am, the son of Bosor,
who loved the reward of unrighteousness, but had a rebuke for his
transgression, the dumb beast of burden speaking with man's voice and
reproving the folly of the prophet._ Here he brings in an
illustration from the fourth book of Moses, xxii.-xxiv. When the
children of Israel had journeyed out of Egypt and had come into the
land of the Moabites, king Balak sent to a prophet in Syria, by the
name of Balaam, and besought him that he would come and curse the
Jewish people, that they might become weak and that he might slay
them. Then God appeared to Balaam, and forbade him to curse the
people; therefore the prophet declines to comply with Balak.
Thereupon the king sent to him once more, and promised to give him
large wealth. Then God permits him to go to him, yet he shall say
nothing but what He shall direct him to say.

Upon this, he rose up and mounted upon an ass. The angel of God came
and walked in the way, and stood before him with a drawn sword. The
ass saw it, and turned aside out of the way, at which the prophet
struck her, that she should go in the way. Then the angel went to a
narrow place where the ass could not turn aside, and when she presses
herself against the wall and bruises the prophet's foot, she is
forced to fall under him upon her knee, while he is angered so as in
his rage to strike the ass with his staff. Then God opens the mouth
of the beast to speak with the voice of a man, and she said, "What
have I done to you that you should strike me so?" And he said, "Ah!
if I had now a sword in my hand, I would slay you." Then the ass
answered and said, "Am I yet the ass upon which thou hast ridden
continually even to this day, and have I done it for no more than
this?" Then were the eyes of the prophet opened, so that he saw the
angel with the drawn sword, at which he was affrighted and would have
turned back; but the angel of the Lord bade him go on, but thereupon
forbade him to speak anything else than what He should say to him.

When now the prophet was come to the king, he takes him up to a
height from which he could see the whole people of Israel. Then the
prophet bade him erect seven altars, and on each offer a sacrifice;
and then went aside and asked the Lord what he should say. And God
gave him his word in his mouth. And he rose up to bless and glorify
the people of Israel with fair words; and this he did three times,
one after another. Then was the king filled with wrath, an