Jo’s Place

​ Balaam’s Final Messages This is the message Balaam delivered:  “This is the message of Balaam son of Beor, the message of the man whose eyes see clearly, the message of one who hears the words of God, who has knowledge from the Most High, who sees a vision from the Almighty, who bows down with eyes wide open:  I see Him, but not here and now.  I perceive Him, but far in the distant future.  A Star will rise from Jacob; a Scepter will emerge from Israel.  It will crush the heads of Moab’s people, cracking the skulls of the people of Sheth.  Edom will be taken over, and Seir, its enemy, will be conquered, while Israel marches on in triumph.  A Ruler will rise in Jacob who will destroy the survivors of Ir.”  Then Balaam looked over toward the people of Amalek an delivered this message:  “Amalek was the greatest of nations, but its destiny is destruction!”  Then he looked over toward the Kenites and delivered this message:  “Your home is secure; your nest is set in the rocks.  But the Ke

Balaam’s Third Message Then King Balak said to Balaam, “Come, I will take you to one more place. Perhaps it will please God to let you curse them from there.”  So Balak took Balaam to the top of Mount Peor, overlooking the wasteland.  Balaam again told Balak, “Build me seven altars, and prepare seven young bulls and seven rams for me to sacrifice.”  So Balak did as Balaam ordered and offered a young bull and a ram on each altar.  By now Balaam realized that the Lord was determined to bless Israel, so he did not resort to divination as before.  Instead, he turned and looked out toward the wilderness, where he saw the people of Israel camped, tribe by tribe.  Then the Spirit of God came upon him, and this is the message he delivered: “This is the message of Balaam son of Beor,  the message of the man whose eyes see clearly, the message of one who hears the words of God,  who sees a vision from the Almighty, who bows down with eyes wide open:  How beautiful are your tents, O Jacob; how lo

​ Balaam’s Second Message Then King Balak told Balaam, “Come with me to another place. There you will see another part of the nation of Israel, but not all of them. Curse at least that many!”  So Balak took Balaam to the plateau of Zophim on Pisgah Peak.  He built seven altars there and offered a young bull and a ram on each altar.  Then Balaam said to the king, “Stand here by your burnt offerings while I go over there to meet the Lord.”  And the Lord met Balaam and gave him a message.  Then He said, “Go back to Balak and give him My message.”  So Balaam returned and found the king standing beside his burnt offerings with all the officials of Moab. “What did the Lord say?” Balak asked eagerly.  This was the message Balaam delivered: “Rise up, Balak, and listen!  Hear me, son of Zippor. God is not a man, so He does not lie.  He is not human, so He does not change His mind.  Has He ever spoken and failed to act?  Has He ever promised and not carried it through?  Listen, I received a comm

​ Balaam Blesses Israel Then Balaam said to King Balak, “Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven young bulls and seven rams for me to sacrifice.”  Balak followed his instructions, and the two of them sacrificed a young bull and a ram on each altar.  Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stand here by your burnt offerings, and I will go to see if the Lord will respond to me. Then I will tell you whatever He reveals to me.”  So Balaam went alone to the top of a bare hill, and God met him there.  Balaam said to Him, “I have prepared seven altars and have sacrificed a young bull and a ram on each altar.”  The Lord gave Balaam a message for King Balak.  Then He said, “Go back to Balak and give him My message.”  So Balaam returned and found the king standing beside his burnt offerings with all the officials of Moab.  This was the message Balaam delivered: “Balak summoned me to come from Aram; the king of Moab brought me from the eastern hills.  ‘Come,’ he said, ‘curse Jacob for me! Come and anno

​ Balaam and His Donkey So the next morning Balaam got up, saddled his donkey, and started off with the Moabite officials.  But God was angry that Balaam was going, so he sent the angel of the Lord to stand in the road to block his way.  As Balaam and two servants were riding along, Balaam’s donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand.  The donkey bolted off the road into a field, but Balaam beat it and turned it back onto the road.  Then the angel of the Lord stood at a place where the road narrowed between two vineyard walls.  When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it tried to squeeze by and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall.  So Balaam beat the donkey again.  Then the angel of the Lord moved farther down the road and stood in a place too narrow for the donkey to get by at all.  This time when the donkey saw the angel, it lay down under Balaam.  In a fit of rage Balaam beat the animal again with his staff.  Then the Lord gave the donk

