20250513 [새벽묵상] 눈 먼 발람과 말을 듣지 않는 나귀 | The Blind Seer and The Disobedient Donkey (민/Num 22:15~30)

22:15 발락이 다시 그들보다 더 높은 고관들을 더 많이 보내매

22:16 그들이 발람에게로 나아가서 그에게 이르되 십볼의 아들 발락의 말씀에 청하건대 아무것에도 거리끼지 말고 내게로 오라

22:17 내가 그대를 높여 크게 존귀하게 하고 그대가 내게 말하는 것은 무엇이든지 시행하리니 청하건대 와서 나를 위하여 이 백성을 저주하라 하시더이다

15 Then Balak sent other officials, more numerous and more distinguished than the first. 16 They came to Balaam and said:

“This is what Balak son of Zippor says: Do not let anything keep you from coming to me, 17 because I will reward you handsomely and do whatever you say. Come and put a curse on these people for me.”

22:18 발람이 발락의 신하들에게 대답하여 이르되 발락이 그 집에 가득한 은금을 내게 줄지라도 내가 능히 여호와 내 하나님의 말씀을 어겨 덜하거나 더하지 못하겠노라

22:19 그런즉 이제 너희도 이 밤에 여기서 유숙하라 여호와께서 내게 무슨 말씀을 더하실는지 알아보리라

18 But Balaam answered them, “Even if Balak gave me all the silver and gold in his palace, I could not do anything great or small to go beyond the command of the Lord my God. 19 Now spend the night here so that I can find out what else the Lord will tell me.”

22:20 밤에 하나님이 발람에게 임하여 이르시되 그 사람들이 너를 부르러 왔거든 일어나 함께 가라 그러나 내가 네게 이르는 말만 준행할지니라 

20 That night God came to Balaam and said, “Since these men have come to summon you, go with them, but do only what I tell you.”

22:21 발람이 아침에 일어나서 자기 나귀에 안장을 지우고 모압 고관들과 함께 가니

22:22 그가 감으로 말미암아 하나님이 진노하시므로 여호와의 사자가 그를 막으려고 길에 서니라 발람은 자기 나귀를 탔고 그의 두 종은 그와 함께 있더니

22:23 나귀가 여호와의 사자가 칼을 빼어 손에 들고 길에 선 것을 보고 길에서 벗어나 밭으로 들어간지라 발람이 나귀를 길로 돌이키려고 채찍질하니

21 Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the Moabite officials. 22 But God was very angry when he went, and the angel of the Lord stood in the road to oppose him. Balaam was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him. 23 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand, it turned off the road into a field. Balaam beat it to get it back on the road.

22:24 여호와의 사자는 포도원 사이 좁은 길에 섰고 좌우에는 담이 있더라

22:25 나귀가 여호와의 사자를 보고 몸을 담에 대고 발람의 발을 그 담에 짓누르매 발람이 다시 채찍질하니

24 Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path through the vineyards, with walls on both sides. 25 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it pressed close to the wall, crushing Balaam’s foot against it. So he beat the donkey again.

22:26 여호와의 사자가 더 나아가서 좌우로 피할 데 없는 좁은 곳에 선지라

22:27 나귀가 여호와의 사자를 보고 발람 밑에 엎드리니 발람이 노하여 자기 지팡이로 나귀를 때리는지라

22:28 여호와께서 나귀 입을 여시니 발람에게 이르되 내가 당신에게 무엇을 하였기에 나를 이같이 세 번을 때리느냐

26 Then the angel of the Lord moved on ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn, either to the right or to the left. 27 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it lay down under Balaam, and he was angry and beat it with his staff. 28 Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?”

22:29 발람이 나귀에게 말하되 네가 나를 거역하기 때문이니 내 손에 칼이 있었다면 곧 너를 죽였으리라

29 Balaam answered the donkey, “You have made a fool of me! If only I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now.”

22:30 나귀가 발람에게 이르되 나는 당신이 오늘까지 당신의 일생 동안 탄 나귀가 아니냐 내가 언제 당신에게 이같이 하는 버릇이 있었더냐 그가 말하되 없었느니라

30 The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?”

“No,” he said.

