How Goodly Are Thy Tents!

 

“How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel!”-Numbers 24:5

Balaam the seer, found in the Numbers twenty-two through twenty-four is a unusual man of God.  If nothing else, he is another example of how God uses fallible men to accomplish His infallible purpose. 

Balaam’s words of blessing and fortune must have been know of men, because he was highly sought after by King Balak of Moab.  When the nation of Israel came and encamped against him, he propositioned Balaam to come and curse the people of Israel.  Curse the people of God.  Three times Balaam sought the Lord, and three times the Lord responded.  Balaam summing up the Lord’s commandments quite well in saying “how can I curse whom God hath not cursed.”  The story is full of lessons, but what struck me this week is that the words from Balaam the third and final time he heard from God.  Balak wanted Balaam to see the people of Isarel, so he took him up on a mount where Balaam could get a good view of their camp.  I guess to make certain that he knew who and what he was to curse.  Yet Balaam in a vision of God saw them and much more.  He responded with “How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles O Israel!” How significate, sizable, attractive, and excellent; are the tents and tabernacles of Israel!  Through the vison of God, looking on at the Israelites he saw the power of God, the order, might, and vast expanse of the Lord.  Not only who they are but who they would be.  He saw the star of Jacob and the Scepter of Israel.  The promise of Abraham.  He saw the tabernacle of worship, the altar, the court, the priest, and their sacrifices.  He saw the plan of salvation.  He saw Christ. 

It has been said that the way God instructed the people of Israel to camp, from above forms the shape of a cross.  From the mount, he would have seen such a layout, and seen the magnificent vision of Christ.  It could be so, but certainly whatever he saw, he saw the purpose of it and resolved as we should by testifying: “Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his!”