Commentary - Numbers 22:22-35

Bird's-eye view

In this remarkable account from Numbers 22, we find the prophet Balaam on a journey fraught with spiritual peril. Though he received a form of permission from God to go with Balak's messengers, his heart was not right, and so God's anger was kindled against him. The central drama unfolds on the road, where God uses a series of escalating obstacles, culminating in a talking donkey, to confront Balaam's spiritual blindness. The donkey can see the Angel of Yahweh standing in the way with a drawn sword, but the prophet, blinded by his own avarice, cannot. After striking his faithful animal three times, God opens the donkey's mouth to rebuke the prophet, and then finally opens the prophet's eyes to see the mortal danger he is in. The passage is a stark illustration of God's sovereign providence, His use of humble and unexpected means to correct His people, and the profound danger of a divided heart.

Balaam's confession is halting, but God's purpose is not. The angel permits him to continue his journey, but only under the strictest orders to speak nothing but the word God gives him. This story serves as a powerful reminder that God is not mocked; He can and will use even compromised instruments for His glory, bending their rebellious wills to serve His unalterable plan to bless His people, Israel.

Outline

Commentary

22 But God was angry because he was going, so the angel of Yahweh took his stand in the way as an adversary against him. Now he was riding on his donkey, and his two young men were with him.

Here we have what appears to be a contradiction, but is in fact a profound lesson on the nature of God and the deceitfulness of the human heart. God had told Balaam, "Go with them" (v. 20), and now God is angry because he is going. The key is to understand that God's commands are not given in a vacuum; they interact with the state of our hearts. Balaam wanted to go. He was lusting after the reward Balak offered. God gave him permission, but it was a permission that exposed the avarice in his heart. God was not angry that Balaam was obeying a direct command, but rather that he was eagerly pursuing a path of selfish gain that God had initially forbidden. His "way" was perverse, and so God stood in the way as an adversary, a satan. This is a terrifying thought: God Himself can become our adversary when we proceed with a wicked motive, even if we have found a way to justify our actions with a veneer of divine permission.

23 Then the donkey saw the angel of Yahweh standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand, and the donkey turned off from the way and went into the field; so Balaam struck the donkey to turn it back into the way.

The irony here is thick enough to cut with the angel's sword. The dumb animal sees the spiritual reality, while the renowned prophet is utterly blind to it. The donkey sees an agent of divine judgment, sword drawn, ready to execute sentence. Balaam sees only an inconvenient deviation from his get-rich-quick scheme. This is a classic biblical inversion. God often uses the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. The donkey has more spiritual sense than the seer. Balaam's response to this life-saving maneuver is not gratitude, but anger. He strikes the very creature that is trying to save his life. How often are we like this? We resent the obstacle, the frustrating delay, the difficult person, not realizing it is God's hard providence, a merciful barrier keeping us from walking off a cliff.

24-25 Then the angel of Yahweh stood in a narrow path of the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side. And the donkey saw the angel of Yahweh, and it pressed itself to the wall and pressed Balaam’s foot against the wall, so he struck it again.

God is turning up the pressure. The path narrows. The options for evasion are shrinking. The first time, the donkey could turn into an open field. Now, hemmed in by vineyard walls, the best it can do is scrape along the side. In doing so, it crushes Balaam's foot. The pain is a mercy. It is a tangible, physical warning meant to get his attention. But Balaam is still spiritually insensate. He interprets this merciful warning as a personal offense from his donkey. So he strikes it again. His anger is rising in direct proportion to God's gracious attempts to stop him.

26-27 And the angel of Yahweh passed on ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn to the right hand or the left. Then the donkey saw the angel of Yahweh and lay down under Balaam; so Balaam was angry and struck the donkey with his stick.

The third intervention is the most restrictive. There is now no room to maneuver at all. The donkey, seeing the angel of the Lord blocking the path completely, does the only thing it can do. It stops and lies down. It refuses to carry its master into the path of certain death. For this ultimate act of loyalty and preservation, Balaam's anger boils over. He moves from a simple strike to beating the animal with his stick. This is the third strike. In Scripture, three is often the number of completion. Balaam's foolishness and rebellion are now complete, and God's extraordinary intervention must now escalate.

28 And Yahweh 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?”

And here we have it. If a prophet will not listen to the narrowing path, or the crushed foot, or the complete halt, then God will speak to him through his donkey. The Creator of heaven and earth is not limited in His choice of means. He who formed the mouth of man can certainly open the mouth of a beast. And the donkey's first words are not a braying complaint, but a perfectly rational and pointed question. It is the voice of sanity in a scene of madness. "What have I done?" The donkey appeals to justice, something its master, the prophet, has completely forgotten.

29 Then Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have made a mockery of me! If there had been a sword in my hand, I would have killed you by now.”

