As Balaam went to meet Balak, the anger of the Lord was aroused, and the Angel of the Lord (some propose this was a preincarnate appearance of Jesus Christ) stood in path to prevent him. The donkey saw the Angel with a sword in His hand, and turned aside out of the way. Balaam struck the donkey to get her back on the road. Then the Angel of the Lord stood in a narrow passage between two walls in a vineyard. When Balaam got to that spot, the donkey saw the Angel again, and pushed herself against the wall and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall, so he struck her again. Balaam struck her again. A third time, when there was no place where the donkey could go, she just laid down under Balaam. This time, he struck her with his staff.
At this time, the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey and allowed her to speak to Balaam. She asked, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”
29 And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have abused me. I wish there were a sword in my hand, for now I would kill you!”
30 So the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden, ever since I became yours, to this day? Was I ever disposed to do this to you?”
And he said, “No.”
At that moment, the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he could see the Angel. He bowed down before the Angel, and the Angel scolded him for beating his donkey, and let him know that if the donkey had not turned away, that Balaam would have been killed. The Lord told Balaam that he could go with them and speak, but only what the Lord told him to say.
The next day, Balaam went with Balak to the high places of Baal to observe the people. He sacrificed burnt offerings, and then separated himself in order hear from the Lord. God began to speak to him.
7 And he took up his oracle and said:
“Balak the king of Moab has brought me from Aram,
From the mountains of the east.
‘Come, curse Jacob for me,
And come, denounce Israel!’
8 “How shall I curse whom God has not cursed?
And how shall I denounce whom the Lord has not denounced?
9 For from the top of the rocks I see him,
And from the hills I behold him;
There! A people dwelling alone,
Not reckoning itself among the nations.
10 “Who can count the dust of Jacob,
Or number one-fourth of Israel?
Let me die the death of the righteous,
And let my end be like his!”
11 Then Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, and look, you have blessed them bountifully!”
12 So he answered and said, “Must I not take heed to speak what the Lord has put in my mouth?” [Numbers 23:7–12 (NKJV)]
The story of Balaam is a lesson in obedience. Sometimes, if God tells us “No,” we ask again, perhaps even many times. Sometimes, God will give you what you ask for , even if it is not exactly what you need. There are times when others hear from God better than we hear from Him ourselves. If God can use a donkey to speak to us, then He can use just about anyone or anything to speak to us if we will listen to Him. Once God’s instructions were clear, Balaam obeyed, even though the blessing was exactly opposite what Balak had paid him to say. Obey God at all costs. Follow His leadership even under threat of peril. God always knows best!
Devoted To You 