The premise of all our studies in scripture is twofold. One, that it is true what is written,
“All scripture is God-breathed, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” [2 Tim 3:16-17]
The book we have laid before us, namely The Bible, is such that it is far more than mere ink and paper. The words are as The Holy Spirit writes in Hebrews, “living, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword…” [Heb 4:12] They are living and breathing, and even more than that: they give life. Jesus says, “…the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life;” [Jn 6:63] and again, in the Psalms, “give me life according to thy word.” [Psa 119:25, 107, 154] Apart from this premise: that the scriptures contained in The Bible are God’s living, breathing, eternal words, what profit is there? If these be not the words of God, The True God, then we are better off finding something else to study – for these words bear weight and power because that very truth: they are indeed God’s words.
And two, our second premise, is that all of God’s words found in The Bible have one common theme: Jesus Christ God’s Son. For Jesus speaks, saying, “Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.” [Heb 10:7] Jesus, who is “The Word,” “became flesh, and tabernacled among us;” He is, ”The Word of Life,” which was “manifested…that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us.” [Jn 1:1, 14, 1 Jn 1:1-2] And so then, the scriptures, which are God’s word, thus are concerning Jesus Christ, whose name is “The Word of God.” [Rev 19:13] Every picture, every account, every story, every book, and every chapter, without exception, in some way or another, whether big or small, point to Jesus Christ.
Now then, it is upon these two premises we come to the book of Numbers, the fourth of Moses’ writings. But some may say, “what has Numbers to do with Christ?” Ah, very much. Let us remember what Jesus says to the Pharisees, “for had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me.” [Jn 5:46] What an audacious and bold claim from our Lord: that Moses, the revered and respected – and dare I say, worshipped – man, Moses: Jesus claims that Moses wrote of Him! Imagine yourself in the crowd that day, and there stands a man, Jesus Christ from Nazareth, the carpenter. And there He is, gracious word after gracious word coming forth from His mouth; teachings and miracles and all sorts of wonderful things. And then, as He was like to do, Jesus makes an incredible claim, a claim only God Himself could make and hold – that Moses, who wrote far before Jesus lived on earth, in all his religious writings, wrote of Jesus Christ Himself. What would you think of Him? Would you think Him insane? There were some that did. Would you think Him an hypocrite? Again, there were those who thought likewise. Or would you believe Him, as only a few did? Truly, Jesus was an incredible man; but not just man: even God Himself. Taking this line of thought, that Moses wrote of Jesus, we may do well to depart in our minds for one moment and think of the law. Remember how it is written, how that God “gave unto Moses…two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God,” [Ex 31:18] whereupon was written the Ten Commandments. And if we are to take Jesus’ words literally, (which we must always do), then we must conclude that when God Almighty wrote upon the tablets of stone upon Mount Sinai, God was writing about Jesus Christ. It is an incredible and wonderful thing to think about. And may I ask you, dear man, do you believe such things? Take the ten commandments, yes take any law, and see if Jesus did not fulfil them all. See if His words, that He came to fulfill every single letter of the law, are true or not. Take love, upon which every law is founded, [Rom 13:8-10] and see its definition. How that love is longsuffering, kind, humble, not easily provoked, not keeping track of sins, etc., [1 Cor 13:4-8] and see if Jesus did not fulfil them all with astonishing victory; or rather, if these laws, and if love, are in fact not just something Jesus fulfilled, but were in fact written of Jesus Himself and are merely descriptions of His character and person. And indeed, this is the case, for we read of Jesus, who is The Word, that, “The Word became flesh.” [Jn 1:14]
But let us now come back to Numbers. How shall Numbers picture and point to Jesus? Much in every way. Let us take two things. First, the layout and number of the camp of Israel in chapter two; and second, the bronze serpent which Moses created and reared up.
