The Word Also Killed the Speaking Donkey

(21) When he arose in the morning, Balaam saddled his ass and departed with the Moabite dignitaries. (22) But God was incensed at his going; so an angel of the LORD placed himself in his way as an adversary. He was riding on his she-ass, with his two servants alongside, (23) when the ass caught sight of the angel of the LORD standing in the way, with his drawn sword in his hand. The ass swerved from the road and went into the fields; and Balaam beat the ass to turn her back onto the road. (24) The angel of the LORD then stationed himself in a lane between the vineyards, with a fence on either side. (25) The ass, seeing the angel of the LORD, pressed herself against the wall and squeezed Balaam’s foot against the wall; so he beat her again. (26) Once more the angel of the LORD moved forward and stationed himself on a spot so narrow that there was no room to swerve right or left. (27) When the ass now saw the angel of the LORD, she lay down under Balaam; and Balaam was furious and beat the ass with his stick. (28) Then the LORD opened the ass’s mouth, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you that you have beaten me these three times?” (29) Balaam said to the ass, “You have made a mockery of me! If I had a sword with me, I’d kill you.” (30) The ass said to Balaam, “Look, I am the ass that you have been riding all along until this day! Have I been in the habit of doing thus to you?” And he answered, “No.” (31) Then the LORD uncovered Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way, his drawn sword in his hand; thereupon he bowed right down to the ground. (32) The angel of the LORD said to him, “Why have you beaten your ass these three times? It is I who came out as an adversary, for the errand is obnoxious to me. (33) And when the ass saw me, she shied away because of me those three times. If she had not shied away from me, you are the one I should have killed, while sparing her.” (34) Balaam said to the angel of the LORD, “I erred because I did not know that you were standing in my way. If you still disapprove, I will turn back.” (35) But the angel of the LORD said to Balaam, “Go with the men. But you must say nothing except what I tell you.” So Balaam went on with Balak’s dignitaries.

This is what the angel said [to Balaam]: (32) WHY HAVE YOU BEATEN YOUR ASS these three times? You did not behave properly, for (33a) SHE HAD TURNED AWAY BEFORE ME (לפני) THESE THREE TIMES. Each time that she turned away it was לפני – before she reached me, never מפני – i.e. she never went past me. (33b) HAD SHE TURNED AWAY מפני, AFTER [passing] ME, i.e. had her turning away taken place after [passing] me (מפני) and not before [reaching] me (לפני), in other words had she passed me on the road and gone beyond me, then I would have killed you. You would not have gotten away with the minor injury of the crushing of your leg. Rather I would even HAVE KILLED YOU. She, though, would not have been damaged for I WOULD HAVE SPARED HER, just as she now survives [undamaged]. [She would not have been harmed by me] for she would not have sinned [even had she passed me against my will]. It would have been you who sinned against me [had she passed me against my will,] for you [were the one who] hit her three times [to goad her to pass me].

גם אותך הרגתי: [should be understood as if] גם הרגתי אותך [were written]. So also the phrase (Ex. 12:32) וברכתם גם אותי – [lit. "bless me also," should be understood as if] וגם תברכו אותי ("also bless me") [were written].

(6) Ten things were created on the eve of the Sabbath at twilight, and these are they: [1] the mouth of the earth, [2] the mouth of the well, [3] the mouth of the donkey, [4] the rainbow, [5] the manna, [6] the staff [of Moses], [7] the shamir, [8] the letters, [9] the writing, [10] and the tablets. And some say: also the demons, the grave of Moses, and the ram of Abraham, our father. And some say: and also tongs, made with tongs.

(2) This verse should be rearranged, to read "I would also have killed you." As if to say, "Not only would you have been restrained by me, but you also would have been killed. And she I would let live. But now, because she spoke and admonished you and you were unable to withstand her admonistion, as it is written, He said, 'No,"--I killed her, so that it should not be said, "this is the one that drove away Bil'am with her admonishment and he was unable to reply.

