A Drash on Parshas Balak
Jul. 22nd, 2019 06:58 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
osewalrus One of the Midrashim about Bilam (often rendered in English as Balaam) goes as follows. "Why did God send prophecy to Bilam? So that the nations would not say: 'You sent prophets to the Children of Israel, so of course they believed in you! Had you sent us profits, we would have believed in you as well."
But Bilam does not behave in any way like a traditional Prophet of God. To the contrary, he is the "anti-Abraham." Whereas Abraham does God's bidding and refuses to take any payment, Bilam sells God's blessings and curses and takes payment and gifts in advance. Abraham rides a donkey (chamor), Bilam rides a female donkey (aton). Abraham sees the Angel of God over Mt Horeb when no one else can. Bilam is blind to the angel until God opens his eyes.
How then can Bilam be a substitute for Abraham, or the other forefathers, or for Moshe?
The answer is because nevuah (prophecy) is not enough to change the character of people. That is the essence of free will. Abraham underwent a process of internal change and sought God of his own accord. Only then did God appear to him. Similarly the other prophets prior to Bilam were spiritually prepared for prophecy when God appeared to them. Bilam, by contrast, was a priest of idolatry. In all ways he was exactly like the people of the surrounding nations in terms of their spiritual willingness to accept God and the Torah. Despite God revealing himself to Bilam, Bilam behaved as if God were simply another powerful deity whose favors could be bought and sold with sacrifices, flattery and material wealth.
In short, giving Bilam prophecy demonstrates the false claim of the nations that had God revealed Himself to them they would have accepted his torah. Prophecy does not compel obedience. Only when one is spiritually prepared to receive God's word can prophecy provide the needed guidance. Unless a person first comes to a desire for spiritual union with God for its own sake, prophecy is incapable of altering one's inner character.
But Bilam does not behave in any way like a traditional Prophet of God. To the contrary, he is the "anti-Abraham." Whereas Abraham does God's bidding and refuses to take any payment, Bilam sells God's blessings and curses and takes payment and gifts in advance. Abraham rides a donkey (chamor), Bilam rides a female donkey (aton). Abraham sees the Angel of God over Mt Horeb when no one else can. Bilam is blind to the angel until God opens his eyes.
How then can Bilam be a substitute for Abraham, or the other forefathers, or for Moshe?
The answer is because nevuah (prophecy) is not enough to change the character of people. That is the essence of free will. Abraham underwent a process of internal change and sought God of his own accord. Only then did God appear to him. Similarly the other prophets prior to Bilam were spiritually prepared for prophecy when God appeared to them. Bilam, by contrast, was a priest of idolatry. In all ways he was exactly like the people of the surrounding nations in terms of their spiritual willingness to accept God and the Torah. Despite God revealing himself to Bilam, Bilam behaved as if God were simply another powerful deity whose favors could be bought and sold with sacrifices, flattery and material wealth.
In short, giving Bilam prophecy demonstrates the false claim of the nations that had God revealed Himself to them they would have accepted his torah. Prophecy does not compel obedience. Only when one is spiritually prepared to receive God's word can prophecy provide the needed guidance. Unless a person first comes to a desire for spiritual union with God for its own sake, prophecy is incapable of altering one's inner character.
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Date: 2019-07-22 05:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2019-07-22 06:58 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2019-07-23 01:53 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2019-07-31 03:26 am (UTC)Was Yonah prepared for prophecy (but rebelled, because as you say, prophecy does not compel), or not yet prepared when God first instructed him to go to Nineveh and needed some enforced contemplation?