, and

cursed he that curseth thee!

We can scarcely wonder that the bitter disappointment of Balak should now have broken forth in angry

reproaches. But Balaam had not yet finished his task. Before leaving the king he must deliver another part of

the message, which he had already received from Jehovah,35 but not yet spoken.

"Come, I will advise thee what this people shall do to thy people in the latter days" (24:14).

PROPHETIC MESSAGE THROUGH BALAAM IN FOUR "PARABLES"

First "parable," d escriptive first of the "latter days," and then referring to Moab, as the representative of

Saith Balaam, the son of Beor, and saith the man with closed eye, Saith he, hearing the words of God, and

knowing the knowledge of the Most High, Beholding the vision of the Almighty: he beholdeth - falling

down - and with open eyes: I behold Him, but not now - I descry Him, but not nigh! Cometh36 a Star from

Jacob, and rises a Sceptre from Israel, And dasheth the two sides of Moab, and overthroweth the sons of

And Edom shall be a possession, and a possession shall be Seir38 - his enemies  39 -And Israel is doing

mighty things! 40 And shall come from Jacob (a ruler) And shall destroy what remaineth out of the cities.

Second "parable" against Amalek - as the representative of heathenism in its first contest against Israel:

And he beheld Amalek, and he took up his parable, and said: First of the Gentiles Amalek - and his latter end

even unto destruction.

Third "parable" in favor of the Kenites as the friends and allies of Israel:

And he beheld the Kenites, and he took up his parable, and said: Durable thy dwelling-place, and placed on

the rock thy nest. For shall Kajin be for destruction, Until Assbur shall lead thee away?

Fourth "parable" concerning the Assyrian empire, and the kingdoms of this world, or prophecy of "the

end," appropriately beginning with a "woe:"

And he took up his parable, and said:41 Woe! who shall live when God putteth this? 42 And ships from the

side of Chittim - and afflict Asshur, and afflict Eber -And he also unto destruction!

This latter may, indeed, be characterized as the most wonderful of prophecies. More than a thousand years

before the event, not only the rising of the great world -empire of the West is here predicted, with its

conquest of Asshur and Eber (i.e, of the descendants of Eber) (Genesis 10:21), but far beyond this the final

destruction of that world -empire is foretold! In fact, we have here a series of prophecies, commencing with

the appearance of the Messiah and closing with the destruction of Anti-Christ. To this there is no parallel in

Scripture, except in the visions of Daniel. No ingenuity of hostile criticism can take from, or explain away the

import of this marvelous prediction.