The Story of the Bible

It was a long, hard journey, through a deep valley which was very hot; and for most of the journey they were going away from Canaan, and not toward it; but it was the only way, since Moses would not let them fight the men of Edom.

While they were on this long journey the people again found fault with Moses. They said, "Why have you brought us into this hot and sandy country? There is no water; and there is no bread except this vile manna, of which we are very tired! We wish that we were all back in Egypt again!"

Then God was angry with the people; and he let the fierce snakes that grew in the desert crawl among them and bite them. These snakes were called "fiery serpents," perhaps because of their bright color, or perhaps because of their eyes and tongues, which seemed to flash out fire. Their bite was poisonous, so that many of the people died.

Then the people saw that they had acted wickedly in speaking against Moses; for when they spoke against Moses they were speaking against God, who was leading them. They said:

"We have sinned against the Lord, and we are sorry. Now pray to the Lord for us, that he may take away the serpents from us."

So Moses prayed for the people, as he had prayed so many times before. And God heard Moses' prayer, and God said to him:

"Make a serpent of brass, like the fiery serpents; and set it up on a pole, where the people can see it. Then every one who is bitten may look on the serpent on the pole, and he shall live."

And Moses did as God commanded him. He made a serpent of brass, which looked like the fiery snakes; and he lifted it up on a pole where all could see it. And then, whoever had been bitten by a snake looked up at the brazen snake, and the bite did him no harm.

This brazen snake was a teaching about Christ, though it was given so long before Christ came. You remember the text which says, "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up; that whatsoever believeth in him may have eternal life."

Northeast of the Dead Sea, above a brook called the brook Arnon, lived a people who were called the Amorites. Moses sent to their king, whose name was Sihon, the same message as he had sent to the king of Edom, asking for leave to go through his land. But he would not allow the Israelites to pass through. He led his army against Israel, and crossed the brook Arnon, and fought against Israel at a place called Jahaz. The Israelites here won their first great victory. In the battle they killed many of the Amorites, and with them their king, Sihon, and they took for their own all their land, as far north as the brook Jabbok. Do you remember how Jacob one night prayed by the brook Jabbok? (See Story Fourteen.)

And after this they marched on toward the land of Canaan, coming from the east. And at last they encamped on the east bank of the river Jordan, at the foot of the mountains of Moab. Their long journey of forty years was now ended, the desert was left behind them, before them rolled the Jordan River, and beyond the Jordan they could see the hills of the land which God had promised to them for their own.

What a Wise Man Learned from an Ass

Numbers xxii: 2, to xxv: 18; xxxi: 1 to 9.

When the Israelites had traveled around the land of Edom, and encamped beside the river Jordan, a little north of the Dead Sea, they did not sit down to rest, for Moses knew that a great work was before them, to take the land of Canaan. He had already won a great victory over the Amorites at Jahaz, and slain their king, and won their land. Again Moses sent out an army into the north, a region called Bashan. There they fought with King Og, who was one of the giants, and killed him, and took his country. This made the Israelites masters of all the land on the east of the river Jordan, and north of the brook Arnon.

South of the brook Arnon and east of the Dead Sea were living the Moabites. This people had sprung from Lot, the nephew of Abraham, of whom we read in earlier Stories (Six and Eight). In the five hundred years since Lot's time, his family or descendants had become a people who were called Moabites, just as Jacob's descendants were the Israelites. The Moabites were filled with alarm and fear as they saw this mighty host of Israel marching around their land, conquering the country and encamping on their border. The Moabites were ruled by a king whose name was Balak, and he tried to form some plan for driving away the people of Israel from that region.

There was at that time a man living far in the east, near the great river Euphrates, whose name was Balaam. This man was known far and wide as a prophet, that is, a man who talked with God, and heard God's voice, and spoke from God, as did Moses. People believed that whatever Balaam said was sure to come to pass; but they did not know that Balaam could only speak what God gave him to speak.