Having blessed the Jewish people three times, Balaam prophesied the fate of Balak’s people, as well as that of other nations, in the future. In these prophecies, he also mentioned how the Jewish people’s future king – the Messiah – would bring all humanity to serve G‑d.
Dreaming G‑d’s Dreams
וְיֵרְדְּ מִיַּעֲקֹב וגו': (במדבר כד:יט)
[Balaam said,] “A ruler will come out of Jacob.” Numbers 24:19

One might ask: “Once we know what G‑d requires of us in the here and now, why do we need to know about our ultimate goal and reward? Why not trust G‑d to provide the reward when the time comes instead of being concerned now about what and when?”

The answer is that having a clear vision of what it is we are working toward makes all the difference in the quality of our work and the effort we invest in it. G‑d wants us to serve Him in an inspired way; He wants our vision to be His vision, our goals to be His goals. Of course, our relationship to G‑d must be based on the absolute, unconditional devotion every creature owes its Creator, but that is only the basis, the beginning. Ideally, G‑d wants us to dream about what He dreams about; this is why He shares with us His dream for the Messianic future.

It is therefore vital to study the prophecies and statements of our sages about the Messiah and the imminent Redemption. This will enable us to form a clear picture in our mind of what the world is really meant to be and how we can make this dream a reality.1