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3.And the man whose eyes are open, (166) hath said. This preface has no other object than to prove that he is a true prophet of God, and that he has received the blessing, which he pronounces, from divine revelation; and indeed his boast was true as regarded this special act, though it might be the case that pride and ambition impelled him thus to vaunt. It is, however, probable that he prefaced his prophecy in this way by the inspiration of the Spirit, in order to demand more credit for what he said. From a consideration of this purpose we may the better gather the meaning of his words. Balaam dignifies himself with titles, by which he may claim for himself the prophetic office; whatever, therefore, he predicates of himself, we may know to be the attributes of true prophets, whose marks and distinctions he borrows. To this end he says that he is “ in his eye,” by which he means that he does not see in the ordinary manner, but that he is endued with the power of secret vision. Interpreters agree that שתם shethum, is equivalent to סתם sethum, which is closed or hidden. Thus some render it in the pluperfect tense: The man who had his eyes closed; and this they refer to the blindness of Balaam, since his ass saw more clearly than himself. Others, who perceive this gloss to be too poor, expound it by anti-phrasis, Whose eye was open; but, since this interpretation, too, is unnatural, I have no doubt but that he says his eyes were hidden, because in their secret vision they have more than human power. (167) For David makes use of the word to signify mysteries, when he says:
“ hast manifested to me the hidden things (168) of wisdom.” (Psa_51:6.)
Unless, perhaps, we may prefer that he was called the man with hidden eyes, as despising all human things, and as one with whom there is no respect of persons; the former interpretation, however, is the more suitable. And assuredly, when he adds immediately afterwards, the hearer of “ words of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty,” it must be taken expositively. To the same effect is what is added in conclusion: “ who falls (169) and his eyes are opened;” for the exposition which some give, that his mind was awake whilst he was asleep as regarded his body, is far-fetched; and there is a tameness in the opinion of those who refer it to the previous history, where it is recorded that, after Balaam had fallen under the ass, his eyes were opened to see the angel (chap. 22:31.) Comparing himself, therefore, to the prophets, he says that he fell down in order to receive his visions; for we often read that the prophets were prostrated, or lost their strength, and lay almost lifeless, when God revealed Himself to them; for thus did it please God to cast down His servants as to the flesh, in order to lift them up above the world, and to empty them of their own strength, in order to replenish them with heavenly virtue.
(166) “ oculo;” covered in the eye.— Lat. “ a l’ couvert;” who has the eye covered. — Fr.
(167) This word has occasioned much discussion among the commentators.A. V. subjoins in the margin: “Heb. who had his eyes shut, but now opened.” Ainsworth says: “, the original word, is of contrary significance to Sethum, that is, closed or shut up; however, some take it to be of the same meaning, which may then be explained thus, The man who had his eye shut, but now open. And eye is put for eyes, understanding the eyes of his mind opened by the spirit of prophecy; though some of the Hebrews (as Jarchi here observeth) have from hence conjectured that Balaam was blind of one eye!” Dathe, in accordance with the most ancient interpreters, (LXX. Onkelos, and the Syriac,) agrees with the text of A. V.
(168) A. V. “ in the hiddenpart thou shalt make me to know wisdom.” C.’ exposition in loco appears rather to agree with. A. V. than with his citation in this place. “ interpret בסתום, besathum, as if he here declared that God had discovered secret mysteries to him, or things hidden from the human understanding. He seems rather to mean that wisdom had been discovered to his mind in a secret and intimate manner.” See Cal. Soc. edit. of Psalms, vol. 2, pp. 292, 293, and note
(169) A. V., “ into a trance, but having his eyes open.”