Numbers 21 Devotional

Look and Live

“Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and mount it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will live.””Numbers 21:8 (BSB)

Numbers 21 begins with a victory, as the LORD hears Israel's vow and gives them the Canaanites of Arad (21:1-3). But on the long road around Edom the people grow impatient and speak against God and Moses, calling the manna detestable (21:4-5). The LORD sends venomous snakes, and many die (21:6). This time the people say plainly that they have sinned and ask Moses to pray (21:7).

God's answer is unexpected. He does not simply remove the snakes. He tells Moses to make a serpent and set it on a pole, and any bitten person who looks to it will survive (21:8-9). The cure asks for nothing but a look. Jesus told Nicodemus that he himself must be lifted up in the same way, so that all who believe in him would have eternal life (John 3:14-15). The remedy for sin is not effort or bargaining. It is looking in faith to the one God has lifted up, and that remedy is open to you today.

To think about: What are you trying to fix in yourself that God invites you simply to bring to Christ?