ותלך בשדה וגו'. פירש"י סימני אבות הראהו וצריך פי' לפי' וה"ק בתחלה עמד בשדה נגדו שיש דרך לנטות ימין ושמאל רמז לו שאם ירצה לקלל זרעו של אברהם יקלל מימין ומשמאל. בני ישמעאל מצד אחד ובני קטורה מצד אחד אבל לא תלך באמצע אל תקלל זרע יצחק ואחר עמד במשעול הכרמים שאין דרך שם כי אם דרך הלוך שני אנשי' בצמצום ורמז לו שאם בא לקלל זרעו של יצחק שיוכל לקלל' מצד אחד דהיינו מצדו של עשו אבל לא מצד השני מצד יעקב. ואחר עמד במקום צר אשר אין דרך לנטות ימין ושמאל כי כל בניו כשרים הם דהיינו זרע יעקב זהו סימני האבות הראהו: ותלך בשדה, “she (the ass) walked in the field (instead of on the path).” Rashi’s comment on verse 26 based on Tanchuma that the angel showed Bileam a hint of the three founding fathers of the Jewish people, needs a super commentary. It appears to mean the following: the first time the angel positioned himself as an obstacle on the path, he did so that the ass could pass either to the right or to the left of him but could not proceed without making a detour, the choice that Avraham had given Lot (Genesis, 13,9). The sons of Avraham by Keturah and Hagar are viewed as partially his descendants, as they had a different mother than Sarah. In other words, Bileam would not be permitted to curse Yitzchak who was a descendant of both Avraham and Sarah. The second time the angel tried to obstruct the ass in a narrow passage in the vineyard, he did so in a manner that allowed the ass to squeeze by but painfully, this was a hint that even cursing Yitzchok’s descendants would be allowed only if he cursed Esau, not Yaakov and his descendants. The third obstruction, which forced the ass to lie down, as passage was blocked completely, was a hint to Bileam that on no account would he be permitted to curse any of the descendants of Yaakov and his twelve sons. This is what the angel showed Bileam, using the patriarchs as his symbol.