Guest Speaker.

Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you that you have beaten me these three times?” And Balaam said to the donkey, “You have made me look stupid; I wish there were a sword in my hand, for I would kill you right now.” The donkey said to Balaam, “Am not I your donkey that you have ridden ever since I was yours until this day? Have I ever attempted to treat you this way?” And he said, “No.” Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way with his sword drawn in his hand; so he bowed his head and threw himself down with his face to the ground. The angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? Look, I came out to oppose you because what you are doing is perverse before me. The donkey saw me and turned from me these three times. If she had not turned from me, I would have killed you but saved her alive.” (Numbers 22:28-33)

People who are bent on sinning say, and do, odd things. In Numbers 22 we have a peculiar case study: Balaam (the prophetic man who makes his living appealing to God) is blind to the presence of God, while Balaam’s lowly donkey is able to both see God and speak prophetically.

The donkey, who in this passage is beaten several times and ridiculed, remains steadfast in her determination to not cross the path of the angel of the LORD. She endures the beatings and chooses to disobey direct orders from Balaam because she is conscious of a higher authority.

Balaam has a sad defense for his actions. When the donkey, empowered by God to speak, asks Balaam why he has beaten her, Balaam replies: “You made me look stupid.” Balaam seems to be more concerned with his appearance before his servants than his obedience to God.

When our Lord opens Balaam’s eyes, two things occur: the Lord commends the donkey, and the Lord says something incredible to Balaam. “The donkey saw me and turned from me these three times. If she had not turned from me, I would have killed you but saved her alive.” In other words, the prophetic man of God owes his life to a lowly donkey.

There are three good lessons for us in today's reflection. First, there are plenty of modern-day Balaams who doggedly pursue disobedience, and who chase after wrongdoing. The Lord Himself stands in opposition to those who seek to act against the will of God. God has no problem defending Himself.

Second, though, the Lord did not prevent Balaam’s donkey from being beaten and yelled at. The donkey’s steadfast obedience in the face of suffering is also a good lesson for us today. We, like her, can say: I see my caretaker pursuing the wrong thing, and I see that the hand of God is against him. So I will not participate in nor support his attempts to cross against the hand of the Lord. If it means I am ridiculed, or even beaten, then so be it.

Third, the mercy of God in this passage is another good lesson. Even though Balaam held the position and the authority, God spared him because of the obedience of the donkey. What an encouragement for those of us who have no authority, but are praying earnestly for the men and women who do. We can ask God to step in, to open blind eyes, to speak words of correction, and to turn modern-day Balaams back to the path of righteousness and obedience.

“Look, I came out to oppose you because what you are doing is perverse before me. The donkey saw me and turned from me these three times.” Oh Lord, thank You for using lowly donkeys to rescue lofty souls.