   요즘 인터넷에 유행하는 말 중에 “돈으로 해결되지 않는다면 돈이 부족한게 아닌지 생각해봅시다”라는 말이 있습니다. 어떤 문제가 있어도 충분한 돈이 주어진다면 무엇이든 해결 할 수 있다는 말이지요. 정말 오늘 말씀에 딱 들어맞는 말이 아닌가 싶습니다. 어제 말씀에 모압의 왕 발락이 이스라엘 백성이 두려워서 주술사 발람에게 저주를 청했는데 단칼에 거절당하고 말지요. 표면적으로는 하나님께서 허락하지 않으셨기에 갈 수 없다 라고 말을 하였지만 저는 이 이야기가 발락에게는 다르게 들렸을 것이라고 생각합니다. “가지고 간 복채로 해결되지 않는다고? 그럴리가 있나. 돈이 부족했나보다. 더 극진히, 더 많은 돈을 제시하라.” 그랬더니 어떻게 되었습니까? 마치 하나님의 뜻이 가장 중요한 것처럼 말하던 발람이 모압 고관들과 함께 길을 떠나는 모습을 보게 됩니다. 그 모습을 본 하나님께서 진노하셔서 사자를 보내어 그를 대적하게 하시지요. 그러나 너무나도 큰 돈에 눈이 멀어버린 발람은 하나님의 사자를 보지 못합니다. 당시에 유명한 주술사요, 예언자였던 발람이 하나님의 사자를 보지 못하고 아이러니하게도 미물인 나귀가 그 사자를 보고 발람의 말을 듣지 않고 그 길을 피하지요. 오늘은 이 아이러니한 상황에 대해서 함께 말씀을 나누었으면 좋겠습니다. 눈 먼 발람과 말을 듣지 않는 나귀의 이야기입니다.

You know, there's a saying going around on the internet these days that goes something like this: "If money can't solve it, maybe you just don't have enough money." It implies that with enough cash, any problem can be fixed. Doesn't that just fit right in with today's Scripture?

Yesterday, we heard how Balak, the king of Moab, was terrified of the Israelites and asked Balaam, a sorcerer, to curse them. But Balaam flat-out refused, right? On the surface, he said he couldn't go because God wouldn't let him. But I believe Balak heard something different. Something like, "The offering you brought wasn't enough? No way! Must be a money problem. Offer more! Be more generous!" And what happened? Balaam, who just moments before was talking like God's will was the most important thing, was suddenly walking out the door with Balak's officials.

When God saw this, His anger flared up, and He sent an angel to stand in Balaam's way. But Balaam, with his eyes blinded by the glitter of big money, couldn't see God's messenger. Here's the irony: Balaam, a famous sorcerer and prophet of his time, couldn't see the angel of the Lord, but his donkey, a mere animal, saw the angel and refused to obey Balaam, turning off the road!

Today, I want us to dig into this incredible, ironic situation – the story of the blind Balaam and the disobedient donkey.

                먼저 눈 먼 발람입니다. 15절을 보니 발락은 뭘 좀 아는 사람입니다. 발람의 거절을 곧이 곧대로 들은 것이 아니라 발람의 진의를 정확히 짚었지요. 그것이 무엇입니까? 복채가 적다. 그쵸. 결국 돈이었어요. 그래서 어떡해요? 15절, “발락이 다시 그들보다 더 높은 고관들을 더 많이 보내매” 16절에 “아무것에도 거리끼지 말고 내게로 오라” 17절에 “내가 그대를 높여 크게 존귀하게 하고 그대가 내게 말하는 것은 무엇이든지 시행하리니” 무슨 말입니까? 백지수표에요. 이번에는 복채를 들고 가지도 않아요. 말만 해. 너 하고 싶은거 다해. 여러분 이게 상당히 수준 높은 협상법입니다. 눈에 보이는 복채 대신에 더 높은 고관들을 더 많이 보내서 발람에게 냄새를 피우는 거에요. 자 그러면 한도가 있습니까, 없습니까? 없지요. 그러니 발람이 눈이 머는 거에요. 벌써부터 기대감에 가슴이 막 두근두근 하는거죠. 그래서 18절에 발람이 대답을 하는데 그 대답하는 첫마디가 이거에요. “발락이 그 집에 가득한 은금을 내게 줄지라도… 못하겠노라” 발람이 이미 마음이 떴어요. 여러분 사람의 뇌는 부정을 인식하지 못한다고 합니다. 무슨 말이냐면 제가 여러분에게 코끼리를 생각하지 마세요 라고 말하면 여러분 머리에는 코끼리만 생각나는 거에요.

