People who haven’t read the Book of Numbers might still know the story of Balaam and his donkey. Balaam was a famous seer, but he couldn’t see the angel of the Lord. However, his donkey could see the presence of God on the path.
Even though God allowed Balaam to meet with Balak, it’s clear that He did not approve of the sorcerer’s stubborn attitude. So, He put an angel with a sword right in Balaam’s path.
The donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road, with a drawn sword in his hand, so the donkey turned off the road and went into the field, and Balaam struck the donkey, to turn it back onto the road (Numbers 22:23)..
The story of Balaam and his donkey shows the flaws of paganism. The well-known pagan sorcerer couldn’t see an angel, but his supposedly dumb donkey could.
After striking his donkey, Balaam assumed he was on his way. The angel and the donkey had other ideas.
Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on either side.
When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it scraped against the wall and scraped Balaam’s foot against the wall, so he struck it again (Numbers 22:24-25).
Balaam had to learn from a donkey before he could learn from God. The third encounter made Balaam angry at his donkey again, but this time the angel opened his eyes to the spiritual reality before him.
Then the angel of the Lord went ahead and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn either to the right or to the left.
When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it lay down under Balaam, and Balaam’s anger was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his staff.
Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”
Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have made a fool of me! I wish I had a sword in my hand! I would kill you right now!”
But the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey, which you have ridden all your life to this day? Have I been in the habit of treating you this way?” And he said, “No.”
Then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road, with his drawn sword in his hand, and he bowed down, falling on his face. (Numbers 22:26-31).
It’s easy to laugh at a famous sorcerer whose donkey understood God’s will better than he did. Before we laugh, let’s consider Isaiah’s commentary on how God’s people sometimes aren’t wiser than animals, reputed to be quite dumb.
Hear, O heavens, and listen, O earth,
for the Lord has spoken:
I reared children and brought them up,
but they have rebelled against me.
The ox knows its owner
and the donkey its master’s crib,
but Israel does not know;
my people do not understand. (Isaiah 1:2-3)
When I was a college student with a job, I took care of my boss’s horse while he was on vacation. For two weeks, I fed the horse daily. Each time, the horse came to the feed trough as soon as I poured out the oats. Animals always know where to find their food.
Isaiah teaches that, sadly, we humans often don’t recognize God and choose rebellion and stubbornness instead of following His guidance.
Unrepentant Repentance
Balaam met the angel and seemed to surrender to the will of God. After all, it’s wiser to yield to an angel with a sword than to face God’s wrath.
The angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? I have come out as an adversary because your way is perverse before me.
The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If it had not turned away from me, surely just now I would have killed you and let it live.”
Then Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, “I have sinned, for I did not know that you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now therefore, if it is displeasing to you, I will return home.”
The angel of the Lord said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but speak only what I tell you to speak.” So Balaam went on with the officials of Balak (Numbers 22:32-35).
In the book of Numbers, we later learn the true nature of Balaam’s character. Even though he seemed to obey God, he was never fully committed. This reminds me of Jesus’ warning in the Sermon on the Mount.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.
On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’
Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; go away from me, you who behave lawlessly'” (Matthew 7:21-23).
Balaam said the right words, but his attitudes and actions were not in the right place. So, we can agree with Jesus and the witness of Scripture that God never truly knew Balaam in a relationship of obedience and service.
The Bible teaches us, as Jesus often said, that if we know God, we will follow His will. Jesus also said that if we love Him, we will keep His commandments.
If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love (John 15:10).
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross, Bruce Kirby, and I discussed this passage on YouTube today.
Real Voices 