"While Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab. 2 These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. 3 So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel. 4 And the Lord said to Moses, “Take all the chiefs of the people and hang[a] them in the sun before the Lord, that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.” 5 And Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each of you kill those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor."
Numbers 25:1-5
The last episode in the story of Balaam makes sad and sorry reading. These verses record the whoredom of Moab, of which Moses indicates in 31:16 that 'the counsel' of Balaam had been followed in this matter. It would seem that Balaam, before quitting the country had suggested to Balak that if the Israelites could be seduced into the idolatry and impurity of the worship practised at Baal-peor by the Moabites, they might even yet come under the curse of the Lord. This evil course was followed: Israel was duly tempted, was corrupted, and in the war that followed, that was waged to execute vengeance on them for this, Balaam was slain by the sword.
There is a timely warning for us here. There is a superficial attitude to the story of Balaam in God's 'second best' that might make us complacent, so long as He will still bless us (within the limits we ourselves impose on Him by our sin). Some men do not care very much about God's second best, and would be content with much less. Ah, but it is much easier to fall and to make mistakes, when in God's 'second best'. That is how it was with Balaam. He had not crucified his double motives, and had not learned to hate his sin; and in the end events went out of his control: the evil thing rose up again within him, and he fell tragically, bringing woe upon Israel. And so he goes off the stage of history, having at the last done dev- il's work, a total dupe of Satan, when he might have been an example and an inspiration to succeeding ages (cf 1 Corinthians 10:12).