When there was a satan in Balaam’s way, that wonderful donkey scolded Balaam. That angel was opposed to Balaam because of the way he was taking. To oppose is another way of saying adversary, which is another way of saying to be a satan.

What could we learn from this?

Not everything that opposes you is satan itself. Sometimes angels can be in opposition. That could be.

God controls mouths and speeches. Obviously, if Balaam used his speech for evil, God could open and shut Balaam’s mouth just like a donkey. Could be.

What would your donkey say to you?

It is easy to make Balaam one-dimensional in our reading. Blinded by the novelty of a speaking donkey, we may even remember that more than the complexity of human being caught between blessing and cursing. It is more difficult to pull an Isreal and wrestle with a strange truth. The donkey spoke, yes, but so did Balaam.

God spoke through an outsider.

Balaam, as an outsider, functions as a true oracle of God and that is easy to overlook within all the layers of tension and irony in the story of Numbers 22-24. His blessings are poetic and fully of vivid imagery, and above all, the spirit of God provided the oracles to him.

Instead of belaboring the point, I am going to give you back a few minutes of reading and stop here with this question, praying you will use the gifted time to deeply consider this:

Who is the outsider God is using to speak to you?