Time and time again, Bilaam attempted to curse the people of Israel. But much like a puppet is controlled by the puppeteer, Bilaam’s speech was controlled entirely by HaShem.
As the once-successful prophet struggled with his inability to speak, King Balak was burning angry: “Is this what I hired him for?! To bless the Jews?! Bilaam has been driving me crazy. I’m busy setting up altars and bringing expensive sacrifices - what do them call them... Korbanos? - in the hope that I’ll get a good juicy curse out of him. And all I get is... a speechless prophet!”
Despite King Balak's repeated efforts to curse the Jews, HaShem restricted Bilaam to speak well of His beloved nation. The frustrated prophet ended up blessing and praising the people of Israel and even foretelling of good times to come, including the era of Moshiach.
