A star out of Jacob

Numbers 24:17 -

I see him, but not now;
  I behold him, but not near.
A star will come out of Jacob;
  a scepter will rise out of Israel.

This is a reference to the Messiah who was to come, the one first promised in Eden -- Jesus Christ. I wonder if Balaam realized he was talking about Jesus. He does say (just before this) that his eyes were opened. Perhaps that means that he did have at least a partial understanding of the true meaning of these words.

I doubt that Balak or any of the other Moabites had any clue about who this referred to. I wonder what Balak thought Balaam was talking about here. Maybe Balak wasn't even trying to understand everything in detail. Once he heard yet again that Balaam was going to bless and not curse Israel, contrary to Balak's wishes, I wonder if Balak's anger got the best of him and he tuned out the rest of Balaam's message (oracle) from God.

I wonder how often people let their own wants and desires -- major or minor, significant or petty -- get in the way of what God is plainly telling them. Balaam was pretty much hitting Balak over the head with a bat, so to speak, and he still wasn't getting it. Notice that it didn't stop God from proclaiming his message or from having it come to pass. How minor are even our "major" concerns and causes in the big scheme of things!