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Nehushtan: The Glory and Desolation of the Abomination.
- Thread starter John D. Brey
- Start date
John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
The first part of the link is most in line with my personal understanding and where this thread would like to go:
Nehushtan (Hebrew, NChShThN, “brass object”) is the serpent of brass made by Moses and placed on a pole (Numbers 21:8-9) to cure the Israelites of the venomous bites of the fiery serpents in the wilderness. The word Nehushtah “thing of brass” contains a Hebrew pun, the first three letters, NChSh, mean “serpent” and the final two, ThN, mean “dragon.”
In Christian interpretation, the lifting up of the brass serpent on a pole is generally held to be a prefigurement of Christ, to cure humanity from the “snakebite” of original sin. By Hebrew gematria there is some basis for this assumption, the numerical value of MShICH, “Messiah” and NChSh “serpent” are identical, 358.
John
You should go with the naassene. Jesus was originally believed to be essene. .
John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
The crucifix was compared to Nehushtan:
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish . . ..
John 13:14-15.
And Moses nailed a serpent to a wooden pole and if anyone was bitten by the evil-inclination they looked up at Nehushtan nailed to the wooden pole and, if they believed that Hashem [Nehushtan] was their savior they were saved.
Numbers 21:9.
In his brilliant commentary (The Call of the Torah), Rabbi Ellie Munk wonders how on earth a copper snake can affect life and death? So does the Talmud (Rosh Hashanah 29a). Rabbi Munk says:John 13:14-15.
And Moses nailed a serpent to a wooden pole and if anyone was bitten by the evil-inclination they looked up at Nehushtan nailed to the wooden pole and, if they believed that Hashem [Nehushtan] was their savior they were saved.
Numbers 21:9.
The answer given is that when the Israelites raised their eyes to Hashem they were healed. . . when the people looked at the serpent at the top of the pole and held the thought that Hashem alone could cause a wound or its healing, then the healing soon followed.
This appears to echo John 3:14-15. -----According to the Talmud and Rabbi Munk, the Israelites are raising their eyes to Hashem precisely when they gaze up at Nehushtan nailed to the wood. The Talmud suggests the serpent on the pole is specifically designed to get the Israelites to cast their gaze toward Hashem for their salvation. They’re saved from death by gazing up at this emblem of Hashem ---Nehushtan ----constructed of serpentine flesh nailed to wood and lifted up in full viewing of anyone seeking the salvation of the Lord (Isaiah 52:10; 59:16).
In a manner similar to the Gospels, after explaining that the Israelites are worshiping a personified serpent on a pole, Nehushtan, the very next statement in the text (2 Kings 18:5) reads : "He trusted in Hashem, the Hashem of Israel." The Gospel documents that when the Israelites gazed up at Jesus ----nailed like a serpent to the wood ----the Israelites said: "He trusted in Hashem; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God" (Matthew 27:43).
Does anyone see the significance of the parallel? John (13:14-15) implies Nehushtan is merely a retroactive stigmata of the salvific-crucifix. When you look at the serpent nailed to the wood you're looking at Messiah, who's able to save you from death.
By Hebrew gematria there is some basis for this assumption, the numerical value of MShICH, “Messiah” and NChSh “serpent” are identical, 358.
"Messiah" in Hebrew is mem-shin-yod-chet משיח. Mem (מ) = 40. Shin (ש) = 300. Yod (י) = 10. Chet (ח) = 8. All totaled, 358. ------"Serpent" in Hebrew is nun-chet-shin נחש. Nun (נ) = 50. Chet (ח) = 8. Shin (ש) = 300. All totaled, 358. So "Messiah," and "serpent," are linked gematrically (both total 358). Thus there's a real and undeniable relationship between messiah and the serpent nailed to the rod that Israel doesn't want to think too much about since Nehushtan was in truth a savior kind of emblem eventually demonized by Israel's leaders and taken outside the temple, and the city, and hammered into oblivion (2 Kings 18:4; Ezekiel 7:20).
