The people came to Moses and said, We sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us. So Moses prayed for the people. – Numbers 21:7 When Israel traveled through the wilderness during their exodus from Egypt, they became impatient and lashed out at God and Moses. “Why has God brought us out into the wilderness to die when He told us He was going to save us? What kind of a God doesn’t give His children food or water?” They were tired, sore, and furious. Because of their complaining, God sent them “fiery” serpents (aka Asp Snakes) that bit the people, killing a whole lot of them (21:6). The text also says that the snakes are fiery serpents. Historians are not quite sure what this means. Fiery is often a term used in biblical language for the judgment of God, but it could also be a type of snake that might have the capabilities of an ancient “fire-breathing dragon.” No matter what, it was a bad day for Israel. The people finally humbled themselves before God. They asked Moses to intervene for them. So Moses prayed, and God replied with some unusual instructions. God told Moses to make a serpent and set it on a pole. Whoever looked to the serpent would live. A lot of us think that God’s punishment in this passage seem unfair drastic, but is it? Might God have overreacted? Sin is not just doing something bad, but disobeying and disbelieving our Creator-God. Sin isn’t just about what we do, but Whom we do it against. Adam and Even believed and obeyed Satan instead of God. The Israelites doubted God’s goodness. What about your sin? Do you trivialize it, minimize it, or excuse it? We all need to think about it and pray about it and do something about it. Tomorrow, we’ll conclude this thought.
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