Balaam Saddles His Donkey While Abraham Rose First for the Akedah

Midrash Tanchuma Buber, Balak 11:4

Curated by Arthur·Translated by Maggid (Beta)·

(Numbers 22:20:) "BUT ONLY THE THING [THAT I SHALL SPEAK TO YOU, THAT SHALL YOU DO]." This teaches you that he went with a warning. Immediately he rose early in the morning. (Numbers 22:21:) "AND BALAAM ROSE IN THE MORNING AND SADDLED HIS (he-ass) [she-ass]." Now did he not have a male slave or a female slave? Rather, it was that hatred of Israel came first with him, and he stood up with zeal, he himself. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: "Wicked one! Abraham their father has already preceded you at the binding of Isaac his son, (Genesis 22:3:) 'AND ABRAHAM ROSE EARLY IN THE MORNING' and so forth."

Themes

AbrahamAnimalsSacrificeHumorWit

Biblical References

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Midrash AggadahWhy Abraham Rose Early and Saddled His Own Donkey for the AkedahWhen the word came to bind his son, Abraham did not wait. The verse says he rose early in the morning, and the sages saw in this a rule for all righteous peopleBook of JubileesAbraham's OfferingThat feeling is ancient. It’s woven right into the stories we tell about our ancestors. the story turns to one such moment with Abraham, from the Book of JubileBook of JubileesAbram and the PatriarchsWe catch glimpses of it in the text, but sometimes, we need a little help filling in the blanks. That's where texts like the Book of Jubilees come in. The Book Book of JubileesThe Binding of Isaac Retold in JubileesBook of Jubilees turns to The Binding of Isaac Retold in Jubilees. The familiar version gives us the basic story from Genesis 22. God commands Abraham to sacrifBook of JubileesIshmael's Sons Settle East of Abraham's LandIt tells us that Abraham, wise as he was, gave Ishmael and his sons, along with the sons of Keturah, gifts before sending them off. He then bequeathed everythinBook of JubileesAbraham — Jacob Among the FathersThat tension, that pull in different directions, is something our ancestors wrestled with too. to a fascinating, and perhaps a little uncomfortable, passage fro