Parshat Balak4 min read

God Always Came to Foreign Prophets at Night and Never to Israel's

The Torah says God came to Balaam at night, and Midrash Tanchuma turned that scheduling detail into a verdict on the nature of prophecy itself.

Curated by Arthur · Told by Maggid ·
Table of Contents
  1. One Detail That Could Have Passed Without Comment
  2. Night Is When God Reckons with Israel's Enemies
  3. Balaam Was Not Worthy of the Daytime
  4. How Israel's Prophets Received the Word
  5. What This Says About the Donkey

One Detail That Could Have Passed Without Comment

The Torah says God came unto Balaam at night (Numbers 22:20). It could have passed without comment. A person has a vision; the vision happens at night; the story continues. The Midrash stopped, asked why, and produced a catalog that reframes the entire history of divine communication.

The reason, in Midrash Tanchuma, Balak 8, has two parts, and they build on each other.

Night Is When God Reckons with Israel's Enemies

The first reason: night is the hour God reserves for exacting retribution on behalf of Israel. The Tanchuma assembles the evidence across all of scripture in a single sweep. God appeared to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night (Genesis 31:24) to warn him against harming Jacob. God appeared to Abimelech in a dream at night (Genesis 20:3) to tell him that taking Sarah was a capital offense. Abraham deployed his forces against the four kings at night (Genesis 14:15). The tenth plague fell in the middle of the night (Exodus 12:29).

Night in this reading is not simply when people sleep. Night is the hour reserved for reckoning. Every major divine intervention against those who threatened Israel happened after dark. The Tanchuma anchors this to Exodus 12:42: that was for the Lord a night of vigil. The vigil is ongoing. Every night carries the potential of being the night God acts.

Balaam Was Not Worthy of the Daytime

The second reason is harder and more pointed. Balaam was not worthy of receiving the divine spirit except at night. The Tanchuma states it plainly: God speaks at night with all the prophets of the nations. Not with Israel's prophets. With the nations'.

Job provides the verse that seals it (Job 4:13): in thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on men. That is how divine communication reaches the non-Israelite prophets: through sleep, through the passive receptivity of unconsciousness, through the loosened grip of a mind not fully in command of itself. The nations' prophets receive their communications when they are least themselves.

How Israel's Prophets Received the Word

Legends of the Jews elaborates what the midrash implies. The contrast with Israel's prophecy is absolute. Moses received his communications not in dreams but in full wakefulness, at noon, standing, with his mind intact. The divine communication came to him not through the dissolution of consciousness but through its elevation. The distinction is not about the content of what was communicated. It is about the condition of the receiver.

Balaam was a genuine prophet. His oracles were genuine prophecies. God used him to speak truths Balak did not want to hear. But the mode of reception, the night visit, the approach through sleep and vision, placed him in a different category from the prophets of Israel. He received the word as the nations' prophets received it: through the passivity of sleep, not through the clarity of waking encounter.

What This Says About the Donkey

Bamidbar Rabbah, reading the story of Balaam's donkey, notes that the angel blocked the path while Balaam was riding, and asks why. The angel of the Lord is normally an angel of mercy. Why does mercy become an obstacle? Because mercy takes different forms at different moments. The angel blocking Balaam's path was preventing a worse outcome, not punishing a good intention. Balaam's two servants, present throughout, are read by the midrash as representatives of his divided nature: one who understood and one who did not, present at every juncture of the journey but never fully comprehending what was happening on the road.

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The texts this telling draws on, in full. Open a card to read inline, or expand it for a wider, quieter read.

