Numbers 21:8-9 And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery 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.
Why did Moses create a bronze statue of a snake? Wasn't that strictly forbidden in the second of the ten commandments?
This bronze serpent was not an idol to be worshipped; it was more of a reminder to the people. God told Moses to make it so that the people could look towards it and receive healing from the poisenous snakes that had been attacking them. The serpent hanging on the pole was a foreshadowing of Jesus hanging on the cross, taking our sin (the serpent) upon himself. Looking at this mystical image brought healing to the people.
Sadly, this serpent which was used to heal Israel later became an idol and stumbling block to the people:
2 Kings 18:4 [Hezekiah] removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.
This same thing happened when Gideon made an ephod to be used for priestly service:
22 Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, "Rule over us, both you and your son, and your grandson also; for you have delivered us from the hand of Midian."
23 But Gideon said to them, "I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the Lord shall rule over you." 24 Then Gideon said to them, "I would like to make a request of you, that each of you would give me the earrings from his plunder." For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.
25 So they answered, "We will gladly give them." And they spread out a garment, and each man threw into it the earrings from his plunder. 26 Now the weight of the gold earrings that he requested was one thousand seven hundred shekels of gold, besides the crescent ornaments, pendants, and purple robes which were on the kings of Midian, and besides the chains that were around their camels' necks. 27 Then Gideon made it into an ephod and set it up in his city, Ophrah. And all Israel played the harlot with it there. It became a snare to Gideon and to his house.
Gideon started out with a nobel idea. He would refuse the kingship so that the people could go to God directly. An ephod is a special vestment a priest will wear to communicate with God and perform temple services. Sadly, the people began worshipping the ephod itself rather than God. The ephod was supposed to be a tool in worshipping God, but like the bronze serpent they made it a god of its own.
A Mechanical Breakthrough
(The Hebrew for "Brass" is Strong's #5178 "Nechosheth" and can refer to copper itself or to its alloys, brass or bronze).
Here we have the secret to generating electricity or creating a motor, depending on configuration.
An electrical generator is created by wrapping copper wire around a pole of iron. In this passage, God did not just reveal a way of curing snakebite, he revealed the secret to creating power.
The copper serpent is also described as, "fiery" (as in full of electricity).
Michael Faraday, who invented the electrical generator, was a devout Christian. He had no doubt read the Bible passage of the brazen serpent many times before coming up with his invention. The visual of a copper winding on a pole would have been imprinted on this man's subconscious mind, remerging as an inspired thought as to how to create this mechanical breakthrough. Had Faraday not studied the Bible, this mental picture would not have been available to flash into his mind. Without spending time in the book of Numbers, Faraday may not have received the unique insight as to the secret of power and how to generate electricity.
This is why most Nobel prize winners are either Christian or Jewish. Despite being only 0.2% of the world population, Jews have won 21% of Nobel prizes on a study between years 1901 to 2000. This is a testament to the strong training in scripture the Jewish people receive since childhood.
The Body of Moses
Just as the bronze serpent was used to bring deliverance to Israel but later generations turned him into an idol, later Jews did the same to Moses after the great prophet's death. There was even a spiritual battle over Moses body.
Deuteronomy 34:5-6
So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord. And He buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth Peor; but no one knows his grave to this day.
According to this passage, God buried Moses supernaturally and secretly where no one would find the body. This is against the normal practice where there would be a large funeral for a national leader and that leader would then be buried in a prominent sepulchre or mausoleum.
When Joseph died, he was given an elaborate state funeral. The Egyptians preserved his body through mummification. According to the Jewish Talmud and early Christian author Tertullian, Joseph became an object of worship to the Egyptians known as "Serapis." Due to Joseph's wisdom, prophetic ability, and provision of grain, the Egyptians worshipped him after death when seeking those things. God did not want the same to happen with Moses and there was actually a spiritual battle over what would happen with the body:
Jude 1:9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.
Moses' burial was of such importance that God's most powerful archangel, Michael, disputed directly with Satan over what would happen to the body.
Why did Satan care?
This is why Moses body had to be hid by archangel Michael. Satan wanted the body to be worshipped.
God planned to bury Moses secretly. Satan on the other hand, wanted Moses to become an idol to Israel, and be worshipped even after his death. Satan wanted the people to bury Moses and create an extravagant monument on his burial site. This would open the door to later turn the tomb into a shrine and place of pilgrimage and prayer. Moses would become a second god to the people, similar to how Roman Catholics would turn Mary, Christ's mother, into idol. Instead of being known as Christ's mother she was called "mother of God," as if she had given birth to the divine attributes in Christ rather than only his humanity. This elevated Mary to a status equivalent to deity in Catholicism; something never intended nor supported in scripture.
John 9:28 Then they reviled him and said, "You are His disciple, but we are Moses' disciples. 29We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from."
John 5:45 Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you—Moses, in whom you trust.
American coins say "in God we trust." The Pharisees slogan was "in Moses we trust."
When Jesus teaches against divorce, the Pharisees immediately rush to Moses to contradict him.
Matthew 19:6-8
So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate." They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?" He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.
You do not see the Pharisees quoting from Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, or any of the other prophets. They had made Moses their idol and studied only his writings.
The Jews missed out on their Messiah due to putting Moses writings on a pedestal while giving a low priority to the prophets. This they missed all of Isaiah's clues about the Messiah being a "suffering servant" and not just a powerful deliverer who would show strength.
Sometimes we think God took Moses home early because he had made certain mistakes like striking the rock the second time instead of speaking to it. The truth is, God needed to take Moses home because the people had made him into an idol.