John
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John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain.
Revelation 20:1.
Revelation 20:1.
This chain was prepared for a particular abomination. Ezekiel chapter 7 parallels 2 Kings 18:4 in the most vertiginous manner since a particular ornament that exegesis makes clear is Nehushtan is to be made niddah, unclean, an abomination, and thus given over to the most wicked of nations to be disposed of prior to this wicked nation then turning on and disposing of Israel herself. In verse 23 of Ezekiel chapter 7, a chain is made that shall lasso the ornament of abomination (Nehushtan).
The prophet clues us in that the ornament is Nehushtan in verse 10 where he says the rod blossoms and blooms. Those aware that Moses and Aaron share the same rod, and that the bronze serpent was nailed to this rod, also know this rod blossomed and bloomed. It was placed between the cherub on the ark of the covenant until a chain was placed around it (Revelation 20:1) and it was taken out of the city to be handed over to the wickedest of nations for destruction (prior to that same wicked nation turning on and destroying Israel in the seventieth year of the current era).
He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him.
Revelation 20:2.
Revelation 20:2.
The angel with the chain, binds up the "serpent-dragon" נחש–תנין (Nehush-tanin) as the priests of Israel bound up Nehushtan to hand over to the nations for destruction (2 Kings 18:4; Ezekiel 7:20). The vertiginous nature of the foregoing strikes the serious exegete right between the eyes when he realizes that Nehushtan, Moses and Aaron's rod, is the self-same rod Moses used to part the sea, and to turn the bitter water sweet, and which, after defeating Amalek, he made into Yawheh-Nissi (the Banner of Yahweh and later transformed into Nehushtan). The self-same rod that blossomed as the spirit of God in Moses right hand, the shepherd of Israel, the salvific-ornament/rod par excellent (tiferet) is, get this, later handed over to a wicked nation, the wickedest of nations, for destruction. The rod of salvation, that budded from dry ground, asexually, like a basal-shoot from the rod of Jesse (the rod or staff of the kingly tribe, Judah) later blossoms the buds and blooms of arrogance and violence:
Behold the day, behold, it is come: the morning is gone forth; the rod hath blossomed and pride has budded. Violence is risen up into a rod of wickedness.
Ezekiel 7:10-11.
Ezekiel 7:10-11.
Nehushtan is a doppelganger of the crucifix. Or vice versa: the crucifix is a doppelganger of Nehustan? Who can say? The threads of this mystery are wound up as tight as a tzitzit knotted onto a tallit in the most telling tale that tells us that the salvific-rod becomes the blossoms of arrogance, pride, and abomination. Which make all the allusions and nuances peculiar to the extreme. How does the salvific-ornament (the serpent-dragon Nehushtan (נחש–תנין) come to be seen as an abomination that brings Israel ill? How does Moses' shepherd rod, become niddah? How does Nehushtan, Hashem, as it were, become a dirty Word (a dark sinful Name) in Israel's eyes and eventually in God's two?
John
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John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
The key to the mystery described above is found in Revelation 17:6-8:
I was greatly astonished! Then the angel said to me: Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery . . . of the beast . . . which you saw, that once was, now is not and will come up out of the Abyss and go to his destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast because he once was, now is not, and yet will come.
This verse is astonishing so to say. The same angel who in Revelation 20:2 seizes the serpent-dragon Nehush-tan (and he ---the angel ---literally calls this beast in Revelation 17:6-8 "Nehushtan," serpent-dragon), makes it clear that this beast (Nehushtan) crawled from the Abyss, and will be chained there again in God's good time (Revelation 20:2). The key to the Abyss is that the "beast" of Revelation is Nehushtan, the serpent-dragon that once was (Moses's shepherd rod), then was not (2 Kings 18:5; Ezekiel 7:20), and yet will come again.
