Numbers 24:2

2 When Balaam looked up and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came upon him,

Numbers 24:2 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 24:2

And Balaam lifted up his eyes
Being on Mount Peor:

and he saw Israel abiding in his tents according to their tribes;
in that exact order in which they were directed to encamp under four standards, and so many tribes under each standard, ( Numbers 2:1-34 )

and the Spirit of God came upon him;
not in his grace but in his gifts; not as a spirit of sanctification, but as a spirit of prophecy, as the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan paraphrase it; and so sometimes the Spirit of God in this sense has come upon wicked men, as on Caiaphas and others, ( John 11:51 ) ( Matthew 7:22 Matthew 7:23 ) .

Numbers 24:2 In-Context

1 And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he did not seek omens as on previous occasions, but he turned his face toward the wilderness.

2 When Balaam looked up and saw Israel encamped tribe by tribe, the Spirit of God came upon him,

3 and he lifted up an oracle, saying: “This is the prophecy of Balaam son of Beor, the prophecy of a man whose eyes are open,

4 the prophecy of one who hears the words of God, who sees a vision from the Almighty, who bows down with eyes wide open:

5 How lovely are your tents, O Jacob, your dwellings, O Israel!