Fiery Serpents

          Reasonable people avoid venomous snakes for obvious reasons. No one in their right mind would want to be bitten by one. It certainly does not sound like a pleasant experience. It’s right up there with being mauled by a grizzly bear and having a great white sink its teeth into my flesh. No thank you. I’ll pass.
          In the opening verse of Numbers 21, we find the people of God leaving Mount Hor and travelling by the way to the Red Sea. On their way around the land of Edom, the people grow impatient. Again. As usual, they begin complaining about God and his servant Moses. Their charges sound very familiar as they question God’s purposes for bringing them out of Egypt to simply die in the wilderness. Disgusted by the worthless food God provided and irritated over the lack of fresh drinking water, their familiar complaining spirit is once again on full display for God and Moses to observe.  
          The people of Israel once again illustrate how quickly attitudes can sour. When tolerated, negativity and a critical spirit can soon become habitual, and once these destructive attitudes are ingrained in our hearts, they are normally difficult to change. The attitudes we choose in response to life’s circumstances are learned over the course of a lifetime, making them practically automatic. Our reactions often arise from our hearts long before we even realize they have been released into the open. When a person’s heart is bent toward rebellion and plagued by discontentment, even the best gifts from God lose their appeal. Hearts overrun by ungodly attitudes will never be fully satisfied, producing a toxic display or negativity and criticism. 
          It is not unusual in Scripture, or in our own lives, that spiritual struggles often follow a time of spiritual victory. In the first three verses of Numbers 21, progress was being made in Israel’s dependence on the Lord. Their battle with their sinful hearts, however, was far from over. Shortly after Israel’s victory over the Canaanites of the Negev, they once again demonstrated a critical attitude toward God and Moses. Frustrated with God and the leader He placed over them, the people grew impatient with Moses’s leadership and with the direction the Lord was taking them. God’s people had already forgotten that their victory over the army of Arad was granted to them by the Lord’s hand in response to their solemn pledge to Him (vv. 2-3). But when their circumstances did not unfold according to their preconceived expectations, their rebellious attitude resurfaced in a severe fashion. The issue of food and water once again rises to the surface, pushing the people to the boiling point. They not only complained of the monotony of the manna, they also described it as worthless food, seemingly forgetting that it had come directly from the Lord.
          Numbers 21 presents yet another occasion when God is rejected by his people, and this time His judgment falls upon them in the form of fiery serpents (v. 6). Because of their sinful attitudes, these venomous snakes claimed the lives of many people. Undoubtedly, the venom released in these snakebites was very powerful, causing agonizing deaths as the poison shut down one bodily system after another. From a strictly human perspective, we understand the people’s frustration. Very few people respond well to difficulties when they are tired, hungry, and thirsty. But from God’s perspective, He was no longer willing to tolerate their constant complaining and criticism of His servant Moses and of His merciful provisions. While this stands as yet another example of the people’s sinfulness, there is something profoundly different in this account: The people actually repent and ask for forgiveness. In verse 7 we read some rather remarkable words: “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.” The phrase we have sinned marks a radical shift in perspective as the people finally take full responsibility for their transgressions. Each time the fangs of one of the snakes punctured someone’s flesh, and their cries of agony pierced the ears of those nearby, the people were reminded of their sins. Their rebellious hearts were softened by the dead and dying bodies covering the ground. It was a tragic event that brought God’s people to their knees in humble repentance before the God they had so cruelly spurned.
          In response to their repentance, Moses prayed for the people as he had prayed for them in the past (e.g., Numbers 11:2). In this particular case, however, the snakes did not slither away, nor did they lose their fangs or venom; the fiery serpents continued to plague the people with their agonizing bites, and many more victims were growing ill and dying. Instead of losing the snakes, the people had to get their fill of them as they had been forced to stomach the quail they begged the Lord to send (Numbers 11:31-34). While the snakes were not neutralized, God delivered the people by commanding Moses to craft a bronze serpent, which was to be attached to a pole. Whenever a serpent bit someone, he would gaze upon the bronze serpent and be cured from the ravenous effects of the venom (v. 9). Hundreds of years later, during his earthly ministry, Jesus referenced this incident in John 3:14-16 where we read these life-giving words, “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. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” This terrible moment that claimed the lives of many, would later serve as an illustration of what Jesus did for us on the cross of Calvary. Those who, like the people of Israel, cry out I have sinned, repent of their sin, and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved. Not saved from every trial, but from the eternal punishment that awaits those who reject God’s gracious gift of salvation made available through His Son.
          There may be fiery serpents in your life right now that are in the form of various trials. Look to the Lord today, and allow Him to sustain you through His sovereign power.