Numbers 21:4-94And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way. 5And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread. 6And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. 7Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people. 8And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. 9And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived. (Numbers 21:4‑9).
THE children of Israel traveled in the wilderness a great many years. Sometimes when they were close to Canaan, the cloud moved the other way, and the Israelites were obliged to go on traveling in the wilderness. This made them very unhappy, for they longed very much to get into the sweet land of Canaan. If they had not behaved so ill in the wilderness, they would soon have got to Canaan; but God punished them by not letting them get in.
How do you think they bore their punishment? You know that they were always ready to murmur. They spoke against God and against Moses. They said, "Why have you brought us out of Egypt? We shall die in the wilderness. There is no bread here nor any water, and we do not like this manna.”
Was the manna nice food? It was fit for angels, spotless, white, and sweet as honey; it came down from heaven, and did not grow out of the ground as corn does. Yet these ungrateful Israelites said that they hated it, and were tired of eating it.
God sent them a dreadful punishment this time. You know there were wild beasts, and horrible serpents and scorpions in the wilderness; but God took care of the Israelites, so that they were not hurt by them; but now God sent serpents, whose mouths burned like fire. The serpents came rushing among the tents. The Israelites could not get away from them. If the Israelites climbed up a high place, the serpents could climb after them, and they could get through the smallest places.
Many, many of the Israelites were bitten by these serpents. After they had been bitten they grew sick, and were full of pain, and got worse and worse, till at last they died. There was no medicine could cure these bites; no plaster could make them well; every person who was bitten was sure to die. The Israelites came to Moses, and said, "We have sinned: we have spoken against the Lord, and against you; pray to the Lord that He take the serpents from us." For the serpents were still among the tents.
Did Moses pray to God for the people? or did he say, "You deserved to be punished, and I will not help you"? Moses was kind and forgiving, and he prayed for the people.
The Lord heard Moses' prayer, and He did more than Moses asked, for God not only called away the serpents, but He told him how to cure the people who were bitten by the serpents.
What do you think God told Moses to do? Did He tell Moses to give them some medicine, or to put a plaster to the bites? You will be surprised to hear the strange things that God told Moses to do.
He said, "Take some brass, and make it into the image of a serpent, and put it on a pole, and tell the people who are bitten to look at it, and those who look shall be made well.”
Was not this a strange way of making them well?
Moses believed God. He took some brass, and made it soft in the fire; and then made it like one of the fiery serpents, and put it on a pole, and lifted it up, where everyone could see it, and called to the sick people to look quickly at the serpent, and be made well The people who were bitten could crawl to the door of their tents, and lift up their dying eyes towards the serpent. After they had looked, their pain went away; they felt well and strong; they could walk and praise God.
Did all the people who were sick look at the serpent? I do not know. Perhaps some said, "How should looking at a serpent make us well?" If there were any such people, they must have died. But I hope that they all looked at the serpent.
And now, dear children, do you know that a serpent has bitten us? A serpent has bitten our souls. What serpent do I mean? The Old Serpent, the Devil. He has bitten our souls; that is, he nas made us naughty. You have heard how he made Adam and Eve naughty in the Garden of Eden. We are naughty, too, because we are Adam's children. Who can make our souls well of this bite? Who can make us good? If we are not made good, our souls will die: they will go to hell. Jesus can make us good by sending His Spirit into our hearts.
The serpent of brass was lifted on a pole—Jesus was lifted up on the cross: now we must look at Jesus. What do I mean by looking at Jesus? I do not mean looking at Him with our eyes: it would not make us good to see Jesus on the cross. A great many wicked people saw Him die, and were not made good. The "looking" I mean is thinking of Him, and loving Him. When you think of Jesus having died for you, and when you love Him for it, then you look at Him with your soul.
I hope, dear children, that you will all think of Jesus, and that God will send His Holy Spirit into your hearts, and make you good, and let you live forever in heaven.
Hymn 31
Hear a poor Israelite complain,
"Oh, can no medicine then be found
To ease my agonizing pain;
No balm to heal my festering wound?”
“This earth no medicine can supply,
No balm to heal the serpent's bite;
But lift once more thy dying eye,
And thou shalt live, poor Israelite.”
He looks on high and sees a pole,
Round which a brazen serpent coils;
No more his eyes with anguish roll,
No more his blood with fever boils.
Nor does the sight heal one alone;
A thousand dying sufferers gaze,
And every shriek, and every groan,
Are turned to joyful songs of praise.
Child
This history seems to me a glass,
In which I can my Savior see.
As Moses reared that form of brass,
So Christ was lifted on the tree.
Full well I know the reason why
Upon that tree my Savior hung
He saw us at the point to die,
Wounded by Satan's lying tongue.
He saw the serpent's poisonous fangs
Make pride to swell, and rage to burn,
Fill us with envy's gnawing pangs,
And spotless hearts to devils turn,
He saw—He pitied—and He bore
Our sins upon the bloody tree;
He bade us look, that evermore
From sin and death we might be free.
O Lord! 'tis not with fleshly eyes
That I am bid on Thee to gaze;
My inward eyes can pierce the skies;
Those inward eyes to Thee I raise.
If on Thy death I meditate,
And pardon for Thy sake entreat,
My soul's disease will soon abate,
And groans be changed to praises sweet.