Numbers 22:5Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

He enticed Balaam from Mesopotamia, who was a deceiver and a trapper.

He engaged in his dealings not by relying on weapons or physical might, but through futile sorcery, exemplified by Balaam, who was regarded as skilled in such arts. Those who sought his assistance believed he possessed some sort of influence in these matters. He had knowledge of divination, which he wielded with great malevolence; together with demonic forces, he inflicted upon individuals clever yet unhealing afflictions.

When Balak conspired against us through what is meant by 'his vain people,' referring to Balaam, God did not permit us to fall under his curses. Instead, He blessed us. It is the empty Gentile community, descended from the one who is of the flesh, that bestowed blessings upon us, inspired by the intrinsic truth of the act itself. For Beor signifies one who is wrapped in flesh, perpetually committed to the realm of mortality and the deeds that lead to death.

Balaam was renowned for his expertise in the occult and was skilled in incantations that brought curses, possessing no talent for words of blessing but rather for those that invoked malice, for it is the nature of demons to be summoned by curses rather than blessings. Thus, due to his proficiency in these dark arts, he was recognized by all who lived in the East. If his formidable reputation had not been established—specifically that he could dismantle a foe with mere words, something swords and weapons struggled to achieve—Balak would not have thought it possible to accomplish through speech what was barely feasible with force.