John
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John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
In my opinion, the allusions and images aren't supposed to be taken as literal. They're symbolic. Their power lies in what they symbolize. So that to get the full power of the text requires knowing what's being symbolized.
John
FredVB
Member
Of course allusions and images which are symbolic are not to be taken literally. I see one person recently who identifies as a conservative Christian claiming women are not in the image of God while men are, and he use passages like the one saying Yahweh is a man of war, which I think is in Exodus. If we accept passages like this for understanding what God is like, we should believe that God has wings, Psalm 36:7.
John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God. The sons of Adam take refuge under the shadow of thy wings.
Psalms 36:7.
Psalms 36:7.
In an important sense God does have wings. At least his incarnate manifestation does, i.e., his shekinah, or presence, or home, does. Throughout the Tanakh God lifts his shekinah in his right hand to declare war or provide salvation: to curse or to save. In the Pentateuch, God uses Moses as emblematic of this symbolism such that he has Moses attach a bronzed, winged, serpent-dragon, a seraph, to his shepherd's rod, which is later named "Nehush-tan" (serpent-dragon נחש–תן). It's the wings of this emblem being noted in Psalms 36:7.
The Hebrew word for wings in Psalms 36:7 is כנף. In Hebrew letter symbolism, the כ both spells a word for "hand" and symbolizes a "hand." The word that's in this hand (in Psalms 36:7), is made up of the remaining letters נף. The word speaks of something elevated (in this case in the hand). It comes from the root כוף and כפה meaning something elevated, or else a lofty place: raised up to the heavens in God's right hand.
For I lift my hand to heaven, and it says, "I live forever. If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me. I will make my arrows drunk with blood, and my sword shall devour flesh."
Deuteronomy 32:40.
Deuteronomy 32:40.
Nehushtan's wings are the lofty place of God's grace and judgment. In his excellent exegesis of Psalms 36:7 (verse 8 in the Jewish Bible) Rabbi Samson Hirsch translates the verse more explicitly than does the KJV:
How precious is Your loving-kindness which You show as a God of Judgment. The children of men find assurance in the shadow of Your wings.
As Rabbi Hirsch notes, the word for "God" in the text is אלהים which is the Name associated with God's attribute of Judgment, hesed דן. But the word for "loving-kindness" חסד is the Hebrew word for God's attribute of Mercy. The children of men find safety and assurance when Moses lifts the winged serpent Nehushtan which represents a melding, or union, of God's two attributes, Mercy חסד and Judgment דן. The important irony found in the text is the fact that generally speaking, God's attribute of Judgment דן is his left hand, while his attribute of mercy חסד is his right hand. In the text in the cross-hairs God is lifting both hands, both attributes, in his right hand. His Mercy חסד is hidden beneath the wings of his Judgment דן.
John
John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
This vertiginous syzygy of God's two hands is emblematic of the cross where God's Mercy (loving kindness toward the sons of men) is purchased when it's hidden beneath, as the very target of, God's glittering sword of Judgment: God purchases man's salvation with his right hand all tangled up in the violence and Judgment of God's left hand such that Jesus implied the hand of Mercy, that he is, didn't let the left hand of the law ---and its Judgment ----know what was going on when salvation was being purchased.
There was a man whose right hand was leprous. And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him. But he knew their thoughts, and said to the man which had the leprous hand, Stand up and put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he rose and put his hand into his bosom. Then Jesus said unto the experts in the law, I will ask you one thing, is it lawful on the sabbath to do good or to do evil? to save life or to destroy it? And looking round about them all he said unto the man, pluck thy hand out of thy bosom. And it was restored as other flesh.
Luke 6:6-10.
Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold his hand was leprous as snow. And he said put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom and it was as other flesh.
Exodus 4:7.
Luke 6:6-10.
Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold his hand was leprous as snow. And he said put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom and it was as other flesh.
Exodus 4:7.
