“They have forsaken the right way and gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness.”
False teachers are predatory (vv. 15,16). Peter gives Baalam as an illustration of someone who used religion for his own greed. He was a prototype of a religious predator.
They have forsaken the right way
These false teachers knew the “right [straight] way,” but they rejected truth right in the face of it by their own volition. They were at the point of truth, but they left it behind. They abandoned it with finality. They abandoned what they knew to be true.
and gone astray
The words “gone astray” come from one Greek word meaning deceive by leading into error, to seduce (Mark 24:4,5,11,24). False teachers love to twist the truth. They make what is false seem like truth.
following the way of Balaam the son of Beor
Balaam’s error was to make merchandise of spiritual gifts. He sold his spiritual services for money. He held out for more money and got it. The story of Balaam is found in Numbers 22-24 and 31. Baalam encouraged the Moabites to trick Israelite men into illicit relationships with Moabite women (Nu 31:16). As a professional curser, he did his work so well that it put the entire nation of Israel into jeopardy. He placed a hex on Israel by waging psychological warfare on them.
Here is a man who got his name in the Bible as an infamous character. He now would like to remove his name from the Bible, but he cannot. No one ever called her new baby, “Balaam.” This is a man who got into a debate with a jackass, and the jackass won the debate (Nu 22)!! The jackass had more sense than Balaam.
The word “following” means to follow up, or to follow out to the end. The idea is to follow extensively in a dependent manner. People today, following Balaam’s example, extensively use religion for their own financial gain.
who loved the wages of unrighteousness
Balaam was in the religion business for a fast buck. There is nothing wrong with a legitimate business. As well, there is nothing wrong with ambition. God does not put a premium on laziness. Balaam is in business to make a shady dollar out of religion. He loved the “rewards of divination” (Nu 22:7,11).
False teachers might get their financial rewards in time, but they will get another reward in eternity. The inordinate love of money causes some people to distort the truth. This is an issue of money motivation.
PRINCIPLE:
Look out for religious fakers who are in religion for money.
APPLICATION:
There are more fakers, phonies, and unregenerate preachers today than ever before in history. Many churches preach almost anything but the gospel. You can hear New Age philosophy or how to become more successful but not the gospel. They reject the Bible and the message of the Bible.
Today, some television preachers are in it strictly for the money. It is apparent who they are. It is amazing to me how so many evangelicals buy into their sham religion.
Thanks for the commentary. I have read the account of Baalam many times and Peter’s warning yet could never see the sin nature of Baalam until now. On the surface, he seems to do what the LORD says to do, yet God knows his heart. I see the heart implications now. And yes, there are preachers and teachers among us who secretly worship money above Jesus and use His Name for “mammon”. I know of a couple of them personally. Still, the warning of Peter is of a personal nature. The real question is, “Am I using the Christian life and its moral reputation as a stepping stone in my own business?” Its a great watch-dog question. Thanks.
Thanks for your insightful comments, Jim.
It appear today most preachers and song praise worshippers are going to the marketplace. Thus Jesus said in Luke 7:31 and 32,”Whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation? and to what are they like? They are like unto children sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped unto you and you have not danced; we have mourned to you, and you have not wept.
Carolyn, I agree that a significant number of leaders are doing this (and it depends on what you mean by “marketplace”) but I would not say “most.” I spoke to 900 pastors over 2 years recently and I would say most are not materially driven.
I have been reading about agape love and I ran across a few passages that someone claimed used the word "agapao" also as a love that can be generated from man (non-divine), not just God.
This seems to contradict your description of agape ("Agape love is 'divine' because this love comes from God. This love is self-sacrificing and not selfish. Self-sacrificing love is willing to place others above self.").
He found about 20 different passages including –
Two masters – hate one and love the other – can choose agapao for money over God (Mt 6:24).
Men loving darkness (Jn 3:19).
Pharisees loving the praise of men more than the praise of God ( Jn 12:43).
I would appreciate your thoughts on this.
Lorenda, those verses to which you refer do use agapaw in a negative sense as your friend indicates, as does this verse. My definition of the term is not taken from the word per se but from its usage in certain kinds of contexts. For example, John 3:16 uses this term of God, Ga 5:22 uses it of the believer as the result of the filling of the Holy Spirit.