Midrash Tanchuma, Balak 8Midrash Tanchuma

(Numb. 22:20:) “Then God came unto Balaam at night.” This text is related (to Exod. 12:42), “That was for the Lord a night of vigil.” All miracles which were done for Israel and which involved exacting retribution for them from the wicked took place at night: (Gen. 31:24:) “And God came unto Laban the Aramean in a dream at night.” And it is written (in Gen. 20:3:) “But God came unto Abimelech in a dream at night.” And it is written (in (Gen. 14:15), “And he deployed at night.” And it is written (in Exod. 12:29), “And it came to pass in the middle of the night.” And so [it was with] all of them. Another interpretation: Why did he reveal himself to Balaam by night? He was not worthy of [receiving] the holy spirit [except at night]. Since He speaks at night with all the prophets of the nations, as stated (in (Job 4:1)3), “In opinions from night visions.” And so Eliphaz says (in (Job 4:1)3), “In a dream, a vision of the night,” about [Balaam’s] speaking with him at night. (Numb. 22:20, cont.) “If these men have come to invite you, arise and go with them.” From here you learn that in the way that a man wants to go, in it is he driven. As at first it was said to him (in Numb. 22:12), “Do not go with them.” As soon as he had become defiant, he went. As so is it written about him (in Numb. 22:22), “But God's anger was kindled because he was going.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “I do not desire the death of the wicked. [But] in as much as you want to be obliterated from the world, ‘arise and go with them.’” And it is written (in Numb. 22:20, cont.), “but only the thing [that I tell you are you to do].” [These words are] to teach you that he went with a warning. Immediately he got up early in the morning, as stated (in vs. 21), “So Balaam arose early in the morning, saddled his she-ass, [and went with the princes of Moab].” Did he not have a male or female slave [to saddle his donkey]? It was simply that his hatred for Israel was so great that he beat [his servant] to it and arose quickly all by himself. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “You wicked man! Their ancestor Abraham has already anticipated you at the binding of his son Isaac,” as stated (in Gen. 22:3), “So Abraham arose early in the morning, saddled his he-ass.” (Numb. 22:21, cont.) “And went with the princes of Moab.” [These words are] to teach you that he was as glad at the tribulation of Israel as they were. (Numb. 22:22:) “But God's anger was kindled because he was going, and the angel of the Lord took a stand [in the road as his adversary (satan)].” He was an angel of mercy, but to [Balaam] he had become an adversary (satan). And so he said [unto] Balaam, “You have caused me to practice a craft that is not my own, as stated (Numb. 22:32), “here I have come out as an adversary (satan).” (Numb. 22:22, cont.) “And two of his servant boys were with him.” This is customary for one going out on the road. It is necessary for two to attend him. Then in turn they attend each other. (Numb. 22:23:) “Now the she-ass saw the angel of the Lord and a sword was drawn in his hand.” Was not the angel able to breathe on him and take away his spirit unless he drew his sword? And look at what is written about Sennacherib (in II (Kings 19:35) = Is. 37:36 // II Chron. 32:21.), “the angel of the Lord went out and smote [one hundred and eighty-five thousand] in the camp of Assyria.” [It is also written (in Is. 40:24),] “he blows on them and they wither.” However, he said to him, “[Skill with] the mouth was given to Jacob, as stated (in Gen. 27:22), ‘The voice is the voice of Jacob.’ And [skill with] the hands to Esau, as stated (in Gen. 27:40), ‘Upon your sword shall you live.’ All the nations all live by the sword. Now you are trading off your craft and coming against them with their [craft]. I also am coming against you with your own [craft].” (Numb. 22:24:) “Then the angel of the Lord stood in a lane between the vineyards.” Could he not have gone after him into the field? It is simply that this is the nature of the Holy One, blessed be He. When a king of flesh and blood sends an executioner to kill a particular person, he goes after him for many days, so that this person who has incurred the penalty of death [continues] eating and drinking, while the executioner goes after him from place to place. With the Holy One, blessed be He, however, it is not like that. Rather the executioner is in his place and whoever has incurred the penalty of death comes to him of his own accord. So that the angel would not be bothered with going after Balaam, he simply went ahead of him on the road, for it is so written (ibid.), “Then the angel of the Lord stood in a lane between the vineyards.” He said to him, “Shall the vineyards (i.e., Israel) be given over to the foxes?” (Numb. 22:24, cont.) “With a wall on one side and a wall on the other side.” You cannot prevail against them, because in their hand (according to Exod. 32:15) are tablets of stone, written [on both their sides], on the one side and on the other side they are written. (Numb. 22:25-26:) “When the she-ass saw the angel of the Lord, she was pressed [against the wall and pressed Balaam's foot against the wall; so he struck it again]. Then the angel of the Lord moved forward again [and stood in a place so narrow that there was no room to turn aside to the right or to the left].” What reason did he have to go ahead of him three times? He showed him here symbols of the [three] patriarchs. When he stood before him the first time, there was space on one side and on the other, [as stated] (in Numb. 22:23), “so the she-ass turned aside from the road.” On the second occasion she could only move to one side. On the third occasion (according to Numb. 22:26) “there was no room to turn aside to the right or to the left.” So what do the symbols mean? If he ever sought to curse the Children of Abraham, he would find the Children of Ishmael and the Children of Keturah on one side and on the other. [If] he sought to curse the Children of Isaac, he would find the Children of Esau on one side, and (according to Numb. 22:25) “she was pressed against the (one) wall.” In the case of the Children of Jacob, however, he found among them no residue through which to touch them. It is therefore written about the third occasion (in vs. 26), “in a narrow (‘zar) place.” This is Jacob, as stated (in Genesis 32:8), “Jacob was very frightened and [it] distressed (ye‘zer) him.”

(Numb. 22:26:) “There was no room to turn aside to the right or to the left.” As there was no residue in any of his sons. (Numb. 22:27:) “When the she-ass saw the angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam, [so Balaam's anger was kindled, and he struck the she-ass with a stick (mql)],” because of the shame with which she had shamed him.

