The angel of the Lord was a fierce warrior in the Old Testament. The angel often went out before the armies of Israel to fight and control the enemies of Israel. Some scholars believe that the angel may have been a Christophany, an appearance of Christ in the Old Testament. But if the angel was to go against the enemy of God, he would bring about the most severe mental anguish. The angel would punish an evil man with a very painful set of mental disorders, sending him on a path of destruction. In fact, David called on the angel of the Lord to hunt down his enemies as a kind of pre-war exercise.When a man faces God in His wrath, it is a terrible experience. Because of Satan's power to accuse and deceive even the most devout of God's followers, we must see that the battle for the minds of men is primarily fought in this unseen way. If it were God's will to send the Angel to a wicked man, it would be in this destructive way, for the protection of His people. It is a concept that is beyond the idea of chaff. And this kind of experience comes on men who are hunters.I mean systematically destroying the poor and the afflicted without guilt or shame. Its the idea of gaining power through the means of destroying principles. God warns about coveting your neighbor's prosperity. Because that is idol worship. When a men love idols they become depressed. And God sometimes causes them to lose their minds. Because they would hunt down the very elect and destroy them. The Angel hunts them down so to speak.I believe that the Balaam passage is saying more than just that God would speak through an ass. It is saying that there is an indirect influence at work in this war, which if we could see it with our eyes opened, would reveal the truth of how directly involved God is in the salvation of His elect. The number of God's angelic host of powerful warriors cannot be counted; it is a fighting machine that cannot be thwarted by the forces of evil. When you think of the most powerful governments on this earth, one angel could destroy it in a very small amount of time.It is clear that God is powerful and awesome, even in the unseen battles that we are fighting. He is gracious to allow us to sin in His presence without bringing the destructive Angel in response to our foolishness. However, we have this petition for our protection in order that Gods kingdom would advance. Because God does not fight with human weapons, we are involved in a direct way and in sometimes an intense battle to hold our ground with this great and powerful unseen army who can bring upon mankind a destruction that is fearful.