Numbers 21:8 (YLT)

Passage

And Jehovah saith unto Moses, `Make for thee a burning <FI>serpent<Fi> , and set it on an ensign; and it hath been, every one who is bitten and hath seen it--he hath lived.

Nearby Context

Numbers 21:6 And Jehovah sendeth among the people the burning serpents, and they bite the people, and much people of Israel die;

Numbers 21:7 and the people come in unto Moses and say, `We have sinned, for we have spoken against Jehovah, and against thee; pray unto Jehovah, and He doth turn aside from us the serpent;' and Moses prayeth in behalf of the people.

Numbers 21:8 And Jehovah saith unto Moses, `Make for thee a burning <FI>serpent<Fi> , and set it on an ensign; and it hath been, every one who is bitten and hath seen it--he hath lived.

Numbers 21:9 And Moses maketh a serpent of brass, and setteth it on the ensign, and it hath been, if the serpent hath bitten any man, and he hath looked expectingly unto the serpent of brass--he hath lived.

Numbers 21:10 And the sons of Israel journey, and encamp in Oboth.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "jehovah", "saith", "moses", "make", "thee", "burning", "serpent", and "ensign". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "jehovah" and "saith", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 7's "and the people come in unto Moses..." into verse 9's "And Moses maketh a serpent of brass...", so "jehovah" and "saith" 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 "saith" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.