Numeri 21:8

8 E l’Eterno disse a Mosè: "Fatti un serpente ardente, e mettilo sopra un’antenna; e avverrà che chiunque sarà morso e lo guarderà, scamperà".

Numeri 21:8 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 21:8

And the Lord said unto Moses
Out of the cloud; or, it may be, Moses went into the sanctuary, and there prayed, and the Lord answered him from between the cherubim:

make them a fiery serpent;
not a real one, but the likeness of one, one that should very much resemble the fiery serpents Israel had been bitten with:

and set it upon a pole;
a standard, banner, or ensign, as the word signifies; perhaps meaning one of the poles on which their ensigns were carried: the Targum of Jonathan renders it, on an high place, that so it might be seen by all in the camp:

and it shall come to pass, that everyone that is bitten, when he
looketh upon it, shall live;
which is very wonderful, that by looking to the figure of a serpent, men should be cured of the bites of real ones, and which bites were deadly; the virtue of healing could not come from the figure, but from God, who appointed it to be made, the Targum of Jonathan adds, that one bitten should live,

``if he directed his heart to the Word of the Lord,''

even to that divine Logos or Word of God, whose lifting up was figured hereby; see ( John 3:14 ) .

Numeri 21:8 In-Context

6 Allora l’Eterno mandò fra il popolo de’ serpenti ardenti i quali mordevano la gente, e gran numero d’Israeliti morirono.

7 Allora il popolo venne a Mosè e disse: "Abbiamo peccato, perché abbiam parlato contro l’Eterno e contro te; prega l’Eterno che allontani da noi questi serpenti". E Mosè pregò per il popolo.

8 E l’Eterno disse a Mosè: "Fatti un serpente ardente, e mettilo sopra un’antenna; e avverrà che chiunque sarà morso e lo guarderà, scamperà".

9 Mosè allora fece un serpente di rame e lo mise sopra un’antenna; e avveniva che, quando un serpente avea morso qualcuno, se questi guardava il serpente di rame, scampava.

10 Poi i figliuoli d’Israele partirono e si accamparono a Oboth;