BIBL 104-D73 OTNBSA Assignment - Hanson
BIBL 104-D73 OTNBSA Assignment - Hanson
BIBL 104-D73 OTNBSA Assignment - Hanson
Instructions:
For this assignment, you will be studying the Old Testament story of The Bronze Serpent found
in Numbers 21:4-9. You will use the template below in order to complete a study of this passage.
In your study, you will use the skills of Observation, Interpretation, Correlation, and Application
that you have become familiar with through your reading in Everyday Bible Study.
I. Observation
A. I have read Numbers 21:4-9 in both a formal translation (KJV, NKJV, NASB, ESV, or
CSB) and a functional translation (NIV, NLT, or NCV). Highlight the correct answer. You
will find a copy of the NASB, ESV, CSB, and NLT in your myWSB Library.
o Yes
o No
B. Having read the passage in both formal and functional translation, list at least 2 similarities
and 3 differences between the way both translations cover this story. You may list as many
similarities and differences that you find as long as you meet the minimum amount.
Similarities Differences
Verse 5: Verse 6:
The people asked the question, “Why have In the ESV, the snakes are called “fiery
you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the serpents”, whereas in the NLT they are called
wilderness?” in both ESV & NLT “poisonous snakes”.
Verse 7: Verse 8:
In both versions, after the people plead to Interesting, the Lord says to Moses, “Make a
Moses to relieve them of the snakes, “So fiery serpent and set it on a pole,…”, but in
Moses prayed for the people.” the NLT, He says, “Make a replica of a
poisonous snake and attach it to a pole.”
Verse 4:
The ESV states, “And the people became
impatient on the way.” But the NLT makes
specific reference to the time reference, “but
the people grew impatient with the long
journey,..”
C. Identify the basic elements of the story you are studying
This story takes place after many years of the Israelites wandering in the desert. Aaron
and Miriam have both died, and the people are tired of eating manna and having little to
drink, and are complaining about it. God sends poisonous snakes to bite and kill many of
them, so they plead with Moses to pray for them on behalf of their sins. Moses prays and
God tells him to fashion a bronze snake to attach to a pole, in which the people would
look upon it and be healed.
Introduction:
Israelites wandering the wilderness, skirting the land of Edom.
Inciting Incident:
The people of Israel become impatient about how long it is taking to get to the Promised
land.
Rising action:
The Israelites complain about the lack of “good” food and water supply.
Climax:
God sends venomous snakes to bite and kill many of the Israelite people.
Falling Action:
The suffering people plead with Moses to pray to God and have Him take away the
snakes.
Resolution:
Doing what God tells him, Moses places a bronze snake on a pole so that all the people
who look at it will live.
D. List basic observations about this passage using the “Key Question” for observation.
1. Who:
The Israelites set out from a long stay at Mount Hor, and journeyed long in the
desert, skirting around the land of Edom. This was a punishment from God for their
sin of not trusting God to take over the inhabitants of Canaan, the promised land.
The people grow weary of eating only the constant supply of manna that God
provided, and having only the minimum amount to drink, “There is nothing to eat
here and nothing to drink. And we hate this horrible manna!” (Num 21:5, NLT).
The Lord sends out a vast number of poisonous snakes to attack the people and
eradicate many of them.
The people realize the error of their ways and cry out to Moses saying, “We have
sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take
away the snakes.” (Num 21:7, NLT)
The Lord responds to Moses by giving him instructions to fashion the image of a
snake or serpent out of bronze and fasten it to a pole, and that just by looking at that
image they will live.
Moses obeys the Lord by creating the image of the bronze snake.
Everyone who was bitten by a snake would simply look upon the bronze snake and
they would survive the attack.
3. Where:
4. When:
5. Why:
Why did the people of Israel grow impatient with the long journey through the desert?
Quite frankly, 40 years of wandering in a dry and weary land would wear on anyone’s
emotional and physical being, and even trusting in the Lord through such an
experience would be tested.
Why did the Lord send poisonous snakes to kill His people?