​ Balak Sends for Balaam Then the people of Israel traveled to the plains of Moab and camped east of the Jordan River, across from Jericho.  Balak son of Zippor, the Moabite king, had seen everything the Israelites did to the Amorites.  And when the people of Moab saw how many Israelites there were, they were terrified.  The king of Moab said to the elders of Midian, “This mob will devour everything in sight, like an ox devours grass in the field!”  So Balak, king of Moab, sent messengers to call Balaam son of Beor, who was living in his native land of Pethor near the Euphrates River.  Balak’s message said: “Look, a vast horde of people has arrived from Egypt. They cover the face of the earth and are threatening me.  Please come and curse these people for me because they are too powerful for me.  Then perhaps I will be able to conquer them and drive them from the land.  I know that blessings fall on any people you bless, and curses fall on people you curse.”  Balak’s messengers, who we

The Whole Armor of God A final word (from Paul):  Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.  Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.  For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.  Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil.  Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.  Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.  For (your) shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News,    so that you will be fully prepared.  In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.  Put on salvation as your helmet, and take (up) the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  Pray in the Spirit at all times

​ Respecting People in Authority For the Lord’s sake, submit to all human authority—whether the king, as head of state, or to the officials whom he has appointed.  For the king has sent them to punish those who do wrong and to honor those who do right.  It is God’s will that your honorable lives should silence those ignorant people who make foolish accusations against you.  For you are free, yet you are God’s (servants), so don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil.  Respect everyone, and love the family of believers.  Fear God, and respect the king.    You who are slaves must submit to your masters with all respect.  Do what they tell you—not only if they are kind and reasonable, but even if they are cruel.  For God is pleased when, conscious of His will, you patiently endure unjust treatment.  Of course, you get no credit for being patient if you are beaten for doing wrong.  But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you.  For God called you to

​ Living Stones for God’s House So get rid of all evil behavior.  Be done with all deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech.  Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk, so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation.  Cry out for this nourishment, now that you have had a taste of the Lord’s kindness.  You are coming to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God’s temple.  He was rejected by people, but He was chosen by God for great honor.  And you are living stones that God is building into His spiritual temple. What’s more, you are His holy priests.  Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God.  As the Scriptures say, “I am placing a cornerstone in Jerusalem, chosen for great honor, and anyone who trusts in Him will never be disgraced.”  Yes, you who trust Him recognize the honor God has given Him.  But for those who reject Him, “The stone that the builders rejected  has now become the cornerstone.”  And,

The Vow of the People Then the rest of the people—the priests, Levites, gatekeepers, singers, Temple servants, and all who had separated themselves from the pagan people of the land in order to obey the Law of God, together with their wives, sons, daughters, and all who were old enough to understand—joined their leaders and bound themselves with an oath.  They swore a curse on themselves if they failed to obey the Law of God as issued by His servant Moses.  They solemnly promised to carefully follow all the commands, regulations, and decrees of the Lord our Lord:  (they said) “We promise not to let our daughters marry the pagan people of the land, and not to let our sons marry their daughters.  “We also promise that if the people of the land should bring any merchandise or grain to be sold on the Sabbath or on any other holy day, we will refuse to buy it.  Every seventh year we will let our land rest, and we will cancel all debts owed to us.  “In addition, we promise to obey the comman

The People Confess Their Sins On October 31 the people assembled again, and this time they fasted and dressed in burlap and sprinkled dust on their heads.  Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all foreigners as they confessed their own sins and the sins of their ancestors.  They remained standing in place for three hours while the Book of the Law of the Lord their God was read aloud to them.  Then for three more hours they confessed their sins and worshiped the Lord their God.  The Levites… stood on the stairway of the Levites and cried out to the Lord their God with loud voices.  Then the leaders of the Levites… called out to the people:  “Stand up and praise the Lord your God, for He lives from everlasting to everlasting!”  Then they prayed:  “May your glorious name be praised! May it be exalted above all blessing and praise!  “You alone are the Lord. You made the skies and the heavens and all the stars. You made the earth and the seas and everything in them. You pres