Getting rid of our snakes
Kinda a funny title right? We’ll get to why I titled it this a little later.
This morning I took a second to quickly look back at my journal. Journaling is one of the main ways that I connect with God and share my heart with him. As I was looking back I saw an entry that said that “I feel like King Hezekiah… so in love with the Lord”. And so today I went to look back at Hezekiah’s story. And of course, I wanted to share a little bit about what I took from it today.
So we meet Hezekiah in the middle of 2 Kings. The book is kind of a continuation of 1 Kings and details the history of the kingdoms of that time and the kings that led those kingdoms (obvi). Therefore, we meet numerous kings through the first chapters and eventually come to king Hezekiah in chapter 18. We learn that he becomes king at age 25 (which is pretty crazy in itself). It tells us that “He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done” (2 Kings 18:3).
It goes on to tell us that one of the first major things he did was get rid of sin in his kingdom. It says:
“He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made, for up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it. (It was called Nehushtan.[b])” (2 Kings 18:4).
As I read through this at first, I was like: he got rid of the sin. And not just some, but like a bunch. In a drastic - smashing kind of way. I mean doesn’t this sound like a slow-mo, dramatic sequence in a movie?! Even though that action sequence is pretty cool, what I wanted to dive into specifically today is what these things that they were worshiping at that time. And this was prompted by a note I saw in my Zondervan Study Bible.
When I traditionally think of idols, I always tend to think of statues, stones, and the such. And to me, snakes are also right in line with a kind of idol vibe. So I didn’t think much about it when initially reading. But when you look specifically at the details of the verse - it says that it was a bronze snake that “Moses had made”. And what I learned from the notes is that this snake was actually made “to cure the Israelites of the bite of venomous snakes”.
This reference to these snakes actually points back to Numbers 21, verses 4-9 where Moses introduced the snake. I know its a little long, but it is important and kind of interesting so let’s read:
The Bronze Snake
4 They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea,[c] to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; 5 they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”
6 Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 7 The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.
8 The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” 9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.
So, when you learn the context, it actually is this super cool story of God showing up! It demonstrates that our God that does allow consequences for sin, but He also listens, cares and provides an avenue of hope. Therefore, this pole and this bronze snake was actually a sign of God’s grace- not to mention it provided literal healing.
So what happened?! How did it go south?!
Well, what we are told is that “the Israelites had been burning incense to it” (2 Kings 18:4). This essentially means that the thing that had once been an evident sign of God’s power, healing, and care became an idol itself. My Bible’s notes say “it had become an object of worship instead of a reminder of whom to worship”.
And, although this is a common lesson, it was a good reminder for me today. The reality is that, a lot of times, the idols we have may not have started as idols. God created the world around us, and he said it was good. However, as we can see, we have perverted and made these things that originally pointed to God into things that are sinful.
For me, as a Christian, I can be really tempted sometimes to make idols specifically from times when God has shown up. Even those things that are good.. we let them replace God! Our bible studies or groups, places where we had healing and where we tried to pursue God - become something to take His place. You ever do that? “Well God showed up in this way, or he gave me this - so this will be my hope”. I can be tempted to make idols of things that a) make me feel closer to him or b) simply make just make feel good.
The things we make idols may not always seem like a bad thing. Even things like social media, our career, our hobbies, or even our families don’t seem like a bad thing up front. And the reality is … they aren’t bad things! But I know for me, these things can easily slide in the way and replace God. They can so quickly take his position as the king on the throne and they turn into the "bronze snake” that I think will fix my problems.
The reality is that nothing can replace the role of Christ in our lives. God alone is our hope. He gives of good things, of course. He desires to love and bless us! Be he also desires for us to know where our priority lies. We find healing ultimately not in things we make or things we do but in him alone.
It can be easy to let our “bronze snakes” take hold, but my prayer for us this week is that we can be like Hezekiah…. tearing down those barriers we have put up between us and God.
Take time this week to reflect on that. My hope is that you can encounter God in a new, authentic, and amazing way. Clear of any idols, simply sitting with God and listening to His voice. With those bronze snakes totally gone.
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