Our first point shall be quite short. In chapter two of Numbers, “The LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron,” [Num 2:1] and proceeded to tell them how Israel ought to camp. He said, to start,
“Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch by his own standard, with the ensign of their father’s house…on the east side toward the rising of the sun shall they of the standard of Judah pitch throughout their armies…and those that do pitch next unto him shall be the tribe of Issachar…[and] Zebulun…[and] all that were numbered in the camp of Judah were 186,400…” [Num 2:2-9]
And the text continues, with The LORD Himself directing which camp was where, in relation to the tabernacle, and then Moses’ commentary about the exact number of the people. Let us notice a few things in particular, and may we start with the most striking and startling of them all. Remember first of all how Balaam sought to acquire wealth and fame, and as such, yielded himself and his gifting of prophecy unto Balak king of Moab, and how, “it came to pass…that Balak took Balaam, and brought him up into the high places of Baal, that thence he might see the utmost part of the people.” [Num 22:41] Balak had brought Balaam there, saying, “come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people; for they are too mighty for me…” [Num 22:6] And Balaam took heed to this request, coming with a mind to curse Israel. Despite offering meager and vain words, mainly that he was not inclined to say or do anything The LORD would not have him to do, he was much like the religious people of Israel, who later in their days it would be said of them, “this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me.” [Isa 29:13] Thus, despite his words, Balaam sought to curse Israel in his heart. Therefore, through the effectiveness of his bribes, Balak brought him to a high place that he might look down upon Israel and curse them. Imagine what Balaam would have seen. No doubt, a great multitude of people; but how were they arranged? And what shape did they take on when he caught sight of them from a bird’s perspective? But let us also think to ourselves, why would The LORD take such initiative, and such care, to specifically direct which tribes were where, and how they were to camp round about the tabernacle? Why not just let them camp as it suited them?
Consider one answer to this question: Jesus Christ. Was this not the premise that we started off with? Yea, and the true and correct premise to any real Bible study? Therefore, let us look closer. For if we take the tribes and their locations and are careful to note how many are camped where, (as Moses details out), and we then separate those numbers proportionately around the tabernacle – so that Judah’s space, having the most people, would occupy a greater area than Ephraim’s, which has the least people – then we would see that the shape created is nothing else than the cross. [Figure 1]
Figure 1 [1]
What an incredible thing that God has hidden the cross in the middle of a lengthy text about encampments! Hidden in plain sight, where most people would just skip over for boredom and for seemingly purposelessness, there lies the cross of Jesus Christ. We can see, then, why The LORD might have been concerned with the placement of Israel’s tribes. Beyond any physical and practical reason, (which surely there was), we do see an incredible act of God’s foresight and wisdom in forming the cross. And so, if we think back upon Balaam, when he looked down from the high place at Israel, what did he see? Why, Balaam that wicked prophet, saw the cross! Though he knew it not, there was the cross of Jesus Christ. And as Balaam looked upon Israel to curse them, God looked down quite the opposite: not to curse, but to protect and to bless. For while Balaam sought to curse Israel, as it is written, “The LORD thy God turned the curse into a blessing unto [Israel], because The LORD thy God loved [Israel].” [Deut 23:5] And The LORD spoke through Balaam, (despite Balaam’s best efforts), and said,
“God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: hath He said, and shall He not do it? or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good? Behold, I have received commandment to bless: and He hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it. He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath He seen perverseness in Israel: the LORD his God is with him, and the shout of a king is among them.” [Num 23:19-21]
