Watching your children grow up can sometimes be confusing. In some ways they are so much like their parents. But, in other ways they couldn’t be more different.
The same was true of Israel in the book of Numbers. This book is essentially the story of two generations: the first generation who rebelled against the Lord and ended up dead in the desert, and the second generation who will stand on the brink of entry into the Promised Land at the end of the book.
In chapter 21, we begin to read the story of the second generation. How will they be similar to and different from their parents? In our scripture passage for this morning, we will see that. We will also answer some other questions about the fate of that first generation.
Listen now to the words of our Lord as recorded by Moses in the book of Numbers, chapter 21, verses 1-9.
When the Canaanite, the king of Arad, who lived in the Negeb, heard that Israel was coming by the way of Atharim, he fought against Israel, and took some of them captive. And Israel vowed a vow to the LORD and said, “If you will indeed give this people into my hand, then I will devote their cities to destruction.”
And the LORD heeded the voice of Israel and gave over the Canaanites, and they devoted them and their cities to destruction. So the name of the place was called Hormah. From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way.
And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” Then the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died.
And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you. Pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. And the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and whosoever is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.
Sometimes Novels and poems are loaded with hidden meanings and sometimes they are not. The trouble is, when we read a novel or poem, we might not know if there is a hidden meaning to search for. Poems, when they are set to music, become songs. But songs can still have that same illusive quality of a hidden meaning that may or may not exist.
One example of a simple children’s song is a good example of that. I’m referring, of course, to Ring around the Rosie. And you’ve probably heard the interpretation of that song as a symbol of the black plague.
For example, the phrase pocket full of posies is said to be representative of something carried in the pocket to ward off the disease or to mask the stench of death. Likewise, the repetition of ashes, ashes at the beginning of the last line is said to be symbolic of the practice of burning the bodies of those who succumbed to the plague.
But the real explanation is found in the play patterns of young children in the nineteenth century. Children in this time period would play ring games in which the children would form rings and rotate while singing simple songs like Ring Around the Rosie.
Ashes, ashes probably came from something like Husha, husha which was a made-up word that triggered the children to stop the rotation and fall to the ground. In was simply a way for young children to have fun.
For the Hebrew people in the wilderness, a very similar thing happened to them. The symbol of the bronze serpent was obviously a clear reference to the saving power of God. But over the years, that bronze serpent took on cultic meanings, and it eventually had to be destroyed because it became an Idol of sorts.
There are some difficulties in understanding this passage, and that’s what I want to do this morning; show you the real meanings and significance of this narrative and how it can be applied to our lives. The story begins with something completely different for the Israelites in the wilderness, and that is a victory over the Canaanites. That victory is described for us in verses 1-3.
Let’s begin by looking at verse 1 When the Canaanite, the king of Arad, who lived in the Negeb, heard that Israel was coming by the way of Atharim, he fought against Israel, and took some of them captive.
Notice that the Canaanites initiated the conflict, attacking and even capturing some of the Israelites. In the past this kind of defeat at the hands of their enemies could easily have sent the first generation of Israelites into a tailspin of despair and grumbling, but this new generation took the challenge in stride.
Now listen to verse 2 And Israel vowed a vow to the LORD and said, “If you will indeed give this people into my hand, then I will devote their cities to destruction.”
They went to the Lord and vowed that if the Lord gave them success, they would devote to destruction all of the Canaanite cities. And then the Lord then gave them that victory, and they began to fulfill the terms of their vow by destroying the Canaanites and their towns.
You need to realize that the practice of the total destruction of the cities of their enemies was not a regular part of Israel’s warfare. It was a unique feature associated only with the conquest of the land of Canaan. And the theology there is again simple: the slaughter of the inhabitants of Canaan was a foreshadowing of the final judgment of sinners by God.
We see that in Rev. 20:15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
What happened in the conquest of Canaan was simply an illustration of this reality. And that judgment of the people of Canaan in the form of total destruction was not without precedent in scripture either. Fire and brimstone destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. We see that in Genesis 19:24-25 Then the LORD rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the LORD out of heaven. And he overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.
Even earlier, the flood that destroyed the wicked in Noah’s time was another form of total destruction. But there was a practical side to this victory as well. The total destruction of the Canaanites removed the temptation for Israel to intermarry and assimilate the evil ways of the Canaanite people. It also prevented them from being drawn into pagan worship.
That was expressly spelled out for the Israelites in Deut. 7:2-3 When the LORD your God gives them over to you, then you must devote them to complete destruction. You shall not intermarry with them.
But, of course, the most important thing for the Israelites is the fact that they won their first victory. And we can apply this victory to our lives pretty easily. When we sense that Christ has won our battle against Satan, then we too will become energized. We too can change from a person with a somewhat skeptical nature about salvation to one of total trust.
