Balak (meaning devastator), the king of Moab was sorely afraid of the Israelites when he heard about the destruction they had caused to the Amorites. He called for Balaam who was an occultist and pleaded with him to curse the people of Israel, alluring him with promises of great reward.

Balaam was not a prophet of God. But he was a powerful man among the people, and they believed that whoever he blessed was blessed and whoever he cursed was cursed. But God spoke to him and spoke through him. He put words in his mouth. (God did a similar thing late in His-story with Caiaphas, the chief priest). He used him as His instrument to further His purpose. But this was after a long drama.

God told Balaam Thou shalt not go with them; thou shalt not curse the people: for they are blessed. Num 22:12. Plain talk indeed! But Balaam was hell-bent (!) on amassing worldly wealth and honor that Balak promised as his wages. Balaam loved the wages of unrighteousness – 2 Pet 2:15. He seemingly hesitated the first time after a warning by the Lord. But when additional promises were made of promotion to great honor and submission to whatever he said, the covetous Balaam was permitted by God to set out on his ass the very next morning.

Balaam wished to be in the good books of Balak as well as God. But God would not be fooled as would a man be. When God read his evil intentions, He let him go. After all, God was in control of everything including the mouth of the man and the mouth of his animal as well. Balaam had degraded himself to such a base level that the ass spoke to Balaam! But Balaam was not the type who would return to his senses. He continued his journey.

Balak took him to a spot where he could have a view of the Israelite camp. And the LORD put a word in Balaam's mouth – Num 23:5. God was using Balaam as His instrument. Balaam pronounced blessings on God’s people. Twice more Balak took Balaam to two other spots from which the diviner could have a good view of the camp. Again, and again, Balaam pronounced blessings to the Israelites. God had promised their return to Abraham, but their continual possession of the land was conditional.

After pronouncing blessings over Israel as was put in his mouth by the Lord, Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way. – Num 24:25. But Satan did not! He made Balaam work overtime to think! Did not God mention long before that Every imagination of the thoughts of his (man’s) heart was only evil continually. – Gen 6:5?

Balaam was not a man to let go of his opportunity to amass wealth by dubious means. He knew a curse would come upon the people of God if they disobeyed Him and committed sin. He advised Balak to cast a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication – Rev 2:14. He said, “Let the young women of Moab (who were idolaters) entice the young men of Israel and lure them to eat of the food sacrificed to demons and commit sexual immorality with them”.

Balak did exactly as advised. The result was as expected. People began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab. And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat and bowed down to their gods. And Israel joined himself unto Baalpeor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel. – Num 25:1-3. The Lord sent a plague among the people and prompted Moses to instruct the tribal elders to slay all those who fell into the grievous sin. Satan should have patted himself on his back over the events that seemingly turned out in his favor. How he wished the lineage of Seed of the woman be among perishing!

The eater of food sacrificed to idols (Prasadam) is joined to the idol itself. That is the reason why even non-Jewish believers were instructed to abstain from polluted food sacrificed to idols, from fornication, from things strangled, and from blood. Behind every idol is a demon. Paul warns: But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils. – 1 Cor 10:20. And idol worship, most of the time, also is accompanied by fornication. In religions around the world, young women and girl children were (and still are!) offered to idols and forced to live in temples to satisfy the sensual lusts of the priests and the devotees in the name of God (servants of god or devadasis in India). The tradition made inroads into the Roman Catholic religion where young women were confined in convents to feed to the sensuality of the abbots, though not all. Read “Amen: the autobiography of a nun” by Sister Jesme – originally in Malayalam “Oru kanyaasthreeyude Aatmakadhaa”. Alarmingly, it is alleged that a leading Pentecostal Mission in India and Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) that advocates celibacy for its “elders” and “handmaidens” also has such stories to conceal.

But the Lord had a man in His plan and for His Purpose, who was zealous for His sake. Phinehas, Aaron’s grandson openly slew an Israelite man and a Moabite woman who were committing the sin amidst the plague that was spreading rapidly. Phinehas’s zeal stayed the plague. Twenty-four thousand Israelites died. And the line of the Seed of the woman was not one of them!

Some of the quotable quotes were spoken by the Lord through Balaam. About Himself: God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: hath He said, and shall He not do it? or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good? – Num 23:19. Was Satan listening? About Israel: Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel. – Num 23:23. About the Seed of the woman and the Son of God: There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth – Num 24:17.

The dragon had failed again to curb the propagation of the line of believers in which the Seed of the woman was due. But he was not one who would sit defeated, even now!

Amalek was one of the dukes that descended from Edom / Esau. He was the seed of the serpent that Satan would instigate to come against the spiritual Israel and destroy the believing line, later in His-story.