Balak
Balak son of Zippor ( ''Bālāq'') was a king of Moab described in the Book of Numbers in the Hebrew Bible, where his dealings with the prophet and sorcerer Balaam are recounted. Balak tried to engage Balaam the son of Beor for the purpose of cursing the migrating Israelite community. On his journey to meet the princes of Moab, Balaam is stopped by an angel of the Lord after beating his female donkey. The Lord then "opened the mouth of the donkey" to tell him there was an angel with a drawn sword facing him. He tells the angel he will return home: "I have sinned, for I did not know that you stood against me on the road". The angel instructs Balaam to attend the meeting with the princes of Moab but to "say only what I tell you". According to Numbers 22:2, and Joshua 24:9, Balak was the son of Zippor.In the preceding chapter of Numbers, the Israelites, seeking the Promised Land following their Exodus from Egypt, had defeated the Canaanites at a place named Hormah, as well as the Amorites and the people of Bashan, and next approached Moab. The biblical narrative stresses the fears of the people of Moab, who were 'exceedingly afraid' and 'sick with dread' (NKJV) or 'terrified' (GNT). Their fears appear to relate to the size of the Israelite population and the consequent resource depletion which could be expected if they were permitted to occupy Moabite land.
Balak initially conferred with his Midianite allies in order to block Israelite settlement, before sending his elders (along with Midianite elders) to seek Balaam's curse on them. The Midianites appear to have been co-located with the Moabites - according to the Targum of Jonathan, they were one alliance of people at this time and therefore had a common interest in preventing Israelite settlement of the area.
After his mission with Balaam to curse Israelites failed, Balak decided to ally with Midianites to gather their women in order to lead Israelites men astray in adultery.
Sources detailing the story of Balak:
* * - This is the only time in the Bible that Balak is not mentioned in direct conjunction with Balaam. *
According to the Pulpit Commentary, Balak seems to be mentioned by name on a papyrus in the British Museum; Gardiner and Caminos, however, transcribe and translate this name as ''Baꜥalry''. In 2019, Israel Finkelstein, Nadav Na'aman and Thomas Römer proposed the common reading of "House of David" in the Mesha Stele is actually "Balak". Provided by Wikipedia
-
1by Balak
Published 2024
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
2by Balak
Published 2024
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
3by Balak
Published 2024
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
4
-
5
-
6by Balak, Balak, Balak, Balak, Balak, Sanlaville, Michaël, Sanlaville, Michaël, Sanlaville, Michaël, Vivès, Bastien, Vivès, Bastien, Vivès, Bastien
Published 2015
Book -
7by Balák, Ivan
Published 2020
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
8by Balak, Benjamin
Published 2006
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
9by Balák, Ivan
Published 2020
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
10by Balák, Ivan
Published 2020
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
11
-
12by Balak, Benjamin
Published 2006
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
13by Balaḱ, Tanja
Published 2021
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
14by Balák, Karel
Published 1928
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
15by Balák, Karel
Published 1929
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
16by Balak, F
Published 2001
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
17by Balak, Michael
Published 2008
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
18by Balák, Karel
Published 1929
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book -
19
-
20by Balák, František
Published 2006
This item is not available through BorrowDirect. Please contact your institution’s interlibrary loan office for further assistance.Book