. . . ¹⁵ [False prophets] forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; ¹⁶but he received a rebuke for his own transgression, for a mute donkey, speaking with a voice of a man, restrained the madness of the prophet.

The space given to this denunciation of false teaching conveys the importance of truth. Right teaching is worth fighting for! We are not talking about wrestling with the so-called gray areas where Christians differ on how to apply the Scripture. There is a level of false teaching that hits at foundational truths, and these must be combated with all of our strength because they undermine Christian living. This is not just about dry, academic “doctrine.” This is about truth, and as we have said before, truth matters.

Peter invokes the story of the prophet Balaam recorded in Numbers 22. The books of Nehemiah, Jude, and John use this story to convey the seriousness of false prophecies and teaching among God’s people (Neh. 13:2, Jude 11, Rev. 2:14). Moses also reflected on the story when he was preparing the Israelites for entry into the Promised Land (Deut. 23:4). On the east side of the Jordan River, the king of Moab recognized Balaam as a prophet and requested that he curse Israel, whom the Moabites feared would overrun their land. But God told Balaam to refuse the request. Against promises of bribery, he continued to deny the request, ostensibly out of obedience to God. Finally, God instructed Balaam to go to the king of Moab. On the way, we read of the donkey incident. God became very angry with Balaam and appropriately and picturesquely used a talking donkey to make His point to Balaam.

On the surface, Balaam was obeying God, so why does Peter describe him in such harsh terms? In the story, God rebukes Balaam, not for going but for his attitude in going. Yes, Balaam was right in going to the king of Moab, but he was wrong in his motivation. The story of the donkey rebuking Balaam takes forty-one verses, which should tell us something of its importance.

Speaking through the donkey, the angel said, “Go with the men, but you shall speak only the word which I tell you” (Num. 22:35). That was the issue. Anyone speaking on behalf of God as a prophet must convey only the message received from God, nothing more! That is the point Peter makes about the false prophets he is addressing. They are not speaking the words of God but of man. Whatever obedience they may have exhibited is neutralized by their inner wickedness. Over time, false teachers migrate to spiritual insanity, where they become blind to how ludicrous and illogical their teaching has become.

Lord, help me not to hide greed behind an outward façade of obedience.