Numbers 22:28

28. The Lord opened the mouth of the ass These words irresistibly compel the conclusion that the animal was the direct object of the divine operation. Peter’s statement, (2 Peter 2:16,) that “the dumb ass speaking with man’s voice forbade the madness of the prophet,” is a strong affirmation of a real utterance. No other narrative in the Bible has given rise to so much dispute, ridicule, and false exposition. Every scoffer at the Holy Scriptures delights in a ride upon Balaam’s ass. The ridicule is all the more piquant by reason of the general estimation of Master Long-ear by the western nations as the ideal of absurdity and stupidity an estimation of which there is not the least trace among the Orientals, especially in antiquity.