Numbers 22:28

Then the LORD opened the donkey’s mouth, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you that you have beaten me these three times?”

BSB

Parallel translations

4 additional translations

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KJV

And the Lord opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?

ASV

And Jehovah opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?

YLT

And Jehovah openeth the mouth of the ass, and she saith to Balaam, `What have I done to thee that thou hast smitten me these three times?'

DBT

And Jehovah opened the mouth of the ass, and she said to Balaam, What have I done to thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?

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Commentary voices

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Voices5

On this verse

I marvel at Balaam's ass and heap blessings on it, because it was worthy not only to see the angel of God but even to have its mouth opened and break into human speech.

Origen of Alexandria· HOMILIES ON THE GOSPEL OF LUKE 14:9, 253patristic

Related commentary

And the Lord opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam,....

John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)reformed

The Lord opened the mouth of the ass - And where is the wonder of all this? If the ass had opened her own mouth, and reproved the rash prophet, we might well be astonished; but when God opens the mouth, an ass can speak as well as a man. It is worthy of remark here, that Balaam testifies no surprise at this miracle, because he saw it was the Lords doing.

Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible, 1832evangelical

I have sinned . . . if it displease thee, I will get me back again--Notwithstanding this confession, he evinced no spirit of penitence, as he speaks of desisting only from the outward act. The words "go with the men" was a mere withdrawal of further restraint, but the terms in which leave was given are more absolute and peremptory than those in Nu 22:20.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, 1871reformed

This was a great miracle, quite above the power of nature, and wrought by the power of the God of nature, who made man's mouth, and taught him to speak, for otherwise (since we learn to speak purely by imitation, and therefore those that are born deaf are consequently dumb) the first man would never have spoken, nor any of his seed.

Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible, 1710puritan

Voices on this verse

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Rabbinic commentary

How the Hebraic tradition has read this verse — and Marcus Brown’s own reading of it.

Cross-references

11 linked verses

The verses this one reaches11

2 Peter 2:16
But he was rebuked for his transgression by a donkey, otherwise without speech, that spoke with a man’s voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.
Proverbs 12:10
A righteous man regards the life of his animal, but the tender mercies of the wicked are only cruelty.
Luke 1:37
For no word from God will ever fail.”
Exodus 4:11
And the LORD said to him, “Who gave man his mouth? Or who makes the mute or the deaf, the sighted or the blind? Is it not I, the LORD?
1 Corinthians 9:9
For it is written in the Law of Moses: “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” Is it about oxen that God is concerned?
2 Peter 2:15
They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved the wages of wickedness.
1 Corinthians 1:19
For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”
Numbers 22:32
The angel of the LORD asked him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out to oppose you, because your way is perverse before me.
John 11:51
Caiaphas did not say this on his own. Instead, as high priest that year, he was prophesying that Jesus would die for the nation,
Romans 8:22
We know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until the present time.
Genesis 3:1
Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field that the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’”

Cross-references

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The quotation web

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The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first — the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
Luke 1:37
For no word from God will ever fail.”
leads to
- Matthew 19:26
  Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
- Jeremiah 32:27
  “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is anything too difficult for Me?
- Mark 10:27
  Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.”
- Jeremiah 32:17
  “Oh, Lord GOD! You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too difficult for You!
- Luke 18:27
  But Jesus said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.”
Through
1 Corinthians 1:19
For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”
leads to
- Isaiah 29:14
  Therefore I will again confound these people with wonder upon wonder. The wisdom of the wise will vanish, and the intelligence of the intelligent will be hidden.”
- Jeremiah 8:9
  The wise will be put to shame; they will be dismayed and trapped. Since they have rejected the word of the LORD, what wisdom do they really have?
- 1 Corinthians 3:19
  For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.”

The whole web at once: see the Arc.

Where the connections lead

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