The Serpent in the Wilderness

[Ben Masada]

The Serpent in the Wilderness

Numbers 21:9 (JPS) "Then Moses made a copper serpent and mounted it on a standard; and when any one
was bitten by a serpent, he would look at the copper serpent and recover." Christians love to read
this text and to find in it a reference to Jesus. Christian preconceived notions are the cause of this illusion because, If we focus on that text for the truth, it is right there almost in every line.

1 - And when any one was bitten by a serpent... It means that when any one was moved by the desire to rebel, as rebellion had become the order of the day among the Israelites in the wilderness,

2 - He would look... which means, he would remember.

3 - At the copper serpent which was a reference to the longest and cruelest captivity ever in Egypt...

4 - And recover. Here, "recover" means he would repent from his desire to rebel.

And that was the point for Moses to build the copper serpent in the wilderness.

 

[beameup]

The Serpent in the Wilderness

Numbers 21:9 (JPS) "Then Moses made a copper serpent and mounted it on a standard; and when any one
was bitten by a serpent, he would look at the copper serpent and recover." Christians love to read
this text and to find in it a reference to Jesus. Christian preconceived notions

Jesus explains it in the Gospels... no "Christian conspiracy" involved.
It is NOWHERE explained in the Tanakh, so you are just "making this up".
BTW, it was BRONZE, a metal that withstood HEAT, and stood for JUDGMENT.

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. - John 3:14-15

This is the "only way" that your name can be written in the Book of Life (permanently).

 

[Ben Masada]

Jesus explains it in the Gospels... no "Christian conspiracy" involved.
It is NOWHERE explained in the Tanakh, so you are just "making this up". BTW, it was, a metal that withstood HEAT, and stood for.

This is the "only way" that your name can be written in the Book of Life (permanently).

So, whoever wrote that interpretation of yours in the gospels was simply taking advantage of the "open season" and plagiarized that Jewish text to be pointing to the crucifixion of Jesus as if Jesus had been the only Jew to be crucified by the Romans. Read "The Wars of the Jews" by Josephus. The Romans crucified thousands of Jews in the First Century in no different manner as they did to Jesus. Well, I have closed the season. No more plagiarizing. Every festival is celebrated in Israel in memory of something in passed Jewish life. Why should the serpent of bronze point to the crucifixion of Jesus in the future and not to the captivity of the Israelites
in the past?

 

[beameup]

Hezekiah removed the high places and broke down the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the sons of Israel burned incense to it; and it was called Nehushtan. - 2 Kings 18:4

The "Bronze Serpent" had become an object of worship by the Jews.

 

[beameup]

Every festival is celebrated in Israel in memory of something in passed Jewish life.

Every "feast" in Israel is YHWH's Feast and is highly symbolic and PROPHETIC.
Know the "creator" of the feasts and you will have profound understanding of the meaning.

They shall also keep My laws and My statutes in all My appointed feasts and sanctify My sabbaths. - Ezekiel 44:24b

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are My feasts. - Leviticus 23:2

"convocations" - miqrâʼ, mik-raw'; from H7121; something called out, i.e. a public meeting (the act; also a rehearsal:—assembly, calling, convocation, reading.

 

[Ben Masada]

Hezekiah removed the high places and broke down the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the sons of Israel burned incense to it; and it was called Nehushtan. - 2 Kings 18:4

The "Bronze Serpent" had become an object of worship by the Jews.

Unfortunately, that's true. I stopped getting surprised with reading about this every year when I finally understood Jeremiah 7:22 when the Prophet said that HaShem had never commanded that sacrifices be part of the religion of Israel. So, the Lord let it be a decision of Moses. Hence, all commandments regarding sacrifices were given by Moses as part of the ritual system of laws in Israel. In other words, they could never be part of the Decalogue.

 

[Ben Masada]

Every "feast" in Israel is YHWH's Feast and is highly symbolic and PROPHETIC. Know the "creator" of the feasts and you will have profound understanding of the meaning. They shall also keep My laws and My statutes in all My appointed feasts and sanctify My sabbaths. Ezekiel 44:24b

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are My feasts Leviticus 23:2 "convocations" - miqrâʼ, mik-raw'; from H7121; something called out, i.e. a public meeting (the act; also a rehearsal—assembly, calling, convocation, reading.

The only festival that was organized as prophetic was the one about the Day of Atonement aka Yom Kippur. It was fulfilled when Israel aka Ephraim was rejected by the Lord forever as the Scapegoat in atonement for the redemption of Judah so that Judah be confirmed by the Lord to remain as a People before the Lord forever. (Psalms 78:67-70) Then after the fulfillment of that festival, it continued being celebrated as all the others in memory of events happened in the past life of Israel. Passover in memory of the freedom of Israel from Egypt. Sukkot in memory of the time of 40 years the Israelites lived in tents in the desert. Shavuot in memory of the given of Torah in Mount Sinai. And so forth, all the festivals were celebrated in memory.

 

[beameup]

And so forth, all the festivals were celebrated in memory.

The Prophets have written some things concerning YHWH's Feasts.
And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations [Gentiles] which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, YHWH of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. - Zechariah 14:16

Ezekiel has quite a bit of prophetic information concerning the coming Kingdom (healing of the earth) in chapters 40-48.
In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, ye shall have the Passover, a feast of seven days [weeks]; unleavened bread shall be eaten. And upon that day shall the PRINCE prepare for himself and for all the people of the land a bullock for a sin offering.
In the seventh month, in the fifteenth day of the month, shall he do the like in the Feast of Shavuot, according to the sin offering, according to the burnt offering, and according to the meat offering, and according to the oil.
Ezekiel 45:21-22, 25

So, according to the Tanakh, God's Feasts will be celebrated in the future glorious Kingdom.

