“”So the next morning, Balaam got up, saddled his donkey, and started off with the Moabite officials. But God was angry that Balaam was going, so He sent the angle of the Lord to stand in the road to block his way. As Balaam and the two servants were riding along, Balaam’s donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand. The donkey bolted off the road into a field, but Balaam beat it and turned it back onto the road. Then the angel of the Lord stood at a place where the road narrowed between the two vineyard walls. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it tried to squeeze by and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall. so Balaam beat the donkey again. Then the angel of the Lord moved farther down and stood in a place too narrow for the donkey to get by at all. This time when the donkey saw the angel, it lay down under Balaam. In a fit of rage, Balsam beat the animal again with his staff.
Then the Lord gave the donkey the ability to speak. “What have I done to you that deserves you beating me three times?” it asked Balaam.
“You have made me look like a fool,” Balaam shouted. “If I had a sword with me, I would kill you!”
“But I am the same donkey you have ridden all your life,” the donkey answered “Have I ever done anything like this before?”
“No” Balaam admitted.
Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing the roadway with a drawn sword in his hand. Balaam bowed his head and fell face down on the ground before him. “”(Numbers 22: ff. 21-31, NLT)