Growing up in church I have probably heard almost every lesson, sermon, topic you can imagine. Being a pastor I feel like I have already preached on almost every topic, lesson, etc...Isn’t the beauty of Scripture that it is alive and active so it is always relevant and able to teach, correct and rebuke? So then it is safe to say that we also find something “new” each time we read it if we are paying attention.
This morning I was listening to my reading plan through the Old Testament while getting ready. Today’s readings were in Numbers 22-23. I am currently primarily using the Christian Standard Bible version and something stood out to me that I hadn’t ever noticed or paid attention to before. I decided that I wanted to look at other versions to see if the same words were used.
“But God was incensed that Balaam was going, and the angel of the Lord took his stand on the path to oppose him. Balaam was riding his donkey, and his two servants were with him. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing on the path with a drawn sword in his hand, she turned off the path and went into the field. So Balaam hit her to return her to the path. Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow passage between the vineyards, with a stone wall on either side. The donkey saw the angel of the Lord and pressed herself against the wall, squeezing Balaam’s foot against it. So he hit her once again. The angel of the Lord went ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn to the right or the left. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she crouched down under Balaam. So he became furious and beat the donkey with his stick. Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and she asked Balaam, “What have I done to you that you have beaten me these three times?” Balaam answered the donkey, “You made me look like a fool. If I had a sword in my hand, I’d kill you now!” But the donkey said, “Am I not the donkey you’ve ridden all your life until today? Have I ever treated you this way before?” “No,” he replied. Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the path with a drawn sword in his hand. Balaam knelt low and bowed in worship on his face.”
Numbers 22:22-31 CSB
I literally could not think of a time I have ever heard the donkey referred to by a pronoun! I went back and read this passage in the NIV, ESV, NLT and the NKJV. The only other version that uses a gender specific pronoun is NKJV. I am not saying that it is a crucial detail or that it changes anything of this part of history but simply that I find it very interesting!
Have you ever experienced a moment like that when you read scripture? I would love to know! Share in a comment below about a time something you have read many times suddenly caught your attention in a new way.
Comments