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Numbers 21:4-6
New English Translation
Numbers 21:4-6
New English Translation
Fiery Serpents
4 Then they traveled from Mount Hor by the road to the Red Sea,[a] to go around the land of Edom, but the people[b] became impatient along the way. 5 And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in the wilderness, for there is no bread or water, and we[c] detest this worthless[d] food.”
6 So the Lord sent venomous[e] snakes[f] among the people, and they bit the people; many people of Israel died.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Numbers 21:4 tn The “Red Sea” is the general designation for the bodies of water on either side of the Sinai peninsula, even though they are technically gulfs from the Red Sea.
- Numbers 21:4 tn Heb “the soul of the people,” expressing the innermost being of the people as they became frustrated.
- Numbers 21:5 tn Heb “our souls.”
- Numbers 21:5 tn The Israelites’ opinion about the manna was clear enough—“worthless.” The word used is קְלֹקֵל (qeloqel, “good for nothing, worthless, miserable”).
- Numbers 21:6 tn Heb “flaming serpents”; KJV, NASB “fiery serpents”; NAB “saraph serpents.” This figure of speech (metonymy) probably describes the venomous and painful results of snakebite. The feeling from such an experience would be like a burning fire (שָׂרָף, saraf).
- Numbers 21:6 tn The designation of the serpents/ snakes is נְחָשִׁים (nekhashim), which is similar to the word for “bronze” (נְחֹשֶׁת, nekhoshet). This has led some scholars to describe the serpents as bronze in color. The description of them as fiery indicates they were poisonous. Perhaps the snake in question is a species of adder.
New English Translation (NET)
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