2 Peter 2:16

Contemporary English Version

But a donkey corrected him for this evil deed. It spoke to him with a human voice and made him stop his foolishness.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
but received a rebuke for his lawlessness: A speechless donkey spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.

King James Version (1611)
But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumbe asse speaking with mais voice, forbade the madnesse of the Prophet.

King James Version
But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man's voice forbad the madness of the prophet.

English Standard Version
but was rebuked for his own transgression; a speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet's madness.

New American Standard Bible
but he received a rebuke for his own offense, for a mute donkey, speaking with a human voice, restrained the insanity of the prophet.

New Century Version
But a donkey, which cannot talk, told Balaam he was sinning. It spoke with a man's voice and stopped the prophet's crazy thinking.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
but he received a rebuke for his own transgression, for a mute donkey, speaking with a voice of a man, restrained the madness of the prophet.

Berean Standard Bible
But he was rebuked for his transgression by a donkey, otherwise without speech, that spoke with a man's voice and restrained the prophet's madness.

Complete Jewish Bible
but was rebuked for his sin — a dumb beast of burden spoke out with a human voice and restrained the prophet's insanity!

Darby Translation
but had reproof of his own wickedness—[the] dumb ass speaking with man's voice forbad the folly of the prophet.

Easy-to-Read Version
But a donkey told him that he was doing wrong. A donkey cannot talk, of course, but that donkey spoke with a man's voice and stopped the prophet from acting so crazy.

Geneva Bible (1587)
But he was rebuked for his iniquitie: for the dumme beast speaking with mans voyce, forbade the foolishnesse of the Prophet.

George Lamsa Translation
But who was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb ass, speaking with man''s voice, halted the folly of the prophet.

Good News Translation
and was rebuked for his sin. His donkey spoke with a human voice and stopped the prophet's insane action.

Lexham English Bible
but received a rebuke for his own lawlessness: a speechless donkey, speaking with a human voice, restrained the prophet's madness.

Literal Translation
but had reproof of his own transgression, the dumb ass speaking in a man's voice held back the madness of the prophet.

Amplified Bible
but he was rebuked for his own transgression: a mute donkey spoke with a man's voice and restrained the prophet's madness.

American Standard Version
but he was rebuked for his own transgression: a dumb ass spake with man's voice and stayed the madness of the prophet.

Bible in Basic English
But his wrongdoing was pointed out to him: an ass, talking with a man's voice, put a stop to the error of the prophet.

Hebrew Names Version
but he was rebuked for his own disobedience. A mute donkey spoke with man's voice and stopped the madness of the prophet.

International Standard Version
But he was rebuked for his offense. A donkey that normally cannot talk spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet's insanity.

Etheridge Translation
(for) the dumb ass which spake with the voice of man rebuked the madness of the prophet.

Murdock Translation
and who had for the reprover of his transgression a dumb ass, which, speaking with the speech of men, rebuked the madness of the prophet.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
But was rebuked of his iniquitie. The dumbe beast, and vsed to the yoke, speaking with mans voyce, forbad the madnesse of the prophete.

English Revised Version
but he was rebuked for his own transgression: a dumb ass spake with man’s voice and stayed the madness of the prophet.

World English Bible
but he was rebuked for his own disobedience. A mute donkey spoke with man's voice and stopped the madness of the prophet.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
But he had a rebuke for his iniquity: the dumb ass, speaking with man's voice, forbad the madness of the prophet.

Weymouth's New Testament
But he was rebuked for his transgression: a dumb ass spoke with a human voice and checked the madness of the Prophet.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
But he hadde repreuyng of his woodnesse; a doumb beest vndur yok, that spak with vois of man, that forbede the vnwisdom of the profete.

Update Bible Version
but he was rebuked for his own transgression: a mute donkey spoke with man's voice and stayed the madness of the prophet.

Webster's Bible Translation
But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man's voice, forbad the madness of the prophet.

New English Translation
yet was rebuked for his own transgression (a dumb donkey, speaking with a human voice, restrained the prophet's madness).

New King James Version
but he was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb donkey speaking with a man's voice restrained the madness of the prophet.

New Living Translation
But Balaam was stopped from his mad course when his donkey rebuked him with a human voice.

New Life Bible
But he was stopped in his sin. A donkey spoke to him with a man's voice. It stopped this early preacher from going on in his crazy way.

New Revised Standard
but was rebuked for his own transgression; a speechless donkey spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet's madness.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
But had, a reproof, of his own transgression, a dumb beast of burden, in man's voice, finding utterance, forbade the prophet's madness.

