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Did the animals talk?

calm

Active Member
The Torah says:
Numbers 22:28
And the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me three times? And Balaam said unto the donkey, Because thou hast mocked me: if there were a sword in mine hand, I would have slain thee now. And the donkey said unto Balaam, Am I not thy donkey, upon which thou hast ridden from thy youth unto this day? Was I ever in the habit of doing this to you? And he said, No.


God opened the mouth of a donkey and then she spoke? Does it mean, that animals did once talk and God closed their mouths? Does this confirm a part of the "Lesser Genesis" where it is written :
On that day all the wild animals, the cattle, the birds and everything that walks and moves fell silent;
for they had all spoken with one lip and one tongue.


And does it also confirm that the serpent in the garden of Eden was really a talking serpent?

Talking animals, isn't that incredible?
 
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sooda

Veteran Member
Numeri 22:28
And the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me three times? And Balaam said unto the donkey, Because thou hast mocked me: if there were a sword in mine hand, I would have slain thee now. And the donkey said unto Balaam, Am I not thy donkey, upon which thou hast ridden from thy youth unto this day? Was I ever in the habit of doing this to you? And he said, No.


God opened the mouth of a donkey and then she spoke? Does it mean, that animals did once talk and God closed their mouths? Does this confirm a part of the "Lesser Genesis" where it is written :

On that day all the wild animals, the cattle, the birds and everything that walks and moves fell silent;
for they had all spoken with one lip and one tongue.


And does it also confirm that the serpent in the garden of Eden was really a talking serpent?


Talking animals, isn't that incredible?

Mythology is fun.
 

SalixIncendium

अग्निविलोवनन्दः
Staff member
Premium Member
Aesop's animals also talked and Aesop's Fables were written by a Greek slave around the same time.. 650 BC.

There are lots of stories of talking animals, even donkeys...


I see all of them as just that...stories.
 

RabbiO

הרב יונה בן זכריה
There are lots of stories of talking animals, even donkeys...

I see all of them as just that...stories.
Shrek isn’t real??

The next thing I know you’ll be saying that elves aren’t really baking those cookies in that tree in Illinois!
 

exchemist

Veteran Member
The Torah says:
Numeri 22:28
And the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me three times? And Balaam said unto the donkey, Because thou hast mocked me: if there were a sword in mine hand, I would have slain thee now. And the donkey said unto Balaam, Am I not thy donkey, upon which thou hast ridden from thy youth unto this day? Was I ever in the habit of doing this to you? And he said, No.


God opened the mouth of a donkey and then she spoke? Does it mean, that animals did once talk and God closed their mouths? Does this confirm a part of the "Lesser Genesis" where it is written :
On that day all the wild animals, the cattle, the birds and everything that walks and moves fell silent;
for they had all spoken with one lip and one tongue.


And does it also confirm that the serpent in the garden of Eden was really a talking serpent?

Talking animals, isn't that incredible?
Only if you are foolish enough to treat these bible stories literally. :rolleyes:
 

Mindmaster

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
The Torah says:

Talking animals, isn't that incredible?

Yeah, no, and never. At least, not in human spoken languages.

Among themselves they certainly have no problem communicating. :D

Many animals, of course, have a decent capacity to understand us. But, that's not talking -- that implies two-way communication.
 

dybmh

דניאל יוסף בן מאיר הירש
Looking at the text, I don't think that the donkey was talking. G-d spoke, and the words came out of the Donkey. I imagine it like a megaphone or the burning bush.

I'm not familiar with "Lesser Genesis".

And the serpent in the creation story... for me... even if I imagine that the snake was actually speaking, it doesn't bother me that much.
 

sooda

Veteran Member
Looking at the text, I don't think that the donkey was talking. G-d spoke, and the words came out of the Donkey. I imagine it like a megaphone or the burning bush.

I'm not familiar with "Lesser Genesis".

And the serpent in the creation story... for me... even if I imagine that the snake was actually speaking, it doesn't bother me that much.


The Book of Jubilees, sometimes called Lesser Genesis (Leptogenesis), is an ancient Jewish religious work of 50 chapters, considered canonical by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church as well as Beta Israel (Ethiopian Jews), where it is known as the Book of Division (Ge'ez: Mets'hafe Kufale).

The Book of Jubilees (Lesser Genesis) for Android - Free ...
download.cnet.com/The-Book-of-Jubilees-Lesser-Genesis/3000-18495_4-77941125.html
 

sun rise

The world is on fire
Premium Member
I don't know about you all, but my dog talks to me all the time. Her language is not English but her meaning is clear. Our last dog often told us "What have I done unto thee, that thou hast taken me to the vet so many times". And her speech was very simple and direct without all the extraneous mouth noises that humans make.
 

dybmh

דניאל יוסף בן מאיר הירש
But why would God pretend to be a donkey? Because according to this biblical passage, the donkey speaks in "I" form.
I don't know if God is pretending here. But it's an interesting question. I'll see what I can find for you.
 
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