Numbers 22 tells the story of Balak, king of Moab, who hires the prophet Balaam to curse the Israelites, and of the journey that follows, including the talking donkey and the angel standing in the road. These questions are for small groups, Sunday classes, and personal study. Each set moves from what the text says, to what it means, to how it shapes everyday faithfulness.
Numbers 22 at a Glance
The chapter opens with Israel camped on the plains of Moab and Balak growing afraid. He sends messengers with payment to bring Balaam to curse the people. Balaam asks God, is told not to go, sends the messengers home, and then, after a second and more tempting request, is permitted to go but only to speak what God gives him.
The road scene is the center of the chapter. God’s anger rises, an angel blocks the path, the donkey swerves three times, and Balaam beats her. God opens the donkey’s mouth, then Balaam’s eyes. The chapter closes with Balak meeting Balaam and taking him up to see part of the people, setting up the blessings that follow in Numbers 23 and 24.
Observation Questions
Use these at the start of the session to make sure everyone has read the text carefully before anyone offers an interpretation. Ask one question at a time, let several people answer, and resist explaining until the observations are on the table.
Numbers 22:12
God said to Balaam, “You shall not go with them. You shall not curse the people; for they are blessed.”
(WEB)
This is God’s clear answer to Balaam’s first request. Reading it aloud at the start of the session gives the group the central command of the first half of the chapter, and sets up the question of why God later permits the trip.
Numbers 22:20
God came to Balaam at night, and said to him, “If the men have come to call you, rise up, go with them; but only the word which I speak to you, that you shall do.”
(WEB)
Read this to show the shift from refusal to permission. It is important for understanding that God’s later words are limited, and that the instruction to speak only what he gives is repeated.
Numbers 22:28
The LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”
(WEB)
The moment the donkey speaks is one of the most memorable in Scripture. Reading it aloud lets the group hear the simple, gentle question the donkey asks, which often changes how people think about the whole scene.
Numbers 22:31-33
31 Then the LORD opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the LORD’s angel standing in the way, with his sword drawn in his hand; and he bowed his head, and fell on his face. 32 The LORD’s angel said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out as an adversary, because your way is perverse before me. 33 The donkey saw me, and turned away before me these three times. Unless she had turned away from me, surely now I would have killed you, and saved her alive.”
(WEB)
This passage is where Balaam finally sees and the angel explains his perverse way. Reading it aloud helps the group connect the earlier road scene with God’s view of Balaam’s heart.
Numbers 22:38
Balaam said to Balak, “Behold, I have come to you. Have I now any power at all to speak anything? The word that God puts in my mouth, that shall I speak.”
(WEB)
Balaam’s answer to Balak sums up the chapter’s theme of whose word governs. Read it at the close of the session so the group leaves with that line in mind as they move toward the blessings in the next chapters.
Memory Verse for Numbers 22
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, we come to you having read the story of Balaam, who heard your clear word and still wanted his own way. Search our hearts where we are tempted to keep asking until we get the answer we prefer. Open our eyes, as you opened Balaam’s, to see the people and situations you place in our path, including the ones we would overlook. Teach us to speak only what you have given us to say, and to trust your word more than any reward or pressure. Thank you that you are faithful even when we are slow to listen. Give each of us courage this week to turn toward your will. Amen.