Balaam is so consumed by his rage that he doesn't even appear to be shocked that his donkey is talking to him. He just answers. He engages in a rational dispute with his livestock. This is how far sin can take a man. His answer is revealing. He is not concerned with truth or justice, but with his own dignity. "You have made a mockery of me!" His pride is hurt. And his rage is murderous. He wishes for a sword, completely oblivious to the fact that the only reason he is still alive is that another sword, a divine one, has been stayed by this very donkey.

30 And the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden all your life to this day? Have I ever been accustomed to do so to you?” And he said, “No.”

The donkey continues its cross-examination, and it is a masterclass in logic. It appeals to its long history of faithful service. "Have I ever done this before?" The implied argument is powerful: an entire lifetime of faithfulness should make you question whether my unusual behavior today might have a reason behind it. You should be asking "Why is this happening?" not "How dare you do this to me?" Confronted with this impeccable logic, Balaam can only concede the point. "No." The faithful beast has won the argument. The prophet is shamed into silence by his ride.

31 Then Yahweh opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of Yahweh standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand; and he bowed his head down and prostrated himself to the ground.

Just as God opened the donkey's mouth, He now opens the prophet's eyes. Spiritual sight, like articulate speech in a donkey, is a miracle. It is a gift of God. And what Balaam sees is terrifying. He sees what the donkey saw all along: the angel, the drawn sword, the imminent judgment. The reality of his situation crashes in on him, and his foolish anger evaporates, replaced by abject fear. He falls on his face, which is the only appropriate response when a sinner comes face to face with the holy judgment of God.

32-33 And the angel of Yahweh said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out as an adversary because your way was contrary to me. And the donkey saw me and turned aside from me these three times. If it had not turned aside from me, I would surely have killed you just now, and let it live.”

The angel's first question is not about the mission to curse Israel, but about the abuse of the donkey. God cares about how we treat the creatures He has made. Then comes the central indictment: "your way was contrary to me." The Hebrew is stark, suggesting a reckless, headlong, perverse path. The angel then confirms what we have already seen. The donkey's swerving was not rebellion, but perception. And then the chilling conclusion: the donkey's actions, which Balaam punished, were the very thing that saved Balaam's life. "I would surely have killed you... and let it live." God's justice is precise. He would have slain the guilty prophet and spared the innocent animal. This is a staggering lesson in providence. The things we curse as obstacles are often God's instruments of salvation.

34 And Balaam said to the angel of Yahweh, “I have sinned, for I did not know that you were standing in the way against me. So now, if it is evil in your sight, I will turn back.”

Balaam confesses, "I have sinned." This sounds good, but notice the qualification that follows immediately. "For I did not know..." It is a confession laced with an excuse. True repentance takes full responsibility. Balaam's repentance is of the "sorry I got caught" variety. His offer to turn back is also weak. "If it is evil in your sight..." There should be no "if" about it. The angel just told him his way was contrary to God. Of course it is evil in His sight. This is the confession of a man whose will has been checked, but whose heart has not been fundamentally changed.

35 But the angel of Yahweh said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but you shall speak only the word which I tell you.” So Balaam went along with the leaders of Balak.

God's ultimate purpose will not be thwarted. He will not send Balaam back. He will send him forward, but as a constrained vessel. Balaam wanted to go for the money, to speak curses for a fee. Now he must go, but under a divine gag order. He is no longer a freelance prophet, but a mouthpiece for Yahweh. God is going to use this greedy, compromised man to speak glorious words of blessing over Israel, right in the face of their enemies. This is the magnificent sovereignty of God on full display. He takes the selfish ambitions of sinful men and bends them to accomplish His own triumphant and gracious purposes.

Application

This narrative is a potent warning against the love of money and the dangers of a divided heart. Balaam wanted both God's blessing and the world's reward, and it made him blind, foolish, and cruel. We must examine our own motives. Are we pursuing a course of action because we genuinely believe it is God's will, or because we have found a way to baptize our own selfish desires?

Second, we must learn to pay attention to God's "donkeys", the unexpected obstacles and frustrations He places in our path. When things go wrong, when our way is blocked, our first response should not be anger, but rather the humble question, "Lord, are you trying to tell me something?" That difficult boss, that flat tire, that frustrating setback might just be an angel with a drawn sword, mercifully keeping you from a path of destruction.

Finally, we must stand in awe of God's absolute sovereignty. He is the great playwright of history. He can make a donkey speak and He can put His words of blessing into the mouth of a corrupt prophet. This should give us great confidence. No plan of man, no scheme of the enemy, can ever succeed in cursing what God has determined to bless. His purpose for His people in Christ Jesus is secure, not because of our faithfulness, but because of His sovereign, unchangeable, and triumphant grace.