Why the Angel Avenged Balaam's Donkey on the Road

Midrash Tanchuma Buber, Balak 14:3

Curated by Arthur·Translated by Maggid (Beta)·

(Numbers 22:32:) "And the angel of the LORD said to him," etc. (ibid., ibid., verse 32). Was it for the affront of the she-ass that the angel came to seek satisfaction at his hand? He said to him: If, for the she-ass, which has no merit of its own and no merit of ancestors, I was commanded to demand satisfaction for its affront from your hand, then for an entire nation that you come to uproot, how much more so!

Themes

Divine JusticeAnimalsAngelsTimeHeaven

Biblical References

Continue Reading

Book of TobitTobiyyah and the AngelsBook of Tobit turns to Tobiyyah and the Angels. She's not just pacing the floor; she's literally sitting on the highway, her eyes fixed on the horizon. Can you Legends of the JewsAngel of the LordLegends of the Jews turns to Angel of the Lord. The passage takes us on a journey, a spiritual ascent through the heavens. "I entered the first heaven," the texPirkei DeRabbi EliezerThe Calendar Was Fixed Before Creation ItselfThe tradition I'm talking about comes from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating early medieval text filled with aggadic (story-based) expansions on biblical naMidrash Tanchuma Buber, VayeraWhy Two Angels Came to Sodom Only After JudgmentWhat does it mean that God "is One, and whatever His soul desires, He does"? Rabbi Papyas read it as raw power: God stands alone, none can protest, so He simplyLegends of the JewsSandalfon the Angel Too Vast to ComprehendThe familiar picture has them singing sweetly, but some legends paint a far more dramatic, awe-inspiring picture. Take the story of SANDALFON, an angel so immenMidrash Tanchuma Buber, BalakWhy the Angel Blocked Balaam's Donkey Three TimesWhen Balaam rode out to curse Israel, the angel of the LORD did not bar his path all at once. Three times it planted itself before the donkey, and the rabbis as