The LORD was, and is today, determined to bless Israel and would not suffer the curse to be brought upon them, no matter how hard their enemies fought and strained. As it is written elsewhere, “for thou blessest, O LORD, and it shall be blessed for ever.” [1 Ch 17:27] And as it was with Israel, so to it is with us. For when The Lord Almighty looks down upon us, instead of seeing our sin, or instead of finding reason to curse and hurt, God sees us through the lens of Jesus Christ and finds reason to bless. For, “as [Jesus] is, so are we in this world;” [1 Jn 4:17] and through Jesus God has “reconciled [us] in the body of His flesh through death, to present [us] holy and unblameable and unreproveable in His sight.” [Col 1:21-22] As Balaam saw the cross of God, and God, through Balaam, blessed His people, so too when The LORD our Father looks down upon us He always sees Jesus, and is always inclined to favor and bless us in Him, who are “highly favored in the beloved [Son].” [Eph 1:6] For as God turned the curse into a blessing then, we can rejoice today as well because “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us.” [Gal 3:13] Jesus took upon Himself the curse and because of that we are blessed and can receive salvation, if so we are believing in Jesus. This is all because of the cross. It is because Jesus died upon the cross for our sins, and was raised up again from the dead, that we can be blessed and loved in this way by God. And whereas with Israel, The LORD said, despite Israel’s constant sin, “He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath He seen perverseness in Israel,” so too in Christ we are blameless. As we are told, “there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit;” [Rom 8:1] and again, in Christ we are, “holy and without blame before Him in love.” [Eph 1:4] And again, speaking of Israel’s restoration and thus what we presently have in Christ Jesus, The LORD says in Jeremiah, “in those days, and in that time, saith The LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve.” [Jer 50:20]
In addition to this account in Numbers, which shows us the cross of Jesus, there is yet another picture, (and I am sure many more); a picture which even Jesus Himself references. We shall now come to our second point regarding the gospel in the book of Numbers: the bronze serpent.
There came a point in Israel’s wilderness wanderings where they sought to go through the land of Edom, the ancient land of Esau, Jacob’s brother. However, having been forbidden by Edom, who said, despite Israel’s hospitable and meek request, “thou shalt not pass by me, lest I come out against thee with the sword,” [Num 20:18] The LORD spoke to them to go around. And so, “they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the people was much discouraged because of the way.” [Num 21:4] Because the way was long, hard, tedious, and wearisome, the people became discouraged. And perhaps you, dear reader, have come today to this reading discouraged and distraught, because the way The LORD leads you through life has become tough. If it be so, let the next part not be so. For when Israel became discouraged, it is written,
“And 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 despises this worthless bread.” [Num 21:5]
It was for this grievous complaining against God, despite the fact that The LORD had and was giving them both water and bread, that, “The LORD sent poisonous serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much of the people of Israel died.” [Num 21:6] Besides the point we shall come to, it may be worthwhile to pause for a moment and reflect and observe: that complaining leads to death. Let us take heart in our journeyings and look unto God who formed us, our Good Shepherd who knows what we need before we ask Him.
It was because of this complaining that Moses went to The LORD and inquired.
“And The LORD said unto Moses, make thee a bronze 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. And 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.” [Num 21:8-9]
Though The LORD sent poisonous serpents into the multitudes, we may, before seeing how Christ fits in to all of this, meditate on and notice a few things.
First, it says in Deuteronomy, Moses looking back on the wilderness, “[The LORD] led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were poisonous serpents, and scorpions, and drought…” [Deut 8:15] Is there any among us who would suppose that this barren desert landscape was always void of poisonous serpents, and that it was only for The LORD’s punishment here that they were introduced? Surely not. What then? It was this: The LORD had always been protecting the very large group of Israelites from poisonous snakes, scorpions, and other terrors of the desert wilderness, such as wild beasts. He was very merciful in His dealings with Israel, protecting them and even their clothes, as Moses reminded Israel, “thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years.” [Deut 8:4] So then, when we read of this punishment, we might rather understand that The LORD withdrew His protection from Israel; and that the poisonous serpents, which were always present, were now no longer forbidden from approaching and attacking Israel, God having removed His protective hand from them due to their complaining.
Second, there is no medicinal value in looking at a bronze serpent on a pole. Therefore, The LORD did not instruct them to do this because it was a secret medical healing agent, long lost to the ages – but rather, it was chosen because of the faith it would display and require, and for the typology of Christ that would come from it (as we shall see).
