Numbers 21:6 (ASV)

Passage

And Jehovah sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.

Nearby Context

Numbers 21:4 And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way to the Red Sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way.

Numbers 21:5 And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, and there is no water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.

Numbers 21:6 And Jehovah sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.

Numbers 21:7 And the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, because we have spoken against Jehovah, and against thee; pray unto Jehovah, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.

Numbers 21:8 And Jehovah said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a standard: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he seeth it, shall live.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "jehovah", "sent", "fiery", "serpents", "people", and "much". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "jehovah" and "sent", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "And the people spake against God and..." into verse 7's "And the people came to Moses and...", so "jehovah" and "sent" belong inside that flow. In Numbers context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "jehovah" and "sent" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.