First, let's talk about Balaam, the man blinded. Look at verse 15. Balak was a shrewd operator. He didn't just take Balaam's refusal at face value; he saw right through it. What was it? Not enough money, right? It all came down to cash. So what did he do?

Verse 15 says, "Balak sent other officials, more numerous and more distinguished than the first." And in verse 16, they said, "Do not let anything keep you from coming to me," and verse 17, "I will reward you handsomely and do whatever you say. Come and put a curse on these people for me." What is that? It's a blank check! This time, they didn't even bring the payment with them. Just name it! Do whatever you want!

You see, this was a high-level negotiation tactic. Instead of a set payment, they sent more numerous and distinguished officials to dangle the prospect of unlimited wealth in front of Balaam. Was there a limit? No way! And that's how Balaam's eyes became blinded. His heart was already racing with anticipation.

So, in verse 18, Balaam responds, and the very first words out of his mouth are, "Even if Balak gave me all the silver and gold in his palace, I could not do anything great or small to go beyond the command of the Lord my God."1 Balaam's heart was already gone. You know, they say the human brain doesn't process negatives well. What I mean is, if I tell you, "Don't think of an elephant," what do you immediately think of? An elephant!

발람이 왜 은금을 언급한 것일까요? 그 마음이 돈으로 가득찬 것이에요. 그는 말로는 분명히 “내가 능히 여호와 내 하나님의 말씀을 어겨 덜 하거나 더 하지 못하겠노라” 라고 이야기하는데 19절을 보니 행동은 달라요. 오늘밤 자고 가래요. 그리고 뭐래요? “여호와께서 내게 무슨 말씀을 더 하실는지 알아보리라” 아니 분명히 어제 말씀 12절에 “가지도 말고 그 백성을 저주하지도 말라”고 분명히 말씀하셨는데 뭘 더 알아보나요? 지금 발람은 하나님이 중요한 것이 아니에요. 아마 가지 말라고 해도 갔을거에요. 그래서 일까요? 20절을보니 밤에 하나님께서 나타나셔서 조건부로 이들과 함께 가는 것을 허락하십니다. 21절을 보니 “발람이 아침에 일어나서 나귀에 안장을 지우고 모압 고관들과 함께 갑니다.” 아까는 무슨 말씀을 더 하실는지 알아보겠다고 했던 발람이 지금은 더 묻지도 따지지도 않아요. 아주 옳타쿠나하고 얼른 아침에 모압 고관들과 함께 길을 떠납니다. 하나님은 이런 발람의 모습에 진노하십니다. 오늘 22절에서 여호와의 사자가 그를 막으려고 길에 섰다는 말은 여호와의 사자가 단순히 그를 막는 것이 아니라 그를 대적하여 길에 섰다는 말입니다. 하나님의 뜻을 대적하는 발람이었기에 여호와의 사자 또한 그를 대적하여 서는 것입니다. 그런데 재미있는 것은 재물에 눈이 먼 발람은 여호와의 사자를 보지 못하였습니다.

 Why did Balaam even mention silver and gold? Because his heart was already filled with thoughts of money! He said with his mouth, "I cannot do anything great or small to go beyond the command of the Lord my God," but look at verse 19 – his actions were different!

He said, "Stay here for the night," and then, "and I will find out what else the Lord will tell me." Wait a minute! Just yesterday, in verse 12, God clearly said, "Do not go with them or put a curse on those people, because they are blessed." What else did he need to find out?

At this point, God wasn't what was important to Balaam. He probably would have gone even if God had said no again. Maybe that's why, in verse 20, God appeared to him at night and gave him conditional permission to go with them.

Then, verse 21 tells us, "Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the Moabite officials." The same Balaam who said he'd find out what else God would tell him didn't ask another question. He just jumped right up that morning and went with the officials. And God was angry about this.

In verse 22, it says the angel of the Lord stood in the road to oppose him. This wasn't just about blocking his path; it was about standing against him. Because Balaam was opposing God's will, the angel of the Lord stood against him.

But here's where it gets interesting: Balaam, whose eyes were blind to spiritual truth because of money, couldn't see the angel of the Lord.

