By Rabbi Dan Lewin
Parashat Balak
Evil, an engineered counterforce to holiness implanted within creation, manifests in many faces. It can appear as a blatant tyrant, a sly reporter feigning innocence, a violent protester pretending to stand for a noble cause, a corrupt medical practitioner, an indoctrinating professor passionately preaching falsehoods to young minds — or even an outwardly spiritual individual. In this week’s Torah portion, evil emerges in the form of a Moabite king and the powerful sorcerer he employs to harm the Jewish nation. Yet, in a remarkable twist, we are reminded that nothing happens without divine permission.
Let’s briefly review the sequence of events. Initially, the leader of Moab refused to let the Jewish people enter his land. But now, the Jewish nation, who had just spectacularly defeated and conquered the adjoining lands of the two mighty Amorite kings, Sichon and Og, are camped just beyond Moab’s border.
The first thing the Moabites did was contact their neighbors in Mid-yan. Although these two nations had previously been enemies, they decided to join forces to fight against Bnai Yisrael — a situation we’ve sadly seen play out in history, which continues to this day. Next, they selected a new leader, a famous prince from Midyan, an accomplished military general and a shrewd politician. Upon assuming the mantle, he was renamed Balak. The commentaries describe Balak as detesting our people more than anyone in history. His primary aim was to find a way to destroy them.
Balak began gathering information about this small but astonishingly successful nation, the children of Israel. He discovered that their power lay not in the sword but primarily in their faith, speech and prayer. Attempting to combat their spiritual strength, Balak contacted a non-Jewish necromancer and prophet from Aram, known as Bilam, who the Torah describes as “the man whose eye is open.” This is interpreted to mean that with the evil eye, he can wreak havoc. His mission was to use his powers to curse the Jewish people.
Bilam finds the best location and gazes upon the Jewish people. But as he stares down at their camps, he is struck by their beauty, modesty and respect for one another’s privacy. As he opens his mouth, his attempted curses suddenly become blessings: “How beautiful are your tents, O Jacob, your dwelling places, O Israel” — a phrase that has become part of our daily prayers.
Frustrated, Bilam plans to return home. But before leaving the site, he begins a series of prophecies about two major figures: King David and the ultimate redeemer, the Mashiach.
Prophecies and faith
The concept of the Mashiach is an integral part of Torah perspective, one of the 13 principles of Jewish faith. Ask someone where it appears in the Chumash, though, and you might get a puzzled look.
Likewise, the qualifications of the Mashiach and the type of changes during the messianic era are foundational yet often misconceived. Historically, the tenets and visions described in our classical texts have been usurped, distorted and reframed so that when the word “messiah” reaches the ears of curious individuals, the images it provokes are loaded with foreign connotations. Revisiting the guidelines according to our tradition is a worthwhile endeavor.
Maimonides, in his book of Jewish law, writes about the end of days, teaching us the basics of what to expect, including: Who is this mysterious redeemer? Must he perform miracles to be recognized? What is his lineage? Should we expect the laws of nature to be altered during the future era? The exposition is surprising for what is usually a dense book of bottom-line instructions. But each sentence has a precise lesson. Since it’s a broad subject with many details, let’s focus on the section relating to our story in Chumash.
In Chapter 11 of The Laws of Kings and Wars, he begins: “In the future, the Messianic king will arise and renew the Davidic dynasty, restoring it to its initial sovereignty. He will build the Temple and gather the dispersed of Israel. Then, in his days, the observance of all the statutes will return to their previous state…. Anyone who does not believe in him or does not await his coming denies not only the statements of the other prophets but those of the Torah and Moses, our teacher.”
As a first step in a lengthy exposition with many detailed guidelines, he cites the biblical sources for famous prophecies. “The Torah testified to his coming, as Deuteronomy 30:3-5 states: God will bring back your captivity and have mercy upon you. He will again gather you from among the nations…. Even if your Diaspora is at the ends of the heavens, God will gather you up from there … and bring you to the land….”