This trust in God is basic to our spiritual development. We cannot go on without this experience of being on the winning team. If we are still in basic training, we haven’t yet entered the war. That is why my very first sermon for you here at Rocky Springs was about trust in God. It is fundamental to our success as Christians. It is the true starting point of the Christian walk.
But this passage shows us something else as well. The Israelites were pumped up after defeating the Canaanites. This was their first victory, and it came when they trusted in the power of God to help them; not their own strength.
But what happened right after that? The Israelites backed down in the face of the next threat; an armed force of powerful Edomites. We see that in Numbers 20:17-18 Please let us pass through your land. We will go on the King’s Highway. We will not turn aside to the right hand or to the left until we have passed through. But Edom said, “You shall not pass through, lest I come out with the sword against you.”
They learned a lesson about trusting God when they fought the King of Arad, but how quickly they forgot. Now they ran in fear and delayed their entrance into the Promised Land. And with all the extra travel, the Israelites become impatient.
Look at verse 4 From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way.
The people were irritable and depressed at having to make such a long trek round Edomite territory. They were physically exhausted and emotionally stressed. And so it was not long before they began to repeat the familiar complaints they raised throughout their 40-year wanderings.
Instead of rejoicing in the encouragement of their recent victory, they reflected again on the superior advantages of the good old days.
When you think about it, it was pretty ridiculous. In effect, this is what they were saying: if only we could undo the miraculous plan of God’s salvation and return to the oppressive regime of Egyptian slavery!
So how did God respond to this ridiculous cry for help? By sending fiery snakes into their midst in great numbers. In fact, the invasion of reptiles was very much like the plagues on Egypt. There is a divine irony here, isn’t there? If the Israelites preferred to live in Egypt, then they will die like the Egyptians – from a plague!
There is a fascinating summary of this battle with snakes found in the New testament. Jesus said in Matthew 7:9 Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?
The Lord gave his people manna from heaven, which they now regarded as contemptible. Can’t you just picture the Lord’s reaction? So you don’t like my manna! Well, perhaps some snakes will help them appreciate my gift! Well, maybe appreciate is the wrong word, but it certainly got the attention of the Israelites. Just look at verse 7 And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you. Pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us.”
The Israelites immediately confess their sin and call for help, but God doesn’t call off the serpents. Rather, he commanded Moses to construct a kind-of visual anti-venom. We see that in verse 8 And the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and whosoever is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.”
There is one important point we need to understand about the bronze snake. It was appointed by God, who is the only one capable of healing his people. So although it is symbolic, it is not magical. The bronze serpent had no power, It was simply functioning as a model, a typological example, that tells us something about God: it tells us that God can choose a specific punishment in response to a specific sin against him.
And what was their sin? In a word, it was rebellion. The Israelites were rebelling against God. Is it any wonder that God responded with a plague of poisonous snakes? In the Bible, the serpent has always been a symbol of sin and of Satan. Just say the word ssssin, and you can hear the hiss of the serpent, can’t you? And so God sent fiery serpents that bit the people as a way of reminding us of the sure judgment of God upon our sins.
Notice how the Bible describes those serpents in verse 6 Then the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died.
When a serpent bites, it sends venom into the body that turns every nerve into a fiery strand of pain. And then, a burning fever would rage through the body. The body would swell and throb, and a fire would rage within the body.
You know what that tells us? Sometimes people get the idea that sin is fun. They think that it’s easy to be a sinner and hard to be a Christian. But the truth is, when the pain of sin spreads throughout our whole body, it is hard not to be a Christian. And scripture backs this up.
In Matthew 11:29-30 Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. What that means is that it’s easy to be a Christian. And scripture also says it’s hard not to be a Christian. Proverbs 13:15 The way of transgressors is hard.
Remember that the bite of the serpent is not only painful, it’s fatal. Verse 6 tells us that: And many people of Israel died. That means that as surely as you sin and don’t receive forgiveness for your sin, you must die. Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death. So the Israelites had enough sense to ask for forgiveness, because they realized their lives depended on it. But notice how they went about it in verse 7 And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned.
That’s a good starting point because God does not accept alibis. We like to rationalize our sin; we like to trivialize it. We even try to justify it. But how often do we come right out an admit it? Yes God, I have sinned against you. So the Israelites started out in a good way by admitting it. But then we see, still in verse 7, that they ask God to take away the serpents from us. And here is where it gets interesting.
God doesn’t take away the snakes, but instead He asks Moses to make a fiery serpent. And the next verse is the key verse of this passage, so we’re going to spend some time on it.