What's hidden beneath the text of the law in Exodus 4:7 is key to the parallel with Luke 6:6-10. Nehushtan is in Moses' right hand when he places it in his bosom. Nehushtan is made leprous when Moses places his right hand in the midst of his bosom. And it's Nehushtan who's made whole as other flesh when removed from the midst of the bosom at the command of God (or Jesus, as it were, and was, in Luke 6:10).
No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
John 1:18.
John 1:18.
It doesn't take a rocket-scientist or a Rashi-like exegete to put the parallel between Luke 6:10 and Exodus 4:7 into the context of Rabbi Hirsch's exegesis of Psalms 36:7 (where Rabbi Hirsch mixes God's hand of Judgment with his hand of Mercy); the parallel is explicit so long as the reader knows that Nehushtan is in Moses' right hand: Nehushtan is turned leprous. Or stated more progressively, and or precisely, Moses' rod becomes Nehushtan when he places it in his bosom in Exodus 4:7.
John
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John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
To understand what's going on beneath the orlah placed over the spirit of the narrative ----like a fore-skene deflecting the truth for all but those genuinely keen to know the spirit of the narrative ----a person needs to appreciate and believe that the Hebrew text of scripture retains the holy nature of the original glyph or hieroglyphs since the word for "leprous" in the text צרעת is the Hebrew word for "hornets." The root comes from צרף which means to melt a metal to separate the dross, or to purify it. A similar word שרף not only means to melt metal in the purging process, but also means "seraph," like the one Moses used molten metal to form into the flying-serpent nailed to his pole to transform the mere "serpent-rod" (nachash נחש) of Moses into the "serpent-dragon-rod" (Nehush-tan נחש–תן), the winged-serpent-rod of Moses: the serpent-rod of Moses, with, as it were, leprosy.
The Hebrew exegetes claim the parallel between the word "leprosy" and "hornets" is based on the fact that a hornet's sting burns like hell just as does a leprous hand. Moses' serpent-rod is made to burn like hell as it's being purged and purified by God's Judgment דן in order to be made able to mete out God's loving-kindness חסד to those willing to place their right hand in their bosom where they clasp, and then kiss, the crucifix dangling there with puncture wounds received by the hornets of God's law-wielding Judgment.
John
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John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
When Moses tells God that Israel won't believe he's seen God face-to face (or at least face to external shekinah/dwelling), i.e., the burning bush, God, peculiarly, transforms Moses's shepherd's staff into a serpent-rod, which he has Moses place in his bosom, where it turns leprous, such that God insinuates to Moses that now he can bring his theophany of the shekinah/presence of God (a serpent-rod become leprous) with him so that Israel too can see what God's presence looks like: a serpent-rod, transformed into a serpent-dragon-rod.
Saying that a "serpent-rod" becomes a "serpent-dragon-rod" (precisely when the serpent-rod contracts leprosy), is related to the exegesis provided above, whereby a "flying-serpent" is a "dragon," and where a "flying-serpent" is equated with a "seraph" or the word "seraph" שרף, since later in the narrative God specifically commands Moses to remind Israel that his (Moses') serpent-rod is a theophany of God by sharing with Israel the second element of the revelation he (Moses) received on Horeb: the leprosy of God's ruling Branch.
Up until God tells Moses to augment his ruling Branch (his serpent-rod) with leprosy, Israel is unaware that God's ruling Branch will be subject to this leprous purification process:
We have no indication as to how we should picture in our minds the future purification of him stricken with the leprosy of the world; but we are told that he must purify himself before he enters upon his duty of bringing to the nations the order of righteousness, and of linking them together to a people of peoples in his capacity as “covenant."
Martin Buber, The Prophetic Faith, p. 228.
Martin Buber, The Prophetic Faith, p. 228.