God had already made up His mind about destroying this generation of Israelite
people, His people, because of their complete lack of trust in Him. This was
punishment for their disobedience and lack of faith.
Why did God provide a way out for the sinful people He just killed?
God still loved His chosen people and wanted to give them some hope for continuing
to trust that He knew what was best for them.
6. How:
How does God react to the grumbling, impatient, and unsatisfied people He chose to enter
into His covenant?
God used the lowest form of life, the crawling and deceiving serpent, to kill off many
people because of their sins.
How does God use Moses, one of the key leaders in the Old Testament, to save His people?
God spoke directly to Moses and no one else. It is no surprise that He worked through
His servant Moses to raise the bronze serpent in order to save the people, those who
chose to look at it, from dying.
II. Interpretation
A. Determine the author’s main point. In 1-2 paragraphs (100-400 words) explain what you
think the author is trying to communicate in this passage. Remember, the Old Testament
narratives frequently communicate truth by showing it to us in story form instead of
telling it to us by way of teaching or sermon.
The story of the bronze serpent emphasizes the fact that God is in control of everything,
and that relying and trusting that He ultimately has the best interest for His people is the
only option. The frustration that the Israelites experienced in their wanderings was a real
emotion, but the times of grumbling versus the times of rejoicing and giving praise to the
Lord for supplying the basic needs were way out of proportion. In the long run, they were
rejecting God’s grace. God did what he felt necessary in sending the plague of snakes to
once again show the people who was in charge, and who was ultimately in control of
their lives. It took this one action by God to wake up the people of Israel to their sins, and
after they saw so much death of family and friends, they begged their leader Moses (they
were not allowed at the time to approach God directly), to pray to God on their behalf to
stop their suffering.
Moses knows his status with God, and knows that he alone can converse with God, and
because he loves the people he serves, he prays to God to help the people. The Lord
responds out of love for His people by having His servant-leader Moses be the conduit in
which God’s saving power will ultimately flow. Under Gods direction, Moses creates a
replica of a snake (where did he get the bronze?) and attach it to a standard. Now all the
people have to do is simply look upon the bronze figure and be saved from death. Of
course, the people must have needed to be in a position to be able to see the figure to be
saved, in other words, they needed to “want” to be saved.
B. Based on your answer above, write out one principle from this passage. You should be able
to express this principle in 1-3 sentences.
Trusting that God is in control is key, and straying from this trust can lead to dire
circumstances. However, returning to Him and praying for forgiveness of sins will restore
the sinner to a right standing with God.
III. Correlation
A. How does this Old Testament narrative fit within the metanarrative of the Bible? State what
type of story you believe this to be (creation, fall, redemption, or new creation) and
explain why you believe this to be so. Your explanation should be 1 paragraph (100-200
words) in length.
The wandering in the desert of the Israelite people shows a clear correlation of anyone
who going through pain and suffering, whether it be emotional, physical, or spiritual. The
grumblings of the people show a discontent of their circumstances and a short-sighted
view of what God promised them in moving into the Promised Land, and preferred to
return to a life of slavery in Egypt. The sufferer of the snake bite absolutely must have
turned and physically looked at the bronze image, with an act of remorse towards God’s
blessed assurance of salvation. This narrative is a story of redemption in that after seeing
the humility, repentance, and willingness of the people to return to Him, God saves and
redeems His people, essentially giving them another chance to follow with obedience and
trust.
B. How does your principle fit with the rest of the Scripture? This principle is the one you
have written out in 1-3 sentences in the Interpretation section. If your principle is a true
Biblical principle it will be reflected throughout the Scriptures. Where is the principle
discovered in this Old Testament narrative found elsewhere in the Scriptures? Your
explanation should be 1 paragraph (100-200 words) in length.