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Bamidbar Rabbah 20:13Bamidbar Rabbah

The verse tells us, "God's wrath was enflamed because he was going, and the angel of the Lord stood on the way as an impediment to him, and he was riding on his donkey, and his two lads were with him" (Numbers 22:22). It seems God is angry with Balaam and sends an angel to block his path. But Bamidbar Rabbah dives deeper. It asks a crucial question: Why would an "angel of the Lord," presumably an angel of mercy, become an obstacle?

The Rabbis teach us that it wasn't just any angel, but an angel of mercy transformed into an impediment. Why the transformation? What does this tell us about Balaam's journey, and about the nature of divine intervention itself? Was this meant to protect Balaam?

Then there's the detail about Balaam's two lads. "His two lads were with him," the text notes. Bamidbar Rabbah comments that "this is the way of the world, that a person who sets out on the way needs two to serve him, and they then serve one another." It’s a small detail, but it speaks to the human need for companionship and assistance, even – perhaps especially – when we're on a mission. It reminds us that we're rarely truly alone on our journeys, even if we feel like we are.

The real head-scratcher comes when the donkey sees the angel. "The donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing on the road, and his sword was drawn in his hand, and the donkey turned from the road, and went into the field. Bilam struck the donkey, to turn it to the road" (Numbers 22:23).

Okay, so an angel with a sword. Dramatic. But Bamidbar Rabbah asks a brilliant question: why the sword? Couldn’t the angel have simply used divine power, a celestial nudge, to stop Balaam? After all, we see examples of angels using just that kind of raw power elsewhere in the Bible. The text references Sennacherib’s army in (Isaiah 37:36): "An angel of the Lord came out and smote…in the camp of Assyria." And (Isaiah 40:24) describes God blowing on them, causing them to wither. So why the drawn sword now?

The answer, according to Bamidbar Rabbah, is a powerful lesson about the nature of power itself. The angel is making a statement. He is saying to Balaam: "The mouth is granted to Jacob," referring to the power of blessing and speech. As (Genesis 27:22) says, "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau." Esau was promised, "You shall live by your sword" (Genesis 27:40). The text is saying that all the nations derive their power from the sword, and the Jewish people derive their power from communication with God.

The angel's point is this: Balaam, you are a prophet, skilled in words and blessings (and curses). Why are you trying to use the ways of other nations? The angel is meeting Balaam on his own terms. "I, too, will come upon you with yours: 'And his sword was drawn in his hand.'" It's a confrontation, a challenge to Balaam's very identity and purpose.

So, what can we take away from this? It's a reminder that the obstacles we face might not always be what they seem. Sometimes, they're not punishments but rather redirections, opportunities to realign ourselves with our true purpose. And sometimes, the universe uses the very tools we wield against ourselves to show us a different way. It's a powerful reminder to consider the source of our own power, and whether we are using it in alignment with our values and our calling. What "sword" are we wielding, and is it truly ours to wield?

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Legends of the Jews 6:18Legends of the Jews

Remember him? Balak, the King of Moab, was terrified of the Israelites and their growing power. So, he sent messengers to Balaam, hoping he could curse them.

The story takes a twist when Balaam asks God for permission to go. Initially, God says no. But, after further prodding, God relents, saying, "Go, but only do what I tell you." (Numbers 22:20). Now, you’d think Balaam would be a bit hesitant. But according to Ginzberg's retelling in Legends of the Jews, Balaam could hardly wait for morning! He was rejoicing, almost as much as Balak's messengers, at this apparent "go-ahead" from God. He was still hoping, against all good advice, that he would succeed in bringing disaster upon Israel.

In his eagerness to get going, Balaam actually saddled his own donkey! Now, Balaam wasn't exactly lacking in servants, you know? He was a pretty important guy. So why was he doing it himself?

The text sees this as a moment of extreme hubris and twisted ambition. God, seeing this, remarks (Legends of the Jews), "O thou villain, their ancestor Abraham forestalled thee, for he too rose up early in the morning and in person saddled his ass to lead Isaac to sacrifice in fulfillment of the command that had reached him." for a second. Abraham, our patriarch, the epitome of faith and devotion, also rose early and saddled his own donkey. But what a difference in intention! Abraham was preparing to fulfill God's command, a heartbreaking test of his loyalty. Balaam, on the other hand, was driven by his own desire for power and, perhaps, a bit of personal gain.

It’s a fascinating comparison, isn't it? Two men, seemingly doing the same action – saddling a donkey early in the morning – yet driven by such vastly different motivations. It really makes you think about the intentions behind our own actions, doesn't it? Are we acting out of devotion and a desire to do good, or are we, perhaps, driven by something a little less…pure? Something to ponder,.

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Midrash Aggadah, Numbers 12:6Midrash Aggadah

"If there be a prophet among you, the Lord make Myself known unto him in a vision, I do speak with him in a dream" (Numbers 12:6). He does not speak with him by day, but at night and in a dream. And it is not made known to him in a vision that he is seeing Me; rather, it appears to him as if he sees Me, yet he does not see Me, but only as one who is dreaming, and it appears to him that he is dreaming.

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