the serpents from them. Moses prayed for the people ; and the Lord said to him: "Make a brazen serpent and set it up for a sign; whosoever being struck shall look upon it, shall live." Moses did so, and when they who

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were bitten looked upon it, they were healed. serpent was a figure of our Lord, as He Himself explains: "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever

believeth on him should not perish, but have life everlasting." (John, iii., 14.)

§ 34. The Soothsayer of Ammon prophesies the coming of Christ. Moses had now overcome in battle, the Canaanites, Sehon the king of the Amorrhites, and Og the king of Basan. The Moabites were struck with terror, and had cried out: "Wo unto thee, Moab, thou art undone." Balac the son of Sephor, one of the princes of Moab, hereupon called a council of the Madianite princes, and said to them: "This people Israel will destroy all that dwell in our borders, as the ox is wont to eat grass to the very roots." He then told them of one Balaam, a soothsayer among the children of Ammon, who dealt with a familiar spirit, and proposed that they should send for him to curse the enemy who threatened them. The princes of Madian agreed to this, and a deputation, bearing rich presents, was sent to invite him. Balaam refused to come, returning for answer: "The Lord hath forbid me to come with you." They sent a second time, and Balaam replied: "If Balac would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot alter the word of the Lord my God to speak either more or less. I pray you to stay here this night also, that I may know what the Lord will answer me once more." God came to Balaam in the night, and permitted him to go.

Balaam in the morning saddled his ass, and went with the princes of Madian; but God was angry with him, and sent His angel to stand with a drawn sword in the way. The ass on which he was riding saw the

angel, and turned aside into a field. Balaam beat her. The angel went forward and again stood in his way. The ass this time crushed her rider's foot against the wall, and Balaam beat her again. The angel, how.

ever, going forward the third time to a narrow place, where there was no way to turn aside either to the right hand or the left, stood there to meet him. And

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when the ass saw the angel standing, she fell under the feet of her rider. Balaam beat her sides more vehemently than before with his staff; and the Lord opened the mouth of the ass, and she said: "What have I done to thee? why strikest thou me this third time? Am I not thy beast on which thou hast always been accustomed to ride until this present day? Tell me if I ever did the like thing unto thee?" Balaam said, "Never." Then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way with a drawn sword. Balaam fell to the ground; and the angel said: "Why beatest thou thine ass these three times? I am come to withstand thee,

because thy way is perverse and contrary to me. Unless the ass had turned out of the way I had slain thee, and she should have lived!" Balaam, struck with fear, offered to return, but the angel said: "Go now with these men, and see that thou speak no other thing than I shall command thee."

Balaam went on his way, and Balac received him. Great preparations were made for a solemn sacrifice. as Balaam directed, and the assembled princes on the appointed day were anxiously expecting the curse. But the word of the Lord came to Balaam, and he returned to the princes as they were standing by the sacrifices, and said: "Balac, the king of Moab, hath brought me from Aram, from the mountains of the east. 'Come,' said he,' and curse Jacob; make haste and detest Israel.' How shall I curse whom God hath not cursed? and how shall I detest whom the Lord detesteth not?" Balac in surprise said to Balaam :

"What is this thou dost? I sent for thee to curse mine enemies, and thou contrariwise blessest them." Balac tried a second time, but again Balaam was forced by a power he could not resist to bless Israel, saying: "I was brought to curse, the blessing I am not able to hinder!" Balac tried the third time, and again the third time Balaam broke forth into a prophetic blessing: "How beautiful are thy tabernacles, O Jacob, and thy tents, O Israel! As woody vallies, as watered gardens near the rivers, as tabernacles which the Lord hath planted, as cedars by the water side. A STAR shall arise out of Jacob, and a sceptre shall spring up from Israel." When Balaam had done speaking, he rose up and returned to his place.

§ 35. Balaam's Counsel to Balac, King of Moab, against Israel.

St. John (Apoc., ii., 14) speaks of Balaam having taught Balac to cast a stumbling-block before the children of Israel. God had warned them: "Beware thou never join in friendship with the people of the land, which may be thy ruin, lest some one call thee to eat of the things sacrificed, and thou be enticed to follow strange gods." Balaam taught the king of Moab that he might prevail against Israel, if he could entice them into friendship. This was brought about by the daughters of Moab, who called them to their sacrifices, so that they ate of them and adored their gods. "Thus Israel was initiated to Baal-Phogor." The wrath of the Lord was kindled, and He said to Moses: "Take all the princes of the people and hang them up on gibbets against the sun, that My fury may be turned away