The Strange Case of Balaam and the Messenger of Yahweh (#9 in Yahweh and the Angel of Yahweh)

Balaam was a man who “practiced divination” (Joshua 13:22), which means he used numerous means to figure out God’s will, one of which was hearing God’s voice as a seer or prophet. He has a genuine ability to hear from God. He was hired by Balak, king of Moab, to curse Israel so that Balak’s nation could defeat them and expel them from his land, which Israel was using as a staging ground for their invasion of Canaan. Balaam initially hears from God that he cannot be employed by Balak this way, but Balaam chooses to go to Moab and Balak because he wants the money:

²¹ Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the Moabite officials. ²² But God was very angry when he went, and the Messenger of Yahweh stood in the road to oppose him. Balaam was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him. ²³ When the donkey saw the Messenger of Yahweh standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand, it turned off the road into a field. Balaam beat it to get it back on the road. ²⁴ Then the Messenger of Yahweh stood in a narrow path through the vineyards, with walls on both sides. ²⁵ When the donkey saw the Messenger of Yahweh, it pressed close to the wall, crushing Balaam’s foot against it. So he beat the donkey again.

²⁶ Then the Messenger of Yahweh moved on ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn, either to the right or to the left. ²⁷ When the donkey saw the Messenger of Yahweh, it lay down under Balaam, and he was angry and beat it with his staff. ²⁸ Then Yahweh opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?” ²⁹ Balaam answered the donkey, “You have made a fool of me! If only I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now.” ³⁰ The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?” “No,” he said. ³¹ Then Yahweh opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the Messenger of Yahweh standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown.

³² The Messenger of Yahweh asked him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me. ³³ The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If it had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared it.” ³⁴ Balaam said to the Messenger of Yahweh, “I have sinned. I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now if you are displeased, I will go back.” ³⁵ The Messenger of Yahweh said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but speak only what I tell you.” So Balaam went with Balak’s officials. (Numbers 22:21-35)

Here again we see the juxtaposition of God (Yahweh) and the Messenger of Yahweh, the One, Yahweh, being who Balaam speaks with, and the other, the Messenger of Yahweh, being the One who physically shows Himself to Balaam and his donkey as an agent of judgment. In a fascinating partnership, the Messenger of Yahweh opposes Balaam, though initially invisible to Balaam and visible only to Balaam’s donkey, then Yahweh open’s Balaam’s eyes to see the Messenger of Yahweh. Balaam bows to the Messenger of Yahweh and confesses his sin to Him, and the Messenger of Yahweh tells him to go to Balak but to speak only what the Messenger of Yahweh will tell him to speak.

Then, when Balaam reaches Balak:

⁴ God met with him, and Balaam said, “I have prepared seven altars, and on each altar I have offered a bull and a ram.” ⁵ Yahweh put a word in Balaam’s mouth and said, “Go back to Balak and give him this word.” (Numbers 23:4,5)

The God who meets with Balaam is Yahweh-on-earth, the Messenger of Yahweh, who interacts with humans in physical form at the behest of Yahweh-in-heaven. This Yahweh-on-earth stood in Balaam’s way as he moved in disobedience. Is God standing in the way of your route to sin?