 

[Ben Masada]

The Prophets have written some things concerning YHWH's Feasts. And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations Gentiles which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the YHWH of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. Zechariah 14:16; Ezekiel has quite a bit of prophetic information concerning the coming Kingdom (healing of the earth) in chapters 40-48.the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, ye shall have the Passover a feast of seven days [weeks]; unleavened bread shall be eaten. And upon that day shall the PRINCE prepare for himself and for all the people of the land a bullock for a sin offering.

In the seventh month, in the fifteenth day of the month, shall he do the like in the Feast of Shavuot according to the sin offering, according to the burnt offering, and according to the meat offering, and according to the oil. Ezekiel 45:21-22, 25

So, according to the Tanakh, God's Feasts will be celebrated in the future glorious Kingdom.

Yes, the Prophets have written much about the festivals, but none as a reference to Gentiles taking part of them. All of them about Jews who have survived from the wars against Jerusalem.

 

[beameup]

Yes, the Prophets have written much about the festivals, but none as a reference to Gentiles taking part of them. All of them about Jews who have survived from the wars against Jerusalem.

Zechariah ch. 14 clearly shows that GENTILES MUST PARTICIPATE IN TABERNACLES.
If they don't, it clearly states that they will be punished.

And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.
This [drought] shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
- Zechariah 14:17,19

 

[Ben Masada]

Zechariah ch. 14 clearly shows that GENTILES MUST PARTICIPATE IN TABERNACLES.
If they don't, it clearly states that they will be punished.

And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.
This [drought] shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
- Zechariah 14:17,19

God have mercy! The reference in Zechariah 14:17,19 is to the Jewish communities in Egypt and in all the other nations where they are in the Diaspora to report to Jerusalem to keep the feast of Tabernacles. The Jewish festivals have no bound on the Gentiles. The only Jewish thing that binds the Gentiles is the Decalogue.

 

[beameup]

God have mercy! The reference in Zechariah 14:17,19 is to the Jewish communities in Egypt and in all the other nations where they are in the Diaspora to report to Jerusalem to keep the feast of Tabernacles. The Jewish festivals have no bound on the Gentiles. The only Jewish thing that binds the Gentiles is the Decalogue.

And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations GOY which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles - Zechariah 14:16

גּוֹי - gôwy = Gentile

 

[Ben Masada]

And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations GOY which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles - Zechariah 14:16

גּוֹי - gôwy = Gentile

Again! The reference is to the Jews in the Diaspora who remain among the nations. They are supposed to come to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast of the tabernacles. They could not be the Gentiles because the Gentiles are not bound by the festivals of the Jewish People. This couldn't be a more logical reasoning.

 

[Caino]

When theology masters religion then religion dies, it becomes a doctrine instead of a life. The Jews became so wrapped up in their tradition, based on scripture that they created about themselves that they lost sight of what the had been chosen for. God stood before them and they missed it.

 

[beameup]

Again! The reference is to the Jews in the Diaspora who remain among the nations. They are supposed to come to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast of the tabernacles. They could not be the Gentiles because the Gentiles are not bound by the festivals of the Jewish People. This couldn't be a more logical reasoning.

So, God will punish the entire nation because the Jews living in that nation failed to observe the Feast of Tabernacles?

You are aware that non-Jews were allowed/permitted to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles along with Jews. Everyone "within the gates" were commanded to rejoice and celebrate.

And ye shall keep it [Tabernacles] a feast unto the LORD seven days in the year. It shall be a statute FOREVER in your generations: ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month. - Lev 23:41

And thou shalt rejoice in thy feast, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy MANSERVANT, and thy MAIDSERVANT, and the Levite, and the STRANGER, and the fatherless, and the widow, all that are within thy gates. - Deut 16:14

 

[Ben Masada]

When theology masters religion then religion dies, it becomes a doctrine instead of a life. The Jews became so wrapped up in their tradition, based on scripture that they created about themselves that they lost sight of what the had been chosen for. God stood before them and they missed it.

The only thing you are truly saying is that you don't know the "ABC's" about the Jewish People. If it takes too much for you to read the Tanach about them, read the Essay of Mark Twain about the Jews. Perhaps that Essay will guide you into the Tanach with a reason to read about them.

 

[Ben Masada]

So, God will punish the entire nation because the Jews living in that nation failed to observe the Feast of Tabernacles? You are aware that non-Jews were allowed/permitted to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles along with Jews. Everyone "within the gates" were commanded to rejoice and celebrate.

I am well aware that non-Jews were and are allowed/permitted to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles along with the Jews, and the other feasts too, except for the Passover as they need to be circumcised. And they are welcome to join us in the celebration of our festivals. The point is that they are not bound by them. The Jewish festivals are part of the Jewish system of ritual laws. Gentiles are not bound by the Jewish ritual laws. Only by the Decalogue.

 

[beameup]

I am well aware that non-Jews were and are allowed/permitted to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles along with the Jews, and the other feasts too, except for the Passover as they need to be circumcised. And they are welcome to join us in the celebration of our festivals. The point is that they are not bound by them. The Jewish festivals are part of the Jewish system of ritual laws. Gentiles are not bound by the Jewish ritual laws. Only by the Decalogue.

The Scriptures clearly say that the Gentiles, during the Millennium, must pilgrimage
to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles on penalty of drought and plagues upon their nation.

 

[Ben Masada]

The Scriptures clearly say that the Gentiles, during the Millennium, must pilgrimage
to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles on penalty of drought and plagues upon their nation.

Quote please!

 

[beameup]

Quote please!

You're not paying attention. The portion of scripture has already been referenced.

And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the Gentiles that come not up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. - Zechariah 14:18

The passage clearly states that Gentiles MUST go up to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles and worship the KING, on penalty of plague and drought upon their nation.