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escape the king's anger; Job withheld an opinion and was punished afterward by a life of suffering; Balaam advised Pharaoh to drown all the Hebrew babes. Again, when the child Moses had taken the crown from the king's head and put it on his own, thus recalling to Pharaoh his dream foreboding evil to the kingdom, Balaam advised Pharaoh to slay Moses.

When

Pharaoh's daughter threatened to take the of Balaam, he fled with his two sons, Jannes and Jambres, the renowned wizards, to Ethiopia; there, during the absence of the king, who had gone to war against the people of Syria, he instigated a rebellion, making himself king, and his sons captains of the host. He raised high walls on two sides of the capital, dug pits on the third side, filling them with water, and on the fourth side, by means of witchcraft, placed serpents to render the city unap-

life

proachable.

For nine years the king's army

be-

sieged the capital, unable to enter;

Balaam then Moses on his flight from Egypt and Moses, came there and became the king's counselor and, as the king's death soon followed, his successor. He required each warrior to fetch young storks (or ibises) from the forest, and soon the serpents disappeared and the city was cap-

Balaam and his sons fled to Egypt, where they became the master-magicians who opposed Moses and Aaron at the court of Pharaoh (Targ. tured.

Yer.

Balaam

THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

to Ex.

vii.

xlvii. 6, 7; Yalk.,

11;

"Chronicles of Jerahmeel,"

Ex.

168).

When Balaam went forth

later to curse the Israelthe wilderness, he again had with him his sons Jannes and Jambres (Targ. Yer. to Num. xxii. His witchcraft had no effect on Israel, because 22). the merits of their ancestors shielded them and angels protected them (Tan., ed. Buber, Balak, xvii., xxiii. Targ. Yer. to Num. xxiii. 9, 10, 23 Samaritan Book of Joshua, ch. iii.). He then resorted to the strategem of seduction. After having, by divine inspiration, predicted the destiny of the people of Israel, and having spoken even of the Messianic future (Josephus, "Ant." iv. 6, g§4, 5; Philo, I.e. 52), he advised Balak to select the handThe somest daughters of the Midianites, Strategy who should lead the Israelites to idolof Balaam, atry (Josephus, I.e., §§ 6-9; Philo, I.e. 54-56 Samaritan Book of Joshua, iv.). This plan was executed, and 24,000 Midianite women caused as many Hebrew men to fall (Targ. Yer. to Num. xxiv. 25; Samaritan Book of Joshua, iv.). Phinehas decided to avenge the wrong upon Balaam. Seeing his pursuer, the latter resorted to witchcraft and flew up into the air but Phinehas made use of the Holy Name, seized him by the head, and unsheathed his sword to slay him. In vain did Balaam entreat his conqueror, saying " Spare me and Phinehas anI will no longer curse thy people. " swered, "Thou, Laban the Aramean, didst intend to ites in





Balak

Henceforth he became the type of false prophets seducing men to lewdness and obscene idolatrous practises (Rev. ii. 14; II Peter ii. 15; Jude 11; Abot v. 19). The name " Nicolaitanes, " given to the Christian heretics " holding the doctrine of Balaam " (Rev. ii. 6, 15), is probably derived from the Grecized form of Balaam, DJ??3 = Nj/co-Aaof, and hence also the pseudonym "Balaam," given to Jesus in Sanh. 1066 and Git. 57a. See article Nicolaitanes, and Geiger, "Bileam and Jesus," in "Wiss. Zeit. Jild. Theol." vi.

31-37).

The

life of this sorcerer was further detailed in the Sefer ha-Yashar " legends and by the later cabalists (Yalk. Reubeni to Balak). Balaam's ass formed an especial object of haggadic interpretation and

"

,

" " The speaking mouth of the embellishment. ass was declared to be one of the ten miraculous things that God had created in the twilight of the sixth day (Abot v. 6). Targ. Yer. to Num. xxii. 30 gives a long monition which the ass offers to her foolish master.

Bibliography



Hamburger, B. B.

T.

i. s.t>.

sn.

.1.

K.

BALADAN. See Berodach-baladan. BALAK.— Biblical Data According to

Num.

Balak was king of Moab when the Israelites emerged from their wanderings in the wilderness to the conquest of the East Jordanic land. Alarmed by the victories and numbers of the invaders, he summoned the prophet Balaam, who lived on the banks of the Euphrates, to curse them, believing, like most of the ancients, in the potency of xxii. -xxiv.,

a curse to work evil upon those against whom it was pronounced. In his zeal Balak offered rich sacrifices in order to place the Deity under obligations to grant his heart's desire but he met with disappointment, for the prophet, acting under the directions of Yhwh, uttered blessings instead of curses upon his foes, the Israelites, and predicted for them

victories

and

glories.

JR.

J.

C. P.

K.

,







and thou didst invite Amalek to make war against us; and now, when thy wiles and sorceries were of no avail, thou didst lay pitfalls Thy for 24,000 Hebrews by thy wicked counsel. Whereupon Balaam fell, pierced life is forfeited." by the sword (Targ. Yer. to Num. xxxi. 8; Sanh. kill

Jacob our

106J).

father,

In Rabbinical Literature

Balaam prophesied that his fellow-countryman Balak would one day be king. Balak was the son, not of a king, but of an unimportant prince, and was for some time a

vassal of Sihon, king of the Amorites. When Sihon Balak became his successor, and, seeing the

died,

prophecy of Balaam Balak was himself a

fulfilled,

he sent for the

latter.

and knew that Israel, but did not

skilful sorcerer

a great calamity was to befall know how he could be instrumental in bringing it about, so he desired the assistance of Balaam. His fear of Israel was chiefly due to the fact that the Israelites were at peace with Ammon, while Moab, his own kingdom, suffered from their arrogance, though God had forbidden them to wage actual war Balak knew human nature well, and, against it.

aware of Balaam's greed, promised him wealth and honor in return for his assistance. But, after the latter came, Balak showed himself a niggard. "The pious," says the Midrash, "promise little, but do much; Abraham invited the angels to a bite The godless of bread and entertained them royally. promise much and do little, as is shown by the example of Balak" (Num. R. xx. 2, 3, 17; Tan., ed.