Balaam's Donkey

One of the most ludicrous stories in the Bible is the one about Balaam and his talking donkey (Num 22:1-25). I mean, come on, guys. A talking donkey? Really?

Well, of course, if you're not really a believer in miracles, this one would serve as proof. Of what? Well, either that you can't trust the Bible or you can't trust religions. Depends on how far you want to take it. Maybe it was just a "mistake" -- shouldn't be there at all. Or maybe it's just one clear proof that people that believe in some sort of flying spaghetti monster will buy anything. Because, as we all know, donkeys don't talk.

On the other hand, if you believe in a supernatural God who can actually contravene the normal laws of the universe whenever He wants, then a talking donkey is no big deal. The text does say, "The Lord opened the mouth of the donkey ..." (Num 22:28). That is, the author doesn't assume donkeys that talk are normal. And if you believe in a God who is Sovereign with a capital "S," you have no trouble believing that He could get His Word written accurately and maintain it over time, so there is no problem with this text at all.

So, let's start with that. There is a God who is capable of contravening the laws of nature and is capable of transmitting a reliable Scripture through the ages. Let's say that the Bible is that Scripture. That means that this "ludicrous" story of a donkey talking is funny, perhaps, but, in fact, an actual event. So ... what?

Well, here's where we learn that God can use anything He wishes -- even a dumb beast. We learn that God knows the heart of people, so He used this dumb beast to sharply remind Balaam that he was only supposed to say what God said to say (Num 22:35). Apparently in the time between when God said to go and the time he got on the donkey to go, he had forgotten or changed his mind or something. We learned that while Man is sinful and will constantly transgress God's instructions the rest of God's creation is not and will always do what God says to do. (Note: We find out that after Balaam does do what God told him to -- blesses Israel rather than cursing them like Balak wanted -- he went on to teach the Moabites how to lead Israel into God-hating sin (Num 31:16). Balaam forgot anyway.)

God is in the habit of not acting in ways we expect. His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts (Isa 55:8-9). I can't think of a better illustration than this story of a talking donkey to demonstrate that fact. I can think of no better opportunity to show that God will do what He will do and will use what (or who) He will use and will always do it right. And, of course, this is an excellent measure of whether or not the reader is willing to let God speak rather than tell God what He can say. That's a common problem, is it not? So I like this story.