(Numb. 22:33) “For the she-ass saw me and turned away from me these three times. If she had not turned away [from me, surely just now I would have killed you] and let her live”: From here you have learned that he killed the ass.

(2) UNLESS. The word ulai (unless) has many meanings. Here it means unless. The word even is evidence that the ass died after she spoke. (3) AND SAVED HER ALIVE. Scripture is being brief. Its meaning is, as I killed her I would have killed you, or I would have killed you and left her alive. The above is explained by the following. When a person sees an angel, he dies. And my life is preserved (Gen. 32:1), and the words of Manoah are proof. How much more so the case of a beast that has nothing in common with the spirit of an angel as a human being does.

After the donkey spoke, it died, so that people should not say, "This is the donkey that spoke," and make a deity out of it. Another explanation: ... The Holy Blessed One showed concern for the honor of wicked Bilaam, so that people shold not say, "This is the donkey that dismissed Bilaam." Now, if the Holy Blessed One showed concern for the honor of a wicked person, it goes without saying that God shows concern for the honor of a righteous person.

(3) GAM OTHCHAH HARAGTI’ (“ALSO” THEE I HAD SURELY SLAIN). Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra commented that “the word gam [meaning “also”] is a proof that the ass died after it had spoken. And the meaning of [the phrase] and saved her alive [which implies that she should have died, were it not for the angel that kept her alive] is that when [even] a human being sees an angel, he dies [straightaway, whereas the ass lived on for a while until after she had spoken to Balaam] — proof being [Jacob’s statement]: and my life is preserved — and how much more so [does it follow that] an animal, which has no common factor with an angel, as a human being has [ought to die immediately upon seeing an angel].”But the word gam cannot be interpreted as Ibn Ezra explains it, for [if so, we do not find any circumstances under which] both of them [Balaam and the ass] would die; because now when she did turn aside, the ass died and Balaam was saved alive, and had she not turned aside, he [the angel] would have killed Balaam and saved the ass alive! However, the word gam is [to be interpreted] as Rashi explains it, its meaning being as if [the word-order of the verse were] inverted, namely: gam haragti othchah [“also would I slay thee,” meaning to say: “not only would I have held you up on your journey, but I would also have killed you”]. And the meaning of the expression and saved her alive is [not that “I would have kept her alive temporarily, but later on killed her,” as Ibn Ezra explained, but that the angel was stressing that] “the entire [burden of] sin is upon you [Balaam], and [therefore] I would have killed you because of it, [but would have kept her alive even had she not turned aside], for she has done no sin for which she ought to die. Thus her act of turning aside, which she did on account of me, was for your good [only] and not for her sake at all, [because she would anyhow not have been killed], and you have therefore smitten her for no reason, and have repaid her evil for good.”Now Scripture does not say whether Balak’s princes were present with Balaam at these events, or [it may be] that they were riding ahead of him and there was a [considerable] distance between them and him [so that they did not notice any of these events]. The most likely [interpretation, however] is that they were together with him, because they did not become separated from him, and they saw the ass turning aside and Balaam smiting her, but thought that she was merely behaving as bad animals do, because they did not hear her speak; and they certainly [did not hear] the words of the angel, who was [visible only] to the opened eyes of Balaam. But our Rabbis have said that the princes of Moab were astonished, because they saw a miracle the like of which had never occurred in the world. And they [also] said that as soon as the ass had finished speaking; she died, in order that the nations should not say [about her]: “This is [the ass] that spoke,” and should not make her [an object of] idol-worship. Moreover, the Holy One, blessed be He, was concerned [even] about the honor of the wicked, [and therefore killed the ass so that] people should not say: “This is [the ass] that caused Balaam’s downfall.” All this is possible, [but is] in accordance with a tradition, for Scripture [itself] does not speak about her dying at all, as I have explained.

while sparing her... It appears that the two boys who were walking with him the angel killed, since they are not mentioned again. Thus, it says, I also should have killed you, like the boys who did not turn from the path while facing me.