What Do You See? Balaam, Balak, and the Battle for Perception

On the surface, the story of Balaam and Balak in Numbers 23–24 reads like an ancient tale of kings, curses, and blessings.  But, beneath the surface lies a powerful spiritual lesson about identity, perception, and the unshakable nature of God's word.

Balak, king of Moab, hires Balaam—a prophet with a reputation—to curse the Israelites. Balak assumes that with the right words and the right ritual, he can manipulate the spiritual realm. But from the beginning, God makes it clear: “You shall not curse the people, for they are blessed” (Numbers 22:12).

Trying to Manipulate God

Despite God's clear directive, Balaam proceeds—tempted by prestige, reward, and the power of influence. What's astonishing is God's patience. He allows Balaam to go with the Moabite officials, instructing him to speak only what He permits. This moment reveals a deeper truth: We can’t manipulate God. We can delay obedience. We can try to rationalize or bargain. But God’s purposes stand firm.

Balak repeatedly changes the location of the altars—hoping that if Balaam sees the Israelites from a different vantage point, maybe he’ll change his declaration. What Balak is trying to do is what the enemy still tries today: shift your perspective in order to alter your perception.

Hearing vs. Seeing

What Balak doesn’t realize is that Balaam's perception isn’t rooted in what he sees—it’s rooted in what he has heard.

“God is not a man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind.” (Numbers 23:19)

This is where Balaam, for all his faults, gets it right. Despite being an ungodly man, he hears accurately. And in this instance, he chooses to see through the lens of the word he heard from God rather than the vantage points Balak offers him.

This is the same battle that played out in Eden. The serpent didn’t need a new doctrine—he just needed Eve to question God’s word: “Did God really say…?” It’s the same with Jesus in the wilderness. Satan takes Jesus to three different places, trying to change His perspective so He’ll deny His identity.

Turn stones to bread...

Throw yourself down...

Bow to me and gain the kingdoms...

Every temptation was aimed at distorting Jesus' perception to get Him to act outside of who He was.

Stand in Your Identity

The enemy doesn’t need to overpower you—he just needs you to doubt who you are. He needs you to shift your perspective so your perception becomes clouded. If you forget that you are a child of God, a joint-heir with Christ, a temple of the Holy Spirit, you’ll begin to act like someone you’re not.

But when we see ourselves through what God has said—not what we feel or what others say—we stand in victory. Like Balaam, we choose to see according to what we've heard from Heaven, not what the world shows us from shifting vantage points.

Final Thought

Balak kept hoping that a new perspective would lead to a different declaration. But Balaam understood: God had already spoken. The question is not, “What do you see?” but “What has God said?”

In a world full of noise, shifting opinions, and manipulated perspectives, may we be a people who see through the lens of God’s Word and stand firm in the identity He has declared over us.

You are blessed. You are chosen. You are His.

Stand in it. Speak it. See yourself rightly.