The -Angel" retreated and stopped the ass in an enclosed spot between two walls or, perhaps, fences, where it could not turn aside into open country. But by pressing close to the wall the ass is pictured as contriving to pass the Angel. He therefore retreated once more, and stood in a narrow place where there was no possibility of avoiding Him. The naïve anthropomorphic conception of Jehovah involved in this narrative belongs to a very early age of folklore.

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