🔼The name Balak: Summary
- Meaning
- Empty, Devastator
- Etymology
- From the verb בלק (balaq), to lay waste.
🔼The name Balak in the Bible
Balak, son of Zippor, is the Moabite king who tries to hire Balaam for the purpose of cursing Israel (Numbers 22:1-5). The famous and enigmatic scene of the speaking donkey ensues (Numbers 22:21-35).
The only time in the Bible that Balak is not mentioned in direct conjunction with Balaam is in Judges 11:25, and the only occurrence of this name in the Greek New Testament is in Revelation 2:14 (Βαλακ).
🔼Etymology of the name Balak
The name Balak comes from the sparsely used Hebrew verb בלק (balaq), meaning to waste or lay waste:
בלק
The rarely used verb בלק (balaq) means to lay waste or devastate. It has no extant derivatives.
🔼Balak meaning
For a meaning of the name Balak, BDB Theological Dictionary reads Devastator, NOBSE Study Bible Name List suggests Empty, and Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names has Wasting.