John Calvin Commentary Numbers 24:12

"And Balaam said unto Balak, Spake I not also to thy messengers that thou sentest unto me, saying," — Numbers 24:12 (ASV)

And Balaam said to Balak. Balaam speaks the truth, indeed, yet in a bad spirit, as we have seen: for he excuses himself with servility¹⁷¹ to Balak, explaining that it did not depend on himself whether he complied with his wishes, but that God had stood in the way. For he grieves at the loss of his reward; and however grandly he may declaim on the supremacy of God, he still signifies that he has acted more from compulsion than willingly executed what was commanded him.

By “the word (sermonem) of Jehovah,”¹⁷² he means not only His decree, but also what had been dictated to him, which he would still have greatly desired to alter. He indicates that he was bound by the power of the Spirit to declare, even against his own will, whatever revelation he received.

Thus, the word “do” refers to his tongue, or his charge as a prophet, since he had not been hired by Balak to perform any manual act, but only to injure the people by his words. The word “heart”¹⁷³ is contrasted with the revelation of the Spirit, for impostors are said to speak from their own heart when they falsely use God’s name to cover their own inventions. He, therefore, declares that he was not at liberty to speak “of his own heart,” because he was the minister of the Spirit.

¹⁷¹ “II fait le chien couchant.” — Fr..

¹⁷² “The commandment of the Lord.” — A. V.

¹⁷³ “Of mine own mind.” — A. V.