여기서 오늘 말씀의 하반절의 주인공인 나귀가 나오지요. 23절을 보니 발람이 보지 못하였던 여호와의 사자를 나귀는 보고 그 길에서 벗어나 밭으로 들어갑니다. 그것도 모르고 발람은 나귀를 가던 길로 돌이키려고 매질을 하지요. 이번에는 이 나귀가 사자를 피하느라 발람의 발을 포도원 담에 짓누르게 됩니다. 발람이 다시 매질을 해요. 점점 화가 올라옵니다. 나 지금 빨리 가야하는데 왜 이래? 미쳤나? 여러분 우리도 가장 쉽게 화가 나는 때가 언제입니까? 운전할 때죠. 특히 급할 때. 나 지금 빨리 가야하는데 누가 막 껴들어요. 속에 천불이 돌아요. 마찬가지입니다. 발람이 너무 화가 나요. 그래서 나귀를 매질을 하는데도 말을 듣질 않아. 그러더니 이번에는 아예 발람 밑에서 엎드려버립니다. 27절을 보니 “발람이 노하여 자기 지팡이로 나귀를 때리는 지라” 발람이 얼마나 화가 났으면28절에 하나님이 나귀로 말을 하게 하시는데도 눈에 보이지 않아요. 성경 전체에서 창세기를 제외하고 동물이 말을 하는 장면은 여기 밖에 없습니다. 대단한 이적이에요. 그런데 분노에 눈이 멀어버린 발람은 지금 동물이 말을 하는 이 이적이 중요한 것이 아니에요. 나의 깊은 빡침, 내 말을 듣지 않는 나귀에 대한 분노의 폭발. 이게 더 중요해요.

This is where the donkey, the star of the second half of our story, comes in.

Verse 23 says the donkey saw the angel of the Lord that Balaam couldn't see, and it turned off the road into a field. Balaam, completely clueless, hit the donkey to get it back on the road. Then, to avoid the angel, the donkey pressed itself against a wall, pinning Balaam's foot against it. Balaam hit the donkey again, getting angrier by the minute. "What's wrong with you? I'm in a hurry!" he must have thought. "Are you crazy?"

You know, when do we get angry the easiest? When we're driving, right? Especially when we're in a hurry. Someone cuts you off when you're trying to get somewhere fast, and you just boil up inside! It's the same here. Balaam was furious. He kept hitting the donkey, but it wouldn't listen. Then, the donkey just lay down under him. Verse 27 says, "Balaam was angry and beat it with his staff." Balaam was so mad that even when God made the donkey speak in verse 28, he didn't even seem to notice the miracle!

This is the only time in the entire Bible, outside of Genesis, where an animal talks. It's a huge miracle! But Balaam, blinded by his rage, didn't care about the talking animal. His deep frustration, his explosion of anger at a donkey that wouldn't listen – that was more important to him.

그래서 29절에서 “왜 때려요?” 라는 나귀의 질문에 놀라지도 않고 이렇게 말하는 거에요. “네가 나를 거역하기 때문이니 내 손에 칼이 있었더면 곧 너를 죽였으리라.” 여기에서 나를 거역하기 때문이다라고 하는 말은 나를 웃음거리로 만들었다는 말이에요. 나의 지금 가장 중요한 고객들, 이 모압 고관들 앞에서 내 체면을 다 구겨버렸다는 것이지요. “내 손에 칼만 있었으면 너 죽었어, 지팡이라 다행인줄 알아.” 그런데 여러분 23절을 보면 여호와의 사자가 어떻게 있습니까? “여호와의 사자가 칼을 빼어 손에 들고 길에 선 것을 보고” 발람은 자기 말을 듣지 않는 나귀에게 내 손에 칼만 있었으면 너를 죽였을거야 라고 말을 하는데 여호와의 사자는 이미 손에 칼을 빼어들고 있었습니다. 아마 여러분 오늘 본문을 같이 읽으시면서 그런 의문 가지셨던 분들 계실 것입니다. 분명히 하나님께서 발람에게 조건부지만 가라고 허락을 하셨는데 왜 22절에서 하나님은 진노하시는가? 그 해답이 여기 있습니다. 발람이 도무지 말을 듣지 않는 나귀에게 말합니다. 네가 나를 수많은 모압 고관들 앞에서 웃음거리로 만들었기 때문이니 내 손에 칼이 있었더면 곧 너를 죽였으리라. 마찬가지입니다. 하나님께서 발람에게 진노하셨던 이유는 발람이 이스라엘의 대적인 모압 고관들 앞에서 하나님을 웃음거리로 만들었기 때문입니다. 하나님을 돈 앞에 마음을 바꾸시는 분으로 만들었습니다. 21절을 보면 그는 간밤에 하나님으로부터 무슨 말씀을 들었는지 말하지 않습니다. 마치 발락의 저주 의뢰에 동의 하듯이 아무 말 없이 모압 고관들과 함께 길을 떠났던 것입니다. 이로써 그는 하나님을 마치 재물 앞에서 마음을 바꾸는 우상과 같은 조롱거리로 만들어버렸습니다. 도무지 말을 듣지 않는 나귀, 눈이 먼 것처럼 가라고 하는 길을 가지 않고 자기 멋대로 가며, 주인을 웃음거리로 만들어 주인을 분노케하는 이 나귀가 사실 발람의 모습 그 자체였던 것입니다.