Douay-Rheims Bible
But had a check of his madness, the dumb beast used to the yoke, which, speaking with man’s voice, forbade the folly of the prophet.

Revised Standard Version
but was rebuked for his own transgression; a dumb ass spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet's madness.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
but was rebuked of his iniquitie. The tame and dome beast speakinge with manes voyce forbade the folisshnes of the Prophete.

Young's Literal Translation
and had a rebuke of his own iniquity -- a dumb ass, in man's voice having spoken, did forbid the madness of the prophet.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
but was rebuked of his iniquyte. The tame and domme beast spake with mas voyce, & forbad the foolishnes of ye prophet.

Mace New Testament (1729)
but he was rebuked for his transgression: for an ass, as dumb as it was, spoke with an articulate voice, and reprimanded the extravagance of the prophet.

Simplified Cowboy Version
It was so bad that he was rebuked by his donkey who spoke with a human voice and stopped him from becoming completely insane in his greed.

Contextual Overview

¹⁰ The Lord is especially hard on people who disobey him and don't think of anything except their own filthy desires. They are reckless and proud and are not afraid of cursing the glorious beings in heaven. ¹¹ Although angels are more powerful than these evil beings, even the angels don't dare to accuse them to the Lord. ¹² These people are no better than senseless animals that live by their feelings and are born to be caught and killed. They speak evil of things they don't know anything about. But their own corrupt deeds will destroy them. ¹³ They have done evil, and they will be rewarded with evil. They think it is fun to have wild parties during the day. They are immoral, and the meals they eat with you are spoiled by the shameful and selfish way they carry on. ¹⁴ All they think about is having sex with someone else's husband or wife. There is no end to their wicked deeds. They trick people who are easily fooled, and their minds are filled with greedy thoughts. But they are headed for trouble! ¹⁵ They have left the true road and have gone down the wrong path by following the example of the prophet Balaam. He was the son of Beor and loved what he got from being a crook. ¹⁶ But a donkey corrected him for this evil deed. It spoke to him with a human voice and made him stop his foolishness. ¹⁷ These people are like dried up water holes and clouds blown by a windstorm. The darkest part of hell is waiting for them. ¹⁸ They brag out loud about their stupid nonsense. And by being vulgar and crude, they trap people who have barely escaped from living the wrong kind of life. ¹⁹ They promise freedom to everyone. But they are merely slaves of filthy living, because people are slaves of whatever controls them.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the dumb: Numbers 22:22-33

the madness: Ecclesiastes 7:25, Ecclesiastes 9:3, Hosea 9:7, Luke 16:11, Acts 26:11, Acts 26:24, Acts 26:25

Reciprocal: Numbers 22:5 - sent Numbers 22:23 - the ass saw Numbers 22:28 - the Lord opened Numbers 22:30 - the ass said Judges 18:20 - heart 1 Kings 13:11 - an old prophet Isaiah 56:11 - all look Acts 1:18 - with 1 Timothy 6:9 - they

Cross-References

Genesis 2:1
So the heavens and the earth and everything else were created.

Genesis 2:2

The Seventh Day

By the seventh day God had finished his work, and so he rested.

Genesis 2:9
The Lord God placed all kinds of beautiful trees and fruit trees in the garden. Two other trees were in the middle of the garden. One of the trees gave life—the other gave the power to know the difference between right and wrong.

1 Samuel 15:22
"Tell me," Samuel said. "Does the Lord really want sacrifices and offerings? No! He doesn't want your sacrifices. He wants you to obey him.

1 Timothy 4:4
Everything God created is good. And if you give thanks, you may eat anything.

1 Timothy 6:17
Warn the rich people of this world not to be proud or to trust in wealth that is easily lost. Tell them to have faith in God, who is rich and blesses us with everything we need to enjoy life.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

