Numbers 22:28
“Yahweh opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?””
What does Numbers 22:28 mean?
A donkey speaks to Balaam, asking why he's beaten her when she's done nothing wrong. This happens because the donkey can see an angel blocking the road (which Balaam cannot see), and she's been trying to protect him by stopping and turning aside. When God opens the donkey's mouth, Balaam finally hears the truth: his own anger has blinded him to what's actually happening around him. It's a humbling moment wrapped in unexpected humor. The donkey, an animal without human understanding, suddenly makes more sense than the man who's supposed to be a prophet. Sometimes the people (and creatures) closest to us see what we're too frustrated or stubborn to notice, and it takes something remarkable to make us listen.