Third, the word for “beheld” when scripture says, “when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived,” is a word which is better rendered “gaze.” It is the word The LORD uses when He says to Abraham, “look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them…” [Gen 15:5] Imagine, if you will, and take God’s words literally to Abraham. If Abraham were to obey these words in literal fashion, (as we should always take God’s words unless instructed otherwise), then what type of “looking” might be required of Abraham in order to number the stars in the sky? It would require, no doubt, not a glance, but a gaze. Not a passing look, but a prolonged stare. Therein is the definition of this word, and what was required of the Israelites: not a passing, quick glance at the bronze serpent but a prolonged gaze of faith in its healing power. And rather, not in the healing power of the metal or the snake, (for Hezekiah would one day say regarding this thing, “Nehushtan,” that is, “a thing of brass,” before “braking in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made.” [2 Ki 18:4]), but rather, in the healing power of The LORD and His words: for that is what truly bears power.
Now then, having read the account in Numbers, let us read what Jesus says in the gospel of John.
“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His One-and-Only Unique Son, [Jesus Christ], that whosoever is continuing to believe in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.” [Jn 3:14-17]
Jesus then goes on to explain what it means to believe, to explain what the proof of belief is. That is, Jesus shows us in the next few verses what true, biblical believing in Him looks like and is evidenced by: that belief which leads to eternal life. And to this, we should give much heed. Not only does it correspond to the account given in Numbers, but it should be especially relevant to us when we remember the fearful words of Christ, “not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but He that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” [Mt 7:21] Therefore, we read,
“He that is believing on Him is not condemned: but he that is not believing is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the One-and-Only Unique Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that practices evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that practices truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.” [Jn 3:18-21]
Herein lies the fruit of true belief: practicing truth. [Jn 3:21] The man who believes in Jesus, and is thus not experiencing condemnation – what does he do? How does he act? Jesus says that in contrast to the man who is condemned and who is in darkness, the man who truly believes practices truth. He has a lifestyle of practicing truth. But what does that mean? Jesus explains to us here in these verses that it is a habitual, (though from time to time we slip), but that it is a habitual lifestyle of bringing one’s own deeds, thoughts, words, emotions, etc., to the light of Jesus Christ, to the light of scripture, so that He might reveal what is wrong. The man who practices truth has a great desire to obey The LORD. If something were off in his life, he would want to know so that he might take corrective steps. Therefore, that man, urged onto this practice by a love for Jesus in whom he believes, has a habit of bringing his deeds to the Lord: so that The Lord Jesus, through scripture, might shine His light upon those deeds, revealing if they are in fact good or bad. This is what it is to practice truth. And it is a practice; meaning, dear brethren, that we are always working at it and improving, though we are hardly ever flawless. But the man who does not practice truth, but who instead is condemned and unbelieving – this man does not want his deeds exposed, and so, hating the light which exposes them, (for, “whatsoever doth make manifest is light.” [Eph 5:13]), he hides himself and his deeds from the light of God, from the light of scripture, ever desiring to remain in his sin, bad attitudes, bad thinking, or whatever else it may be. That man does not wish to be conformed into Jesus’ image, by means of God’s eternal and unambiguous word, but rather, not believing in nor loving Christ, would rather do as he likes: and so, he never does come to that light nor seek it out.