Verse 8 And the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and whosoever is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” Now, why did God do it this way? So many times we ask God, why don’t you just cast Satan into the lake of fire and be done with it.
But God doesn’t do that. Instead, He does something better. He put His Son of the cross in order to give us the power to defeat Satan in our lives. He gave us victory over Satan, and he continues to allow us to have victories today in order to bring Glory to Him. You see, without an opponent, there is no victory, and without victory there is no glory.
The serpent, of course, represents Satan. But what was the significance of putting it on a pole? In other words, what was the typology involved here? The answer might shock you. The snake was a type of Christ. Oh, no! you say. that can’t possibly be!
Well, we know it is because we can read about it in scripture. Listen to John 3:14-15 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
Why did God choose a serpent to be a symbol of Jesus? Because the serpent really is a symbol of sin. And what does it say in 2 Cor. 5:21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
And so that serpent, a symbol of sin, is a very dramatic picture of Christ with the sin of the whole world melded into his spirit. But it is even more than that. And in order to see that, look at Rev. 1:15 His feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters.
The scene here in Revelation is of Christ going forth in judgment at the end of time. And so, we see that bronze is a symbol of judgment. And that means that the serpent is not just a picture of sin, but it is a picture of sin being judged. It is an Old Testament foreshadowing of Christ on the cross in victory, defeating sin. And when the Israelites looked at that symbol, they were cured of their lethal snake bites.
And that, of course, is a picture of salvation. Look upon and follow Christ, and you will be saved. It really is that simple. But some people ask, was absolutely everybody who looked at the serpent saved? In fact, it’s one of the most frequently asked questions about the wilderness wanderings. Did all of the first generation of Israelites who died in the wilderness go to Hell?
To find the answer, let’s compare verse 8 from our passage and John 3:14-15 side by side.
Verse 8 Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and whosoever is bitten, when he sees it, shall live. John 3:14-15 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believes in him may have eternal life. Do you see the similarity?
Whosoever…shall live. In the Hebrew language, whosoever literally means the whole or all. In fact, whosoever in verse 8 if frequently translated everyone. In the Greek, it is literally the totality. That means absolutely all.
Translations and interpretations of key words in scripture are what lead to the formation of different denominations. And I believe that, to some extent, they are the work of the Devil, because it causes divisiveness among God’s people. Some people believe we should translate John 3:15 Whosoever believes and is elect may have eternal life.
Of course, scripture doesn’t say that. But in order to support that rendering, these people will often cite these 2 verses. Rev. 17:8 And the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. Ephesians 1:4 He hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love.
The verse in Revelation seems to say that the book of life was written before the world was created. And the verse in Ephesians adds that God chose us before the world was created. But look carefully at these verses.
Listen to a very similar verse. Rev. 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” This verse tells us that God exists outside of time. Time doesn’t mean anything to God. If you are not saved, and you accept Jesus five years from today, it is still past history to Him.
And that means that he can write the book of life at the end of the world, and still say it was written before the world was created. We can’t possibly understand that.
But notice how Rev. 17:8 alludes to Rev. 1:8! They both have the same phrase, who was and is and is to come.
And the verse in Ephesians is really talking about how God’s people were created by God in spirit to be Holy and without sin before the world was created. And remember, Adam was without sin until the fall. In fact, scripture tells us that we do have some responsibility for our salvation beyond what is written in the book of life and the concept of election. Listen to 2 Peter 1:10 Brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall.
But right about now, you may be wondering how this discussion of election and the book of life relates to the bronze serpent in the wilderness. Well, where was the serpent? It was on a pole. And Christ was on a cross. There’s the relationship right there.
And the question that comes out of that relationship is this: When Christ went to the cross, did he die for anyone who believes in him, or did he only die for those who were elect? Well I think scripture is pretty clear that Christ went to the cross for everyone who believes. But in order to understand that, we also have to realize that there are some people who Christ doesn’t want in heaven.
He tells us that clearly in Matt. 13:10-11 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. Who does the them in this passage refer to? In other words, what type of person does Jesus not want in heaven. Well it’s not the lost. It’s not the unbelievers. Jesus loves the lost.
We see that in Matt 18:12, 14 If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go in search of the one that went astray? So it is the will of my Father that not one of these little ones should perish.
That still leaves us with the question, who does Jesus not want in Heaven? To find the answer to that, let’s look at Matt. 25:41 Then he will say to those on his left, “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”
This is a fascinating verse. It is frequently used to tell us what Hell is like: an eternal fire. But look closely at this verse, because it also tells us something else; something shocking. Hell was prepared for the Satan and his minions. Do you see what that means? It means that hell was not prepared for man, but for Satan and his army!
