Something a Snake Invasion Teaches About How to Pray

I’m in the book of Numbers, 50-some days into the Bible Recap, when an unusual story stops me. Perhaps you remember when the quick-to-complain Israelites grumble their mistrust yet again, and God sends an invasion of snakes.

The Voice translation depicts it like this:

. . . but again, the difficult journey gave everyone a short temper. They challenged both God and Moses.

Israelites: What were you thinking to bring us up out of Egypt and let us die out here in this desert land? There’s nothing to eat and no water either. We are sick and tired of living on what food we have.

As a divine response, the Eternal One sent venomous snakes among them and the people were bitten. A number of Israelites were indeed killed by them. They then appealed to Moses.

Israelites: We are so sorry! We know that it was wrong to speak against the Eternal and against you. Please talk to Him, and get Him to take these awful  snakes away. 

So Moses appealed to God on behalf of the terrified and chastened congregation, and He instructed Moses.

Eternal One: Make a venomous snake that looks like the ones tormenting the congregation, and put it on a pole. Everyone who gets bitten can simply look at your serpent and be healed.

(Numbers 21:4a-8)

Let’s step into the Israelites’ shoes for a moment. They’re professional wilderness wanderers by now. Imagine being dusty, thirsty, and discouraged. Even though they’ve witnessed God’s rescue over and over again, they grow weary and stop trusting Him. 

Never mind miracles of deliverance and supernatural provision. Forget about the visible evidence of God amongst them. All they can see is what they don’t have. 

Their immediate issue is the sparse options. Truth is, they’re more bored than hungry, since God sends manna to sustain them. As a mom, I’ve heard the line, “There’s nothing to eat,” when the reality is there is nothing my kids want to eat–so let’s please get something else. That seems to be the situation here.

It could just as easily be a story about us.

At least until we get to the part about snakes, anyways. I’m not sure about you, but I’d rather eat the same ole’ food for every meal than get bitten by a snake. 

But, just as we don’t always know the repercussions of our ingratitude, the Israelites didn’t suspect a snake invasion.

When You Want God to Make the Danger Disappear

What strikes me about the story is God’s answer. The Israelites ask for God to remove the problem. God instead sends an antidote.

I relate to the way the Israelites prayed. When something terrible happens, I want God to take it away. To make life go back to how it was. I expect God’s rescue to look like reversal or extraction.

But that’s not always how God works. Oftentimes, He walks us through a hard season rather than taking us another way. Gives us the grace we need to get through rather than re-routing us. 

I re-read the snake story a few times to confirm there’s no mention of God taking the threat away. Indeed, there is none. God’s remedy was a reminder that He is Healer, and we need only to look to Him. 

To the terrified Israelites comes God’s tender reassurance: Look here and be healed. 

As if to say, You don’t have to be afraid. Terrible things might happen, but they don’t triumph. I do. Keep your eyes on Me.

We find the comparison between Christ and Moses’s serpent in John 3:14-15.

Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness. In the same way, the Son of Man must be lifted up; then all those who believe in Him will experience everlasting life.

(The Voice)

Tara Leigh Cobble points out in The Bible Recap that God doesn’t authorize Moses to break the no-idols commandment. The Israelites are to look at, not worship, the serpent. As she emphasizes, the bronze serpent is “a sign of God’s provision and rescue, pointing back to Him” (Day 63). 

Note the detail about the serpent being on a pole. This would position it at a height where lifted eyes could rest.

God, whose character knows no inconsistency, cared about the plight of His people, just as He cares about what you are going through. His directive to lift their eyes also applies to you and I.

How to Pray When You’re Afraid

Threaded through this ancient story is a new way to pray.

When fear wants to overtake us, we pivot our attention towards Jesus.

When the pain persists, we place our trust in Christ.

When trials deny us the ease of life we desire, we lift our eyes to our Lord.

When we don’t understand, when we’re bored, when we’re weary, and when we’re ornery, we simply look at our Saviour.

In short, we lift our eyes to the One who is our Healer, our Hope, and our Rescuer. We pray, not just with words, but with our eyes. We ask to see how near God is rather than that He enact a rescue the way we envision it.

Let’s encourage one another with Hebrews 12:2:

Now stay focused on Jesus, who designed and perfected our faith. He endured the cross and ignored the shame of that death because He focused on the joy that was set before Him; and now He is seated beside God on the throne, a place of honor.

(The Voice)

Lord, help us to lift our eyes to You when our attention is stuck on the problem. Teach us to pray with our redirected gaze, to ask to see You instead of asking You to erase the problem. Thank you for being our caring and compassionate Healer. In your holy name, Jesus, we pray. Amen.

Just a friend over here in your corner,

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