Now, brethren, let us draw the connection and bring ourselves back to Numbers, wherein we read of the bronze serpent. Let us remind ourselves how that, “if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.” [Num 21:9] And let us also remember how, upon further investigation, we saw how that the word for behold here means rather to gaze. It is not a glance at the serpent, which saved a man, but a prolonged gaze. Therefore, the same is true for Christ. Is there anyone reading this who professes to believe in Christ? I imagine that there is. And ask yourself, dear reader, what is your belief in The Lord Jesus like? Has it been a glance as it were, or a continued, (yes continuing even to this present moment), gaze? Have you set your eyes upon Jesus, upon the cross on which He bore your sins and died, and have never taken your gaze away? Have you fought and strove to remain faithful to Him in that gaze, fearful that if you would chance a glance but anywhere else you might die? Have you lovingly, faithfully stared upon your Savior? If you have said yes; if your belief in Jesus has been continuing and not just once-and-done; if your faith and belief, however weak and however small, has endured, then praise be to God, man, you are saved! However, if you say that your belief in Jesus has been but a glance; if you would say today that you have professed and confessed Christ at some point in the past, but it has not affected you nor persisted into the present day – but it has rather stayed in the past, then man, flee to Christ anew! For you exhibit not that glorious fruit of endurance and salvation, but that of false profession and damnation. As Jesus says, “…he that endureth to the end shall be saved.” [Mt 10:22] And ask yourself: endure in what? Why, endure in belief! If your belief is not a lifestyle: a habit and practice which infects and affects every area of your life, mind, and heart – if your belief is merely word and thought only, or merely a past thing you remember from time-to-time, and not the heartbeat of your existence, then, my good man, flee to Jesus and be saved! Put your faith in Him, as Noah and his family and place yourself firmly upon the boat of Christ Almighty who died for your sins. Put your faith in Him as those poor souls bitten of the serpents and gaze upon Him, the man upon the cross, as if your life depended on it (for it does!).
We have all been infected and cursed with that wretched thing sin. Again, as we have seen, so let us see again what is written,
“There is none righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one…all have sinned, and are falling short of the glory of God.” [Rom 3:10-12, 23]
As those bitten of the serpents were doomed to die else some intervention was supplied, so too we have been bitten as it were. We have all been taken with the poison of sin, and must die. Lest there is salvation given to us by some means, we shall all perish. All of us likewise shall die, for all of us likewise have sinned. “For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.” [Ecc 7:20] And, “if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” [1 Jn 1:8] But just as The LORD provided a means of salvation to the Israelites in the wilderness, so too God has given us an escape. As the bronze serpent was lifted up, so too Jesus Christ was “made to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.” [2 Cor 5:21] Jesus was “pierced through for our rebellions, He was crushed for our depravities: the discipline that brought us peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.” [Isa 53:5] Jesus became sin for us; upon that cross He was the serpent, He was sin. And upon that cross every rebellion, every wickedness, every foul and unpleasant atrocity to ever flow up from our hearts and out of our mouths was placed squarely on His shoulders – as though He had done them all. And there He was, The Son of Man, The Great I Am, The Beloved Child of Heaven, The Prince of Peace, The Lion of Judah, The Lamb of God – there He was, can you see Him there, dear reader? Can you smell the sweat and the blood and hear the cries of agony from His lips? – there He was, our dear Lord and brother, upon that wretched tree, suffering under the great and immeasurable weight of your sin; of my sin. He is our salvation. Jesus Christ The Lamb of God, the man upon the cross. He is the provided salvation. As the bronze serpent was for the people, so too Jesus is for us, if we would but gaze upon Him in belief. If you, dear reader, would but gaze upon Jesus Christ on the cross, in true belief that it was for your precious soul He died, you shall be saved. “For whosoever shall call upon the name of The Lord shall be saved.” [Rom 10:13] There is not another way, and there is not another savior. We might think it foolish, even silly, for a man in Moses’ day to have been bitten by a serpent, lying in the dust, dying, and who would refuse to just turn around and look up at the bronze serpent on the pole. Why, we might say, just look! Look and be saved, for why shall you die! Ah, but dear reader, why will you not turn to Christ, if so be you have not believed? Why do you persist in your own way of living, in your own ideas, in your own desires? Why do you persist in a rejection of Jesus as Savior? Why do you let the cross lay there on the ground, adamant in your refusal to pick it up and follow The Lord? “Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die?…” [Ezek 18:31] Turn from your sin and look to Jesus! “Turn unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.” [Isa 45:22]
[1] Missler, Chuck. “The Wilderness Wanderings.” Koinonia House, 1 Feb. 2006, khouse.org/personal_update/articles/2006/wilderness-wanderings.
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