But let’s go back to Matthew 13. The people that Jesus doesn’t want in heaven are those who have aligned with Satan. And listen to me carefully here. These are the people who know that Jesus is Lord over all; and they want to take that power away from Christ! They are the people who truly have blasphemed the name of Jesus. They are the ones who have committed the unforgivable sin.
And here’s the ultimate shocker. Why did Jesus resort to telling parables? Why did he want to keep the knowledge of heaven away from those who sought to overthrow him? There’s only one reason that I can think of. It’s because the work of Christ on the cross was totally efficacious. Whosever means exactly that. Absolutely anyone who accepts Jesus as his Lord and submits to him will live forever in heaven.
And so, when we go back to the wilderness, absolutely anyone who looked at the serpent lived. It didn’t matter whether they were from the first generation or the second.
Therefore, we can’t say that every member of the first generation was condemned. I’m sure many of them were; but it was not a group condemnation. God doesn’t work that way.
So now, how do we apply all of this theology to our lives? It’s kind of ironic, actually. Because the application is that too much theology can be a bad thing. And we’ve had to use a lot of theology to show you that. You see, salvation doesn’t come by getting a monkey off your back. It comes by receiving Christ. It is not the sin, the serpent, that is fatal. It’s the venom in our veins. It’s the sin in our nature.
When we go out on missions, we take tools with us. Things like hammers, saws, paint brushes. But the most import tool we need to take is the serpent on a pole. If we help a destitute parent fix up their run-down house, it doesn’t do much good in the long run if we don’t present the gospel as well.
And when it comes to sharing the gospel or sharing our testimony, this scene in the wilderness has something to say about that as well. A good sermon needs to talk about doctrine, because that is what builds you up as a Christian. But what are we being built up for?
The answer to that is found in 1 Peter 3:15 But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you. Did you catch that? Doctrine is defensive. Doctrine is to help you answer any questions that a new believer might have. But it is not how we get someone to come to Christ in the first place. It won’t give them a saving faith.
What does that mean? It means that our testimonies are important in reaching the lost. The fact that Jesus saved us from cancer or that he provided a monetary windfall when we were struggling to pay the bills is a powerful testimony, but it is nothing more than a loss-leader.
You know what a loss leader is, don’t you? it’s something designed to get you to come into a store. It’s something to grab your attention. And the fact that Jesus is your constant companion in times of trouble is great news to the lost. But it won’t save them.
The only thing that will save them is if they look at the bronze serpent on the pole. They can only be saved if they see themselves as sinners; sinners on a cross. When we are reaching out to a lost soul, it just doesn’t seem right to tell them that they are a sinner. But that is what they need to know. You can’t leave it out of any evangelical encounter.
We can talk all we want about theological concepts, but until we talk about how we are all sinners, and Christ is the only way to remedy the situation, we haven’t instilled in them a saving faith. They become a knowledgeable lost person.
You know, Ring Around the Rosie was a simple children’s song. But over the years, it took on meanings that it was never intended to have. And the same thing happened to the bronze serpent.
The Hebrew people continued to carry the bronze serpent with them into Canaan. They kept it around through the judges and through the kings of Israel. But they added interpretations of that bronze serpent that were never intended. And when that happened, God removed it from his people. After 700 years, king Hezekiah destroyed the serpent because the people were idolizing it.
Dear people; you are to study God’s word. You are to read his word every day. You are to learn doctrine. You are to grow in your Christian faith. But never, ever, lose sight of the fact that you are a sinner, and that Christ is the only way to fix your sinfulness. He is the only one who can present you blameless before an almighty and holy God.
Amen.
In just a moment, we are going to sing our hymn of invitation. Before we do that, I’d like to ask any of you who are here this morning, and who haven’t made that life-commitment to following Jesus to think about what I’ve said in my message this morning.
Jesus died on that cross for everybody. He didn’t just die for those he preferred, he paid the price of your sin no matter how deep your sins are. You can’t get away from the love of Jesus. He wept when he approached Calvary. He wept because he knew there were some who would not accept his offer of redemption.
It just doesn’t matter how dark your past is. It doesn’t matter what your sins are. The only thing that matters is knowing that you are a sinner, and only Jesus can fix that. So please, if you haven’t asked Jesus to be the Lord of your life, think about doing it now. There may not be a tomorrow. Come forward while we sing our hymn of invitation and ask Jesus to fix you sinfulness. He can do it!
And if you are a visitor, and you’ve visited before, we would love for you to join with us as we work to carry the name of Jesus to the world. Come forward during our hymn and talk to one of our deacons about joining this wonderful church, Rocky Springs.
Let us sing now, our hymn of invitation.
