במדבר, פרק כ״ב, פסוק מ״א

The preparations to curse the Israelites shift from mere planning to concrete action as Balak, the king of Moab, positions Balaam at a strategic and spiritual vantage point. They set out in the morning, a time that carried significant physical and spiritual weight. Physically, the morning journey was difficult and painful for Balaam, who was lame in both feet, requiring Balak to coax and physically support him as they climbed [אור החיים]. Spiritually, the early morning is considered a time when God's anger awakens in the world, particularly as idolaters bow to the rising sun. Balaam intended to exploit this brief window of divine wrath to cast his curse [מלבי״ם, העמק דבר, אור החיים]. Additionally, the morning is filled with the chirping of birds, a crucial detail since Balak's witchcraft relied on the use of a bird [אור החיים].

For this mission, Balak brings Balaam to a high, flat peak [אבן עזרא, חזקוני] that served primarily as a site for idol worship [רש״י, נתינה לגר, The Torah]. The choice of this impure site was deliberate, intended to provoke heavenly accusations against the Israelites by recalling the past idolatry of their ancestors [כלי יקר]. From this elevated point, Balaam looks down at the Israelite camp. Although the Israelites were hidden by the protective Clouds of Glory, the combined dark magic of Balak and Balaam managed to pierce through the clouds, exposing the camp to their eyes [אור החיים].

Physical sight was an essential condition for Balaam's work. The primary approach among commentators is that casting an evil eye and channeling destructive mental energy requires direct visual focus for a curse to attach to its target [רמב״ן, ספורנו, רבינו בחיי]. Alternatively, some suggest that seeing the camp was not meant to cause direct physical harm from afar, but rather to help Balaam isolate his thoughts and concentrate entirely on the nation, enabling him to receive a prophecy or perform magic regarding their fate [רלב״ג].

As he looked down, Balaam focused on the edge of the camp. While some commentators believe he was able to see the entire camp from one end to the other [פענח רזא, דעת זקנים, בכור שור], the primary approach among commentators is that the camp was simply too massive, spreading out in all four directions, so he could only see a portion of it [רמב״ן, אבן עזרא, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Balak specifically hoped that by observing the outskirts, where the mixed multitude from Egypt and the weaker elements resided, they might uncover a spiritual flaw or vulnerability through which the curse could penetrate [רמב״ן, שפתי כהן, כלי יקר]. Focusing on the edge also reflected Balaam's hidden ambition to cut down and destroy the people entirely [שפתי כהן]. Because the window of God's anger lasts only a fraction of a second, Balaam faced the challenge of cursing an entire nation in a fleeting moment. However, he did not need time to complete his sentences. Simply beginning the curse at that exact moment of divine wrath was enough to ensure that the entire curse would take hold and run its course [פענח רזא, הדר זקנים].