So, in verse 29, when the donkey asked, "What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?" Balaam, without even flinching, said, "You have made a fool of me! If only I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now!" 

When he says, "You have made a fool of me," he means "You have made a laughingstock of me." You've ruined my reputation in front of my most important clients, these Moabite officials! "If I just had a sword, you'd be dead! Be glad I only have a staff!"

But take a look back at verse 23. What was the angel of the Lord doing? "When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand..." Balaam is telling the disobedient donkey, "If I had a sword, I'd kill you," while the angel of the Lord already had a drawn sword in his hand!

Perhaps as you were reading today's passage, you had a question. God gave Balaam conditional permission to go, so why was God angry in verse 22? The answer is right here. Balaam told the donkey that wouldn't listen, "You made a fool of me in front of all these Moabite officials. If I had a sword, I'd kill you."

It's the same with God. The reason God was angry with Balaam was that Balaam made a fool of God in front of the Moabite officials, the enemies of Israel. He made God look like someone who would change His mind for money. Look at verse 21; he didn't mention what God had told him the night before. He just went on his way with the Moabite officials, as if he had agreed to Balak's request to curse Israel. By doing this, he turned God into an object of ridicule, like an idol that changes its mind for wealth.

The donkey that wouldn't listen, the donkey that acted blind and didn't go where it was supposed to go, wandering off on its own, making its master look foolish and making him angry – that donkey was actually a reflection of Balaam himself.

말씀을 맺습니다. 오늘 말씀에 나오는 발람은 눈이 먼 사람입니다. 그는 재물이 눈이 멀어 하나님의 말을 듣지 않으며 하나님을 웃음거리로 만들어 하나님을 진노케 한 사람입니다. 그러나 하나님은 진노 중에도 그를 죽이지 않으시고 오히려 나귀를 사용하셔서 그의 모습을 거울처럼 보게 하십니다. 나귀가 말을 하는 것같은 초자연적인 방법으로 그를 가르치십니다. 하나님께서 이렇게까지 하시는 이유가 무엇입니까? 발람을 사랑하셔서? 아니요. 물론 그 또한 구원의 대상임은 분명할 것입니다. 그러나 하나님께서 이렇게까지 하시는 이유는 바로 복된 당신의 백성을 축복하기 위해서 였습니다. 재물에 눈이 먼 발람이 하나님의 복된 백성을 저주하는 것을 막기 위해 하나님께서는 모든 방법을 동원하여 당신의 백성을 보호하신 것입니다. 하나님은 이처럼 당신의 백성을 축복하기 원하십니다. 그러나 혹시 여러분의 눈은 발람처럼 하나님이 아닌 다른 것에 멀어있지는 않습니까? 기도하시겠습니다.

Let me wrap this up. Balaam in today's Scripture was a blind man. He was blinded by wealth, refused to listen to God, and made God look foolish, bringing about God's anger. But even in His anger, God didn't kill him. Instead, He used a donkey to show Balaam a reflection of himself, like looking in a mirror. God used a supernatural event, a talking donkey, to teach him a lesson.

Why would God go to such lengths? Because He loved Balaam? Yes, Balaam was certainly someone who could be saved. But the main reason God did this was to bless His chosen people. God used every possible means to protect His people and stop Balaam, who was blinded by money, from cursing them.

God desires to bless His people in this way. But could it be that, like Balaam, your eyes are blinded by something other than God?

Let's pray.