John Calvin Commentary Numbers 22:8

"And he said unto them, Lodge here this night, and I will bring you word again, as Jehovah shall speak unto me: and the princes of Moab abode with Balaam." — Numbers 22:8 (ASV)

And he said unto them, Lodge here this night. Since he waits for a revelation from the true God, it is probable that he was not a magician or sorcerer, whose only power to divine arose from superstition or evil arts.

We will, indeed, see later that he was accustomed to use many impostures and deceptions; but it will be plain, from the evidence of facts, that he was given the gift of prophecy.

He is not to be counted among the true prophets whom God set over His Church, because neither was the perpetual office of prophesying conferred upon him, nor was it combined with that of teaching.

For those servants of His, to whom God entrusted the office of prophesying, He so directed by His Spirit that they never spoke except from His mouth. And although they did not foresee all that was to happen, but only according to the measure of their revelation, still He concealed nothing from them which it was profitable for them to know. Hence the expression of Amos,

“Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7).

In a word, they were the organs of the Holy Spirit for all necessary predictions, and the credit due to their prophecies was of a consistent and constant character, so that they never spoke absurdly or in vain.

Besides, they were endowed with the power of adapting their prophecies to a just object and use. Thus, after the Law was proclaimed, they were its interpreters.

In prosperity they bore witness to the grace of God; in adversity, to His judgments. In summary, their business was to ratify God’s covenant, by which He reconciles men to Himself through Christ.

Far different was the case with Balaam and others like him, who were only endowed with a particular gift,¹⁴⁵ so that they truly foretold some things and were mistaken in others; indeed, they only uttered bare revelations without any mixture of doctrine.

God willed, indeed, that such individuals should exist even among Gentile nations, so that some sparks of light might shine among their darkness, and thus the excuse of ignorance would be removed.

Indeed, all those who have dared to delude the world by their deceptions have usurped the name of prophet. Although the word divination is honorable and sacred, it has been improperly applied to the art of deception and the liberty to lie, as it is the custom of the devil to profane God’s name by its impious abuse.

Still, there were some among the Gentiles who occasionally predicted future events by divine inspiration. This was especially the case before the Law was given, since God had not then distinguished His elect people from others by this mark. At that time, it is true, the promise had been given,

“The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee prophets,”¹⁴⁶ and so forth, (Deuteronomy 18:15).

But it was not yet generally known, and therefore God was unwilling that the nations should be deprived of their soothsayers, who still were very different from those true prophets, whose call was clear and legitimate.

I have said this much briefly with reference to Balaam, whom God addresses in a vision by night, or dream, no less familiarly than any of His own servants, but only on a particular point.

By the inquiry, “What men are these with thee?” He indirectly reproves his improper desires.

At first sight, he pretends a holy anxiety to obey, when he dares to attempt nothing without God’s permission and refuses to stir a foot until he has received His answer.

Yet secret covetousness influences him to obtain from God, by bargaining as it were, what he still feels is not right.

God alludes to this astuteness when He inquires about the men, as if to say that there was no reason why he should detain them a moment, since their demand should have been peremptorily refused.

And, assuredly, if he had been free, he would have hastened at once to obey the wishes of King Balak, even contrary to the will of God.

He now requests that permission be given to him, as if he desired to have the reins, which withheld him from his evil purposes, loosened, when he would have willingly shaken them off completely if he were not well aware that he could do nothing beyond what God would permit.

Nor, indeed, does he regard what is lawful and right, but only seeks that his mouth may be opened to curse with impunity.

¹⁴⁵ “Pour predire ceci ou cela;” to predict this or that. — Fr.

¹⁴⁶ A.V. “A Prophet.” See “A Prophet.” See C.’s Comment. Comment. in loco, vol. 1, p. 433..