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Antiquities of the Jews by Flavius Josephus
page 235 of 1683 (13%)
that he was himself very willing and desirous to comply with
their request, but informed them that God was opposite to his
intentions, even that God who had raised him to great reputation
on account of the truth of his predictions; for that this army,
which they entreated him to come and curse, was in the favor of
God; on which account he advised them to go home again, and not
to persist in their enmity against the Israelites; and when he
had given them that answer, he dismissed the ambassadors.

3. Now the Midianites, at the earnest request and fervent
entreaties of Balak, sent other ambassadors to Balaam, who,
desiring to gratify the men, inquired again of God; but he was
displeased at [second] trial (8) and bid him by no means to
contradict the ambassadors. Now Balsam did not imagine that God
gave this injunction in order to deceive him, so he went along
with the ambassadors; but when the divine angel met him in the
way, when he was in a narrow passage, and hedged in with a wall
on both sides, the ass on which Balaam rode understood that it
was a divine spirit that met him, and thrust Balaam to one of the
walls, without regard to the stripes which Balaam, when he was
hurt by the wall, gave her; but when the ass, upon the angel's
continuing to distress her, and upon the stripes which were given
her, fell down, by the will of God, she made use of the voice of
a man, and complained of Balaam as acting unjustly to her; that
whereas he had no fault find with her in her former service to
him, he now inflicted stripes upon her, as not understanding that
she was hindered from serving him in what he was now going about,
by the providence of God. And when he was disturbed by reason of
the voice of the ass, which was that of a man, the angel plainly
appeared to him, and blamed him for the stripes he had given his
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