Luke 19:39-40

The Pharisees well understood the messianic psalm of praise (Psalm 118:26) they were hearing sung from Jesus’ followers proclaiming Him to be the Messiah hence their cry for rebuke.

26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD. From the house of the LORD we bless you. Psalms 118:26 (NIV)

Jesus responds by stating the necessity of the proclamation of His Kingship for if they had not joyfully praised Him, even the inanimate objects would have testified on His behalf. God is so amazingly cool! He does not need man to accomplish His purposes, any old rock will do! I am reminded of the crucifixion when the rocks actually cried out by splitting, the earth shook, the sun stopped shining and the curtain of the temple was torn in two – in effect, all proclaiming the glory of the suffering Jesus:

51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. Matt 27:51 (NIV)

44 It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, 45 for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Luke 23:44-45 (NIV)

Why He can even make a donkey talk! In Numbers we find the prophet Balaam on his donkey heading on a mission that God opposed. Interestingly, God uses the donkey to thwart Balaam’s plans. In fact, we find in this passage Balaam and his donkey actually carrying on a conversation!

21 Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the princes of Moab. 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, she turned off the road into a field. Balaam beat her to get her back on the road. 24 Then the angel of the LORD stood in a narrow path between two vineyards, with walls on both sides. 25 When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she pressed close to the wall, crushing Balaam's foot against it. So he beat her again. 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, she lay down under Balaam, and he was angry and beat her with his staff. 28 Then the LORD opened the donkey's mouth, and she said to Balaam, "What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?" 29 Balaam answered the donkey, "You have made a fool of me! If I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now." 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. 31 Then the LORD opened Balaam's eyes, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown. 32 The angel of the LORD asked him, "Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me. 33 The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If she had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared her." Num 22:21-33 (NIV)

“To convince Balaam, God employed a silly donkey, a creature notoriously dull and stupid. God enabled not only a dumb creature to speak, but a dull creature to speak to the purpose...God has many ways of bringing down the hard and unhumbled heart.” Matthew Henry

As even “the heavens declare the glory of God” and “the skies proclaim the works of his hands” (Psalm 19:1) what are our lives speaking, as the most articulate of all God’s creatures? What glory, praise and proclamations are the declarations of our days? Indeed, as King David states later in Psalm 19:

14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer. Psalms 19:14 (NIV)