Texts in Conversation
In Numbers 22, Balaam's speaking donkey shares the storytelling device found in Ugarit's speaking mare, giving an animal a role in seeking or recognizing divine help.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
KTU 1.100:2
Cuneiform Texts from Ugarit
Ancient Near East
The mother of the stallion, the mare, daughter of the spring, daughter of the stone, daughter of heaven and the deep, calls to Shapshu her mother: "Shapshu, mother, carry my message to El at the source of the two rivers, at the meeting of the two deeps: My spell for the bite of the snake, the venomous snake, the snake […]. From it let the charmer destroy, from it let him cast out the venom." Then he binds the snake, feeds the snake […], sets out a chair and sits. She calls to Shapshu her mother: "Shapshu, mother, carry my message to Baal on the heights of Sapan: My spell for the bite of the snake, the venomous snake, the snake […]. From it let the charmer destroy, from it let him cast out the venom." Then he binds the snake, feeds the snake […], sets out a chair and sits.
Numbers 22:28
Hebrew Bible
28 Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you that you have beaten me these three times?” 29 And Balaam said to the donkey, “You have made me look stupid; I wish there were a sword in my hand, for I would kill you right now.” 30 The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey that you have ridden ever since I was yours until this day? Have I ever attempted to treat you this way?” And he said, “No.” 31 Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way with his sword drawn in his hand; so he bowed his head and threw himself down with his face to the ground.
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Notes and References
“... The observation that the Balaam tradition features animals with speech ca-
pabilities should not be surprising in the light of other instances in ancient
Near Eastern literature. 195 In fact, numerous texts are now known to contain
references to talking animals. 196 Of particular interest are texts that feature
equids or birds in speaking roles. 197 Texts featuring talking animals are found
in Egyptian, Hittite, Ugaritic, Aramaic, Akkadian, and Sumerian literature, and
they are usually classified under the generic categories of fable, tale, proverb,
195. Additional examples of talking animals include cows, bulls, oxen, horses,
mules, onagers, cats, lions, panthers, leopards, bears, goats, gazelles, lambs, ewes,
dogs, wolves, foxes, elephants, pigs, monkeys, mice, mongooses, eagles, herons, wrens,
swallows, geese, ravens, worms, turtles, crocodiles, serpents, fish, mosquitoes, and so
on. For the relevant texts, see COS 1.39, 1.40, 1.57, 1.59, 1.131, 1.178, 1.180, 1.182,
2.12:62; ANET 40, 100–101, 427–30; Alster 1997: 58–59, 106, 121, 126, 128–31,
132–37, 139–40, 142–43, 166–68, 169–73, 220, 262, 288, 291, 299, 306–8, 314, 317,
330; Lambert 1960: 175–209, 216–21; Lichtheim 1976: 202, cf. p. 169; 1980: 156–59,
203; Kramer 1959: 127–35; Ritner 2003: 494–96; cf. Genesis 3. For further discussion
on the topic of talking animals, see Ashley 1993: 457–58; BBCOT 161; Gordon 1967:
58–59; Gray 1912: 334; Savran 1994: 33–41 (esp. n. 17), 54; Walton 2001: 45–46,
211–12; Williams 1956: 5, 12–23.
196. Egyptian literature has at least six texts (Book of the Dead Spell #125,
“Doomed Prince,” “Two Brothers,” “Shipwrecked Sailor,” Demotic Papyrus I 384
17:9–18:33, “Swallow and the Sea”). Sumerian literature has at least four texts (“Heron
and the Turtle,” “Disputation between Ewe and Wheat,” “Disputation between Bird
and Fish,” “Enki and Ninhursanga”) as well as numerous fables and proverbs (cf. Al-
ster 1997: 58–59, 106, 121, 126, 128–31, 132–37, 139–40, 142–43, 166–68, 169–73,
220, 262, 288, 291, 299, 306–8, 314, 317, 330; Kramer 1959: 127–35). Biblical, Hit-
tite, and Aramaic literature all provide at least two texts each (Genesis 3, Numbers 22,
“Sun God and the Cow,” “Wrath of Telipinu,” “Proverbs of Ahiqar,” DAPT). Ugaritic
literature has at least one text (Ḥôrānu and the Mare [KTU 1.100]). Akkadian literature
has at least six texts (“Incantation against Toothache,” “Etana,” “Ox and the Horse,”
“Fable of the Fox,” “Fable of the Riding-Donkey,” “Popular Sayings [Animal Fables]”).
For some passing references to talking animals in this chapter, see §§2.1.1.3, 2.2.1.4,
2.2.2.2, 2.4.3, 2.5.2. ...”
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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