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Numbers 24:17, “I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; A Star shall

                           come out of Jacob; a Scepter shall rise out of Israel, and batter the 

                           brow of Moab, and destroy all the sons of tumult.”

                             

(The fifth post in a series showing prophecies about the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ.)

As a youngster, I tried to find the Big Dipper and other astrological “pictures” in the sky.  I was never very good at finding them.  Explorers would use the stars to find direction as they traveled.  When lost, finding the North Star would help them to find their way.  So, the stars were sort of a lamp post for them. It is pretty obvious that the heavenly bodies have held great fascination for observers since their creation.

This prophecy comes from an unexpected prophet – Balaam.  I looked at several commentaries to see what they would say about the Star mentioned in Numbers 24:17. Several suggestions to the meaning of this verse were given. Perhaps the Star referred to both David (when he defeated Moab) and to the Messiah (when He defeated sin and death).  Of course, the Star might be referring to the Star that the wisemen from the East followed to find King of the Jews in order to worship Him.  Both of these thoughts would fit as we consider the relationship of the Star to the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Matthew 2:1-2 show the fulfillment to this prophecy.  “Now after Jesus was born in Jerusalem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold wisemen from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?  For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

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