민수기 24:2의 주석

וישא בלעם את עיניו AND BALAAM LIFTED UP HIS EYES — he wished to cast the evil eye upon them. Thus you have his three characteristics — an evil eye mentioned here, and pride and greed which have been mentioned above (see Rashi on Numbers 22:13 and 18).

וישא בלעם את עיניו, Bileam raised his eyes, etc." The Torah had to write Bileam's name once more as well as the word וישא, "he raised." Seeing that we have explained earlier that the Israelites were surrounded and enveloped by G'd's protective cloud so that no evil eye could harm them, the Torah had to tell us that Bileam "raised" his eyes, i.e. that he invoked the prophetic powers with which he had been equipped, in order to see what ordinary people could not see (compare verse 4: "who sees the vision of G'd…with open eyes"). The Torah describes things Bileam saw with his mental eye. His name was mentioned here once more in order to make clear that what Bileam did here he did in his capacity as a prophet designated by G'd to the Gentile nations. He succeeded in seeing the Israelites as a result of invoking these powers G'd had equipped him with.

ותהי עליו רוח אלוקים, “the spirit of G’d remained upon him.” Now the hand of Hashem rested upon Bileam similar to the phenomena experienced by true prophets. This is similar to what Moses had had in mind when he told Joshua that he wished every member of the Jewish people would be endowed with the kind of prophetic visions granted to Eldod and Meydod. (Numbers 11,29) As a result of this experience Bileam was now able to refer to himself as