That’s the first biblical source, a general statement that, as he explains, incorporates all the other statements made in the Books of the Prophets.
Truths from the mouth of evil
Were Maimonides only to cite the above verse, one might mistakenly think that the redemption does not involve any specially appointed human being. So he continues by discussing the source in this week’s Torah portion.
“Reference to Mashiach is also made in the portion of Bilam, who prophesies about two future kings of Israel: The first anointed king, David, who saved Israel from her oppressors; and the final anointed king who will arise from his descendants and save Israel in the end of days. That passage in Bamidbar (Numbers) 24:17-18 relates: ‘I see it, but not now’ — this refers to David; ‘I perceive it, but not in the near future; — this refers to the Messianic king; ‘A star shall go forth from Jacob’ — this refers to David; ‘and a staff shall arise in Israel’ — this refers to the Messianic king.” He then goes on to illuminate the verses in the prophets and outline the job description of Mashiach — the specific guidelines to identify who fits the qualifications and who is disqualified.
The episode of this sorcerer-prophet is intriguing, but two immediate related questions arise: Why would an entire portion in the Torah be named after one of our worst enemies, a character whose actions endangered the very existence of the Jewish people? The Talmud, when discussing the general approach to names, states: Parents should be careful never to call their child after an evil person — “for the name of the wicked shall rot” (Proverbs 10:7). Yet every time we come to this section in the yearly Torah cycle, we repeat his name.
A stronger investigation relates to the fact that Bilam, the malevolent spiritual adversary hired to curse the Jewish people, ironically serves as the vehicle for some of the most enormously optimistic prophecies in our tradition, legendary figures who become catalysts for the ultimate redemption — a spectacular time of universal peace and prosperity, when the Jewish people will return to their land, when “evil will be swallowed up,” when awareness and knowledge of G-d will permeate the world and more.
A vision of transformation
One explanation for the chosen title relates not only to highlighting a blocked attempt or deliverance from danger but to remind us about the power of transformation. In this story, the change in fate happened in an unusually clear way. G-d did not simply prevent Bilam from addressing the Jews — by inflicting him with weakness or silencing him — nor did He replace the attempted curses with words of blessing. Instead, as the Talmud explains, Bilam’s praises were composed of the very curses he intended to assert — slightly reworded to render them into blessings.
And that’s also why these specific biblical verses, relating a tale of potential threat and dark forces, serve as the primary vehicle for the prophecy regarding the Messianic redemption: This theme of transformation — of curses into blessings, darkness into light, bitter into sweet — speaks directly to the Jewish dynasty.
The Book of Chronicles explains that the famous grandmother of King David was the convert Ruth. She was the daughter of Eglon, king of Moab, who in turn was the grandson of Balak. This lineage reflects an inherent link between the darkest figure, the greatest opposition to the fulfillment of Jewish destiny and their boldest savior.
Philosophically, this implies that a perfect world demands not only flashes of promise and prosperity but also a world with complete protection from danger, where the enemy eventually becomes the aid. To be sure, it may take battles to reach this stage. But this week’s intense episode, a rare and sudden switch, visually plants the seeds of future times.
The idea of transformation also underscores the role of the “star” in Bilam’s prophecy. The symbolism of a star is a light shining in the backdrop of darkness. Stars come in all sizes. King David is that giant leader who began the process — waged the battles, secured the land, drew up the plans for the Temple and set the tone for the future. The accomplishment of the final redeemer completes the transformation.
Mystical sources teach that everyone has a spark of Mashiach inside, that messianic force within the soul that is revealed at a certain hour to enable them to shine, to be “a big star.” So, on an individual level, the role of “a star” is to change his or her environment by setting an example until hindrances and darkness are changed into blessings.
Rabbi Dan Lewin is director of the nonprofit Maayan Chai Foundation. For information, visit www.maayan-chai.org.