STUMBLING BLOCKS: IDOLATRY AND FORNICATION

Revelation 2:14: “But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to cast a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols and to commit fornication.”

This was part of Jesus’ warning to the Church at Pergamos. It refers to the account in Numbers chapters 22-24. God had brought Israel out of Egypt and they were on their way to Canaan. At this point they were on the border of the land of Moab. Balak was the king of the Moabites at that time and when he saw the great multitude and strength of Israel he feared them. He was allied with the nation of the Midianites and they decided to call upon Balaam, a man known to have divine powers, to curse the Israelites. 

So they sent their messengers to Balaam with their proposal and with a promise of reward if he would come and curse Israel. However, the Lord God talked with Balaam and told him not to go with them. So Balaam refused to go. Balak then sent more and more prominent men with greater promises of reward. At first Balaam refused but asked them to stay overnight saying: “I pray you, tarry ye also here this night, that I may know what the Lord will say unto me more.”

Did he really need more instructions? We see from this that he was tempted and hoping that the Lord would let him go and receive the reward. The Lord did come to him that night and told him to go, but warned him not to say anything but only what He told him to say. Balaam got up the next morning and started out with them, but God was angry with him, knowing that he had a great temptation to get the reward regardless. So God sent His angel to arrest Balaam. Balaam’s donkey saw the angel and would not go past him. After Balaam beat his donkey a few times, the donkey spoke and told him what he saw. 

Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes to see the angel with his sword drawn to slay him, and Balaam repented. But he went on, met Balak and proceeded with the ceremony. However, he found that he could only speak blessings, not curses, and thus brought Balak’s wrath upon himself. So Balaam “went back to his own place.”

But the story doesn’t end there. In Numbers 31:16 we find that Balaam had found another way to get that great reward from Balak. Although Balaam could not curse Israel, through subtlety he told Balak how to cause Israel to bring the curse upon themselves by worshiping idols and committing fornication. Balaam then went to the Midianites and taught their women to seduce the Israelite men to idolatry, and hence to fornication.  

The Midianite women put into practice what Balaam had taught them. Numbers chapter 25 describes the great sin of idolatry and fornication and the resultant wrath of God upon the Israelites. There was a great slaughter and also many deaths from a plague. Moses knew this was an act of war against Israel. He sent the Israelites to war against the Midianites to avenge themselves of their great loss. They slew every man of them, including Balaam, but spared the women. Moses angrily required them to also slay all of the mature women who had caused them to sin, because of the teaching of Balaam, Numbers 31:16.

It is this example that Peter uses to warn the Christians about the unjust: “Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls; an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children. Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness,” 2Peter 2:14-15.

 Jude also refers to this example in verse 11: “Woe unto them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.”

So the message to the Church at Pergamos is a powerful warning against covetousness, greed and idolatry leading to fornication. These are acts of war. 

Romans chapter 14 teaches us about our responsibility not only to carefully follow the Lord personally, but also to consider our brother: “Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way…. It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor anything whereby thy brother stumbleth or is made weak,” 14:13, 21. [Note my emphasis on “anything.”]