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Numbers 21 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
Take a moment and think about the times in your life that you’ve been sorry about something. What was it that ultimately brought you to that moment of humility? Was it just because you got caught, or did the destruction of your choices lead you to a deeper sorrow? Now consider, did you only say you were sorry or did you also repent. You see, they are not the same thing.
As new parents of a smart, funny, creative, (and stubborn) 5-year-old, we have changed our parenting philosophy many times. One such change involved encouraging our daughter to not only admit that she’s sorry but to also ask for forgiveness. Of course, all of us have witnessed children who very quickly muddle through their “being sorry” so that they can move on and not face any more consequences. Consequences… ugh! It’s interesting to consider the relationship between repentance and consequences.
It would be those very consequences that finally drove the people to repentance. That’s how it usually goes, right? I would agree that getting gnawed on by a bunch of snakes would definitely cause me to rethink my current attitude and behavior. God sent snakes to bring pain. Some people may take offense to such a move. But few can argue that pain and struggle lead to humility which can often lead to true repentance. And no, I’m not talking about just saying you are sorry. The text tells us that the people literally begged Moses to intervene for them.
His intervention would lead to an obscure solution from God.
Then the LORD told Moses to make a metal snake and put it on a pole, so that anyone who was bitten could look at it and be healed. 9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it on a pole. Anyone who had been bitten would look at the bronze snake and be healed.
Numbers 21:8-9 GNB
A bronze snake on a pole? Isn’t that an idol?!? The significance of this decision stretches into the future as Jesus would use this event as a word picture when speaking to Nicodemus.
As Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the desert, in the same way the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.
John 3:14-15 GNB
So why would God compare a snake to Jesus? Well, from the Jewish perspective, it was quite humiliating to have to look up to such a creation in order to receive healing. The real snakes that God sent came with consequences and the only way to rid themselves of the pain was to humbly ask Moses to intervene. In this way, the very same animal that caused their pain would be the one to heal it. It would have been easy to look up at something pleasurable for healing, but God forced them to look upon a repulsive image in order to be saved.
Likewise, when God sent Jesus, He “bit” the Jews with the bitter truth about their sin. They rejected and executed Him, which lifted Jesus the Savior high up on the cross. Anyone who looked upon Him and trusted Him by faith would be saved. However, just like the image of the bronze snake was repulsive to the people of Israel, the death of Jesus by crucifixion was considered a horrible curse. And so it happened that God used the shameful behavior of the Israelites to explain the significance of Jesus’ death.
The question that lingers in my mind deals with true sorrow and repentance. Will you humble yourself to the ways of Jesus or continue to harden your heart? In what ways are you learning and growing in your humility?