Jesus said in John 3:14: "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up." A perfect man represented by a symbol of sin???:
2007-03-21 01:13:00 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
I think you need to see the whole context :
Jhn 3:9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?
Jhn 3:10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
Jhn 3:11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
Jhn 3:12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you [of] heavenly things?
Jhn 3:13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, [even] the Son of man which is in heaven.
Jhn 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
Jhn 3:15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Jhn 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Jhn 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
Jhn 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
Jhn 3:19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
Jhn 3:20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
Jhn 3:21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
Jhn 3:22 ¶ After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judaea; and there he tarried with them, and baptized.
Cheers!
Simon Templar
2007-03-21 01:16:03 · answer #1 · answered by In Memory of Simon Templar 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In the Bible, the serpent is used as a symbol of satan, sin and evil. When Jesus went to the cross, of the sin and evil - all the works of satan - were poured into him. He became "sin" that we might become the righteousness of God, as Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:21.
In Psalms 22, you have David's vision of the crucifixion. Written more then a thousand years before the event, it contents over 25 direct references to events that happened on that day. Including most of Jesus' words, the words of his enemies, the method of his death, the piercing of his hands and feet, the wound in his side, not breaking his legs, gambling for his robe, etc.
In Psalms 22:6, it has Jesus saying "I am a worm (the Hebrew can also be translated serpent or maggot) and not a man". While on the cross, he was changed into a "serpent" by the evil and sin that was placed on him.
2007-03-21 08:35:06 · answer #2 · answered by dewcoons 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I agree with Dewcoons.
I would like to add to his words also.
He gave you the New Testament understanding.
Let me give you the Old Testament.
Numbers 21:5
5And 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, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.
6And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.
7Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.
8And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
9And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.
JOHN 3 DOESN'T SAY, JESUS IS THE SERPENT. IT COMPARES HIM TO IT.
1ST) EVERYONE WHO LOOKED ON THE POLE WITH THE SERPENT LIFTED UP, LIVED.
EVERYONE WHO BELIEVES ON JESUS ALSO LIVES (ETERNAL LIFE).
2ND) THE SERPENT WAS LIFTED ON A POLE TO PREVENT THE SINNERS FROM DIEING.
JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED, LIFTED UP FOR ALL WHO BELIEVED, SO THEIR SINS MAY BE TAKEN AWAY.
John 3:
14And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
2007-03-21 21:37:18 · answer #3 · answered by mornings_sunshine 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
imitation ,if the leader has a snake on his lance
then every one tries to have one on thiers
its basic imitation of the leasders egsample
simple communion ,[by visual comunication]
so too must the son of man be lifted up that his works be imatated , by seeing the living egsample raised on high
not sure about your last sentance ,it is an understandable miss conception
not to reprisent sin
but uplifted good egsample
2007-03-21 08:30:46 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
E.F. Cobra knows but every time I tell people they don't believe me so I 've stopped telling people.
2007-03-21 08:18:04 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
no, what he was saying is that even bad people should be helped.
2007-03-21 08:16:01 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
hmmmm....quoting the black book I see
2007-03-21 08:16:13 · answer #7 · answered by military gal 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