. . . now it shall be said of Jacob and Israel,
‘What has God wrought!’Behold, a people!
From Numbers 24:23-24
These are the words of the prophet Balaam, when he refused to curse Israel at the request of Balak, king of Moab.
Behold, a people!
That’s what Balaam saw; this was . . .
The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor,
the oracle of the man whose eye is opened,
the oracle of him who hears the words of God,
who sees the vision of the Almighty,
falling down with his eyes uncovered . . . – Numbers 24:3-4
He saw a people, created by God, blessed by God, and ultimately to be used for God’s purposes and glory. And he couldn’t curse that people, no matter how easy it would have been to appease Balak by cursing them.
How can you curse the people God has blessed?
““They shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, in the day when I make up my treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him.” – Malachi 3:17
“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” – 1 Peter 2:9