Di Bronze Snake

Hiss for inside sand. One sharp cry. Then another one, and another one, all over di camp. And for di middle of everything, one man dey lift something high on top pole, something wey dey shine for sun.

Israel don dey wilderness for long time now. Dem don near di land wey God promise. But di king of Edom don refuse make dem pass through im country, so dem must take di long road go round. Back to south, toward di Red Sea, for one wide circle through hot, dry land. And dem just bury Aaron, di high priest, for Mount Hor. Di whole camp mourn am for thirty days. So picture dem now. Dem don tire. Dem dey grieve. Dem dey waka comot from di land wey dem want, under sun wey no dey rest. Di Bible talk say di people no get patience again for di road.

And di impatience turn to words. Dem talk against God and against Moses. Why una bring us comot from Egypt make we die for wilderness? Bread no dey! Water no dey! And we hate dis useless food! Di useless food wey dem mean na manna. Di bread wey God don dey send from heaven every single morning for years. Di food wey don keep every one of dem alive. Dem no just dey complain about di menu. Dem dey throw God gift back for im face. Then Di Lord send snakes among di people. Di Bible call dem fiery serpents, maybe because their bite dey burn like fire. Dem crawl enter di camp, enter di tents, among di people. Dem bite, and many people for Israel die.

Now di people run come meet Moses, and dis time dem no dey complain. We don sin, dem talk. We talk against di Lord and against you. Pray to di Lord, and beg am make e take di snakes away from us. And Moses, wey don hear dem complain so many times, pray for dem again. God answer. But see wetin e do. E no just make di snakes disappear. Instead e talk, Make one fiery serpent, and put am on top pole. Anybody wey snake bite, when e look am, e go live.

So Moses make snake from bronze. Imagine di furnace dey roar, di metal dey glow as dem pour am, di shape cool and dem polish am until e dey shine. E fix am high on top pole for di middle of di camp, where everybody fit see am. And di word spread from tent to tent. If snake don bite you, look up. Just look. E sound too simple. No medicine to drink. No long journey to make. Nothing to earn. One man wey snake bite, wey poison dey burn inside im body, lift im head and look di bronze snake. And e live. One mama wey snake bite look up and live. Across di camp, one by one, people wey dey die lift their eyes to wetin God provide, and dem live.

Hundreds of years after, one teacher wey im name na Nicodemus come meet Jesus for night, and Jesus remind am of dis very moment. As Moses lift up di snake for wilderness, Jesus talk, na so dem must lift up di Son of Man, so that anybody wey believe in am no go perish, but go get life wey no dey end. Christians don always hear for dis old story one picture of di cross: healing wey no come because person work for am, but because e look with trust to wetin God don lift up.

Di bronze snake no disappear for desert. Di second book of Kings talk say dem keep am for centuries, and di people of Judah later begin burn incense to am, as if di snake itself get power. Dem even give am name, Nehushtan. So around seven hundred years before Jesus, King Hezekiah, one of Judah faithful kings, break am to pieces. Di healing no ever dey inside di bronze. E come from di God wey tell Moses make e make am.

Di bronze snake dey for Numbers, chapter twenty-one, verse four to nine. Di people complain, di people repent, and God give dem cure wey simple like to lift their eyes. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. When you dey hurt, or you know say you don do wrong, where you dey look first?