What is the meaning of the bronze serpent in the Book of Numbers?

salvation
This dramatic scene from the Old Testament (Numbers 21, 5-9) depicts the moment when Moses saves his people from the snakes sent by God as punishment for their lack of faith. The bronze serpent on a rod, whose mere contemplation is sufficient to cure anyone bitten by a snake, symbolizes salvation.

What is the fiery serpent in Numbers 21?

At one point during the 40-year wanderings of the children of Israel in the wilderness, the people spoke against God and Moses, so “the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people” (Numbers 21:6). Many were bitten and died. Repentant of their sins, the people went to Moses.

Who in the Bible made a bronze snake?

The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole.

What is the connection between numbers 21 and John 3?

The Lord responded to Moses with the command to make a serpent and set it on a pole and He declared to Moses, “everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” The analogy between Numbers 21 and John 3 carries on into the verses that follow in John 3:17-18.

Why did Hezekiah destroy the bronze serpent?

29a). In the course of time, however, the people lost sight of the symbolical meaning and regarded the serpent itself as the seat of the healing power, and they made it an object of worship, so that Hezekiah found it necessary to destroy it (2 Kings 18:4; see also Ber.

What does the snake symbolize in the Bible?

It can represent death, destruction, evil, a penetrating legless essence, and/or poison. In the Christian tradition, Satan (in the guise of the serpent) instigated the fall by tricking Eve into breaking God’s command. Thus the serpent can represent temptation, the devil, and deceit.

What kind of snake is number 21?

The account of Moses and the Bronze Snake in the Bible is one of the weirdest stories ever. It’s found in the Book of Numbers 21. The Israelites were on their way to the Promised Land and the going got tough. They grumbled and complained against God, and then the going got even tougher.

What does the fiery serpent represent in the Bible?

The term translated as “fiery serpent”, saraph, appears elsewhere in the Book of Isaiah to signify the seraphim, the singular form of which is also saraph.

What is happening in Numbers 21?

Arad Is Going Down So, Israel is making its way through the wilderness when the King of Arad hears they’ll be close by him and sends his army to attack. How rude. The Israelites tell God that if he’ll be on their side they can take down the king and his army and then “utterly destroy” their attackers.

What happened to the bronze serpent in the Bible?

According to the Book of Kings, King Hezekiah institutes an iconoclastic reform that requires the destruction of “the brazen serpent that Moses had made; for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it; and it was called Nehushtan”.