But was rebuked for his iniquity,.... Which was not merely going along with the messengers of Balak, for he had leave from the Lord so to do, Numbers 22:20; but going along with them with a desire to curse Israel, when it was the will of God he should go and bless them, in order to get Balak's money; so that his governing iniquity was covetousness, which led him to other sins; and for this he was rebuked by the angel, Numbers 22:32, as well as reproved by his ass, Numbers 22:28: for

the dumb ass, as it was naturally so, the ass on which he rode,

speaking with man's voice; which was supernatural and miraculous, for it was God that opened the mouth of the ass: the mouth of that ass is said, by the Jews m, to be one of the ten things created between the two evenings on the sixth day of the creation; that is, as the gloss on it says, concerning which it was decreed, that its mouth should be opened to speak what this ass said; and the occasion of it may be seen in Numbers 22:22. Lactantius n observes, that there are two stars in the constellation of Cancer, which the Greeks call the "asses"; and which, the poets feign, are those that carried Liberus over a river, when he could not pass it; to one of which he gave this for a reward, "ut humana voce loqueretur", "that it should speak with man's voice"; a fable, no doubt, hatched from the sacred history, and said in imitation of this ass. Which

forbad the madness of the prophet: and so Balaam, though a diviner and soothsayer, is called by the Jewish writers o; who, they say, was first a prophet, and then a soothsayer, from whom Jerom p seems to have received the tradition; who says, that he was first a holy man, and a prophet of God, and afterwards, through disobedience, and a desire of gifts, was called a diviner; for his eyes were opened, and he saw the vision of the Almighty; and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied many things concerning Israel, and the Messiah, and others, Numbers 24:4. His madness lay in going with the messengers of Balak, Numbers 22:21, in order to curse Israel, contrary to the will of God, Numbers 22:12; and it is madness in any to oppose God in his counsels, purposes, providences, and precepts; and every sin, which is an act of hostility against God, has madness in it; and this of Balaam's was forbid by his ass, and he was convinced of it. Very appropriately is mention made of this dumb ass, when the persons here spoken of were as natural brute beasts, and worse than them, 2 Peter 2:12.

m Pirke Abot, c. 5. sect. 6. & Jarchi in ib. Sepher Cosri, par. 2. p. 254. n De falsa Religione, l. 1. c. 21. o Pesikta, Ilmedenu & Gerundensis apud Drus in loc. T. Bab Sanhedrin fol. 106. 1. Aben Ezra in Numb. xxxii. 28. p Tradition. Heb. in Genes. fol. 69. D.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

But was rebuked for his iniquity - The object of Peter in this seems to be to show that God employed the very extraordinary means of causing the ass on which he rode to speak, because his iniquity was so monstrous. The guilt of thus debasing his high office, and going forth to curse the people of God - a people who had done him no wrong, and given no occasion for his malediction - was so extraordinary, that means as extraordinary were proper to express it. If God employed means so extraordinary to rebuke “his” depravity, it was to be expected that in some appropriate way he would express his sense of the wickedness of those who resembled him.

The dumb ass, speaking with man’s voice - Numbers 22:28. God seems to have designed that both Balsam and Balak should be convinced that the children of Israel were his people; and so important was it that this conviction should rest fully on the minds of the rations through whom they passed, that he would not suffer even a pretended prophet to make use of his influence to curse them. He designed that all that influence should be in favor of the cause of truth, thus furnishing a striking instance of the use which he often makes of wicked men. To convince Balaam of the error of his course, and to make him sensible that God was an observer of his conduct, and to induce him to utter only what he should direct, nothing would be better suited than this miracle. The very animal upon which he rode, mute and naturally stupid, was made to utter a reproof; a reproof as directly from heaven as though the stones had cried out beneath his feet, or the trees of the wood had uttered the language of remonstrance. As to the nature of the miracle here referred to, it may be remarked:

(1)That it was as easy for God to perform this miracle as any other; and,

(2)That it was a miracle that would be as likely to be effectual, and to answer the purpose, as any other.

No one can show that it could not have occurred; and the occasion was one in which some decided rebuke, in language beyond that of conscience, was necessary.

Forbade the madness of the prophet - That is, the mad or perverse design of the prophet. The word here rendered “madness” means, properly, being aside from a right mind. It is not found elsewhere in the New Testament. It is used here to denote that Balaam was engaged in an enterprise which indicated a headstrong disposition; an acting contrary to reason and sober sense. He was so under the influence of avarice and ambition that his sober sense was blinded, and he acted like a madman. He knew indeed what was right, and had professed a purpose to do what was right, but he did not allow that to control him; but, for the sake of gain, went against his own sober conviction, and against what he knew to be the will of God. He was so mad or infatuated that he allowed neither reason, nor conscience, nor the will of God, to control him!

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 16. The dumb ass, speaking with man's voice — Numbers 22:28; Numbers 22:28.

The madness of the prophet. — Is not this a reference to the speech of the ass, as represented in the Targums of Jonathan ben Uzziel and Jerusalem? "Wo to thee, Balaam, thou sinner, thou madman: there is no wisdom found in thee." These words contain nearly the same expressions as those in St. Peter.