Initially, Israel is confronted with the rod of Moses that curses the waters of their enemies, and sweetens the bitter water they must themselves drink. But it isn't itself leprous yet. That element of Moses' Horeb-theophany is withheld from Israel until Moses nails the bronze seraph נחש–תנין (flying-dragon) to his serpent-rod to show Israel the greater, literally the salvific, element related to Nehushtan as God's shekinah glory.
John
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John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
The progressive revelation to Israel is profound since initially Moses' serpent-rod can curse their enemy's water and purify their own, i.e., can protect Israel from dangers external to their well-being, while, on the other hand, it's not until Moses later reveals what was revealed to him on Horeb (but initially hidden from Israel), i.e., the leprous purification of his serpent-rod, that that rod becomes truly salvific: able to save a person who's not only in danger of death, from enemies foreign and domestic, but who has already contracted death and is just awaiting the start of the sentence.
Only after Moses' serpent-rod is revealed as Nehushtan, a serpent-dragon-rod, is it revealed to Israel that this manifestation of God's very presence is able not only to protect and serve, ala the cursing and blessing of water, but that it has power over death itself. It's only when Moses' theophanic rod is purified through leprosy that it gains power over life and death. Which make the nature of this so great purification process important to the relationship between Nehushtan as a savior with power over death itself, and another figure figured as serpentine to Israel: Jesus of Nazareth.
When God tells Moses to nail a "seraph" to his serpent-rod, Moses manufactures a "flying-serpent" out of bronze. Mind you bronze is an alloy manufactured by mixing copper (which glistens, like say, a burning bush, when burnished and lifted in the light) with other elements like tin and phosphorus:
Elemental phosphorus was first isolated as white phosphorus in 1669. White phosphorus emits a faint glow when exposed to oxygen – hence the name, taken from Greek mythology, Φωσφόρος meaning 'light-bearer' (Latin Lucifer), referring to the "Morning Star", the planet Venus.
Wikipedia.
Wikipedia.
There's method to God's madness in having Moses nail a "light-bearing" metal, representing "Lucifer" to his shepherd rod/branch if he wants Israel to know what Moses knows about how God is going to use leprosy not as a curse, but as the cure, for the curse of sin, whose wages is death. Moses' serpent-rod is going to be made sin, pure sin, to cure Israel both from sin, but also from the wages of sin, death.
We have no indication as to how we should picture in our minds the future purification of him stricken with the leprosy of the world; but we are told that he must purify himself before he enters upon his duty of bringing to the nations the order of righteousness, and of linking them together to a people of peoples in his capacity as “covenant."
Martin Buber, The Prophetic Faith, p. 228.
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:14.
John
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John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
As noted by the Christian expositor Chuck Missler, the verse above comes just one verse before the most well-known verse in the New Testament (John 3:16). There's cause to observe that John 3:14 is not only the foundation for the most well-known verse in the New Testament (John 3:16), but is also key to greatest mystery found throughout the entire bible: the Tanakh and New Testament scriptures.
And to the messenger of the church in Pergamos write: These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges; I know thy works and where thou dwellest, i.e., Satan's throne, and still thou holdest fast to my Name.
Revelation 2:13.
Revelation 2:13.
The verse above (Revelation 2:13) takes us on a wild flying-dragon chase if it's but treated with the seriousness it deserves. The church in the cross-hairs is said to dwell at the very throne of Satan. And this throne of Satan is called "Pergamos." The word is made up of the Greek Πέρ (Per) which means "mixed" or "objectionable" (etymologically a turning from what's right or good) and the word γαμος (gamous), which is the Greek word for marriage. Πέργαμος (Pergamos) is quite literally a word meaning a per-verse or per-verted marriage. Satan's throne can be understood and or found as a perverse or perverted ---per-gamos---marriage.
As fate, or the spirit of revelation would have it, the symbol for the ancient city of Pergamos was the "serpent-rod." Almost beyond belief, the city of Pergamos had as its symbol, a Greek version of Moses' serpent-rod (