What is the meaning of Numbers 23:22? God • The subject of the sentence is God Himself—no lesser agent, no impersonal force. “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt” (Exodus 20:2). • His personal involvement highlights relationship: He is the covenant-maker who keeps His word to Abraham (Genesis 15:13-14; Exodus 2:24). • The oracles of Balaam underscore that Israel’s security rests in the unchanging character of the LORD (Numbers 23:19; Psalm 100:3). Brought them out • “Brought” signals completed rescue. On the very night of the first Passover “the LORD brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt by their divisions” (Exodus 12:51). • It was not a mutual escape plan but a divine extraction—“with a mighty hand” (Deuteronomy 26:8) that left Pharaoh powerless. • New-covenant believers see the same pattern in Christ’s finished deliverance (Colossians 1:13; Jude 1:5), reinforcing confidence that salvation is entirely God’s doing. Of Egypt • Egypt represents oppression and idolatry (Exodus 1:13-14; Deuteronomy 4:20). God’s act severed Israel from that old dominion. • Hosea 11:1 recalls, “Out of Egypt I called My son,” showing God’s fatherly claim on His people and foreshadowing Messiah’s own exodus (Matthew 2:15). • Remembering the place of bondage fuels gratitude and obedience (Deuteronomy 8:11-14; 1 Corinthians 10:1-6). With strength • The rescue was not subtle diplomacy but open display of power—plagues, parted sea, pillar of fire (Exodus 14:31). • Scripture ties this “strength” to God’s “outstretched arm” (Deuteronomy 4:34) and assures the weary that the same arm still upholds them (Isaiah 40:29-31; Jeremiah 32:17). • His might continues to guard His people against every curse Balaam or anyone else might attempt (Numbers 23:23; Romans 8:31). Like a wild ox • The simile pictures untamable vigor and unstoppable force. A wild ox lowers its horns and no predator stands in its way (Job 39:9-12). • Moses later applies the image to Joseph, whose “horns are the horns of a wild ox” that gore the nations (Deuteronomy 33:17), reinforcing covenant blessing and victory. • Psalm 92:10 echoes the promise: “You have exalted my horn like that of a wild ox,” linking God’s people to His own invincible power. summary Numbers 23:22 celebrates God as the active, personal Deliverer who decisively removed Israel from slavery, exercising incomparable might pictured by the wild ox. The verse assures every generation that the LORD who once shattered Egypt’s grip still wields the same unstoppable strength for His people today. |
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