He has not observed iniquity in Jacob, nor has He seen wickedness in Israel. The Lord his God is with him, and the shout of a King is among them. (Numbers 23:21)
This verse – especially the part about having “not observed iniquity” — has interesting implications. From Balaam’s perspective – a man who has looked for a reason to curse Israel – can’t find a reason to do so. As for the Almighty, Israel had not committed a sin that would warrant the removal of His blessing thus allowing Balaam to curse them. That is very interesting considering that they had, in the not so distant past, sinned mightily against God. So we have to conclude that, even though they had sinned and angered God, He would not allow their enemies to curse them nor permit those who would destroy them to observe their faults.
Now think on this as it concerns us. We know that our Adversary is the “accuser of the brethren” and is incessant in his efforts to bring accusations against God’s people. We also know that, even though we are God’s people, we very often do and say things that provide the Adversary the ammunition he needs to bring those accusations. In other words, he doesn’t always have to make up stuff about us — sometimes we provide him with all he needs, Still, if we are the people of God, we know that He will not allow the accusations of our adversary to condemn us — that is, if we have acknowledged those failures and sought forgiveness.
In spite of past failures, we know that our God is with us and that He shields us from the darts and arrows the Adversary hurls at us. Why? Because He loves us in the way a father loves his children. An earthly father may get angry with his children and have need to punish them, but he still wouldn’t let some bully have their way with them. Likewise, our Heavenly Father, though He often has to bring correction, nevertheless, watches over His children to protect them from those who would destroy them. We should never take this for granted but, at the same time, we should never forget it — our God is a good, good Father.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
Recent Comments