The principle idea of redemption is woven throughout both Old and New Testaments. A
good example is in Micah 4:10 which says, “…You will soon be sent in exile to distant
Babylon. But the Lord will rescue you there; he will redeem you from the grip of your
enemies.” God looks out for His people, even when they go astray. In Zechariah’s Holy
Spirit-filled prophecy, he says, “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has visited
and redeemed his people. (Luke 1:68). Moses prayers to God in this story affects a
change in His heart, whereby He yields from completely annihilating the Israelites, and
gives them another chance; redemption through another person in Moses.
C. How does this Old Testament narrative reflect the person and work of Jesus Christ? State
and explain at least one way that the principle of this narrative can be identified in the
person and work of Jesus Christ. Your explanation should be 1 paragraph (100-200
words) in length.
Jesus refers directly to this narrative in John 3:14-15 where he says, “And as Moses lifted
up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so
that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.” This was obviously a precursor
statement of the type of death he was going to experience, and the redemption of those
who believe in Him. In terms of the Biblical metanarrative, everything revolves around
the person and deity of Jesus Christ, which in Luke 24:27 it talks about Jesus, "And
beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the
Scriptures concerning himself." Ultimately, through His Son Jesus Christ, God will
redeem all of His people, Jews and Gentiles alike, and restore that which was destroyed
during the fall of man back in the third chapter of Genesis.
IV. Application
What points of application can be made using the Four Questions for Application? State and
explain 1 point of application for each of these four questions. Your explanation for each of
these points should be 1 paragraph (100-200 words) in length.
When we deviate from God’s purpose for our lives, it may mean that He will send
proverbial snakes our direction to help guide us back to Him, to repent or turn back to
Him. The best thing about being a follower of Jesus Christ is that we have the glorious
benefit of the Holy Spirit indwelling within us. He helps us through the sea of serpents
and gently reminds us to “look up” to the bronze snake or really, the cross of Jesus to
point us back in the right direction. The text speaks of the question of duty potentially
leading to a legalistic mindset of “do’s and don’ts”. (Cartwright & Hulshof, 2019, p.
177). For example, I know that I should be in a study of God’s Word every day.
However, my time in the Word often turns into something I can just check off a list. All
this really means is that the joy of Bible time has turned into an obligation rather than a
relationship.
The collective character of the Israelites in the desert shows the flaws of mankind, even
when they know the God of Creation. He made all of us in His image to be in loving
relationship with Him. What we do see is the true character of Moses in this story. He
was the leader of the Israelites, and even though they bellyached over his decisions, they
still knew enough to turn to him to pray to God for them. This character had been
revealed to them over years (probably over 30 years by that time), and it did not waiver.
It has been said that the true test of a person’s character is that which is demonstrated
when no one is watching. I believe that character is developed over years of making
mistakes and going through trials, and in the end, the closer we are to Christ, the more
our true character is revealed. Much of this involves a certain level of humility. The
apostle Paul is an example of one that survived many trials, and yet shows his humility
in that, “If I must boast, I would rather boast about the things that show how weak I
am.” (2 Cor 11:30, NLT).
God mapped out the wilderness journey after the people rebelled against God, Moses
and Aaron. Did He do this randomly? Of course not, His goal was to realign His chosen
people with Himself and get them to realize that God is 100 percent for them, not
against them. God is in the business of rescuing and redeeming people and with us it is
no exception. Our goal should be the same, to realign ourselves with God’s plan for the
world, to bring everyone back to Him and live in Eternity with Him, essentially to
redeem humankind. How this is done looks different for each of us, and so we should be
diligent in knowing how our talents and gifts line up with God’s goals.
This perhaps is the toughest question to answer in that it requires enough knowledge to
be able to find the Biblical truth, and enough wisdom to be able to apply it correctly.
Moses could just have as easily refused to pray to God to stop the snake attack. He knew
by then that he was not going into the promised land after twice striking the rock at the
waters of Meribah. He would certainly have been in his selfish right to say no, I’m going
to die anyway, why should I help you? The question of discernment often lies with the
simplest of truths, “Am I going to help others, or am I going to do what I want?” The
answer lies in what Jesus said in Matthew, “You must love the Lord your God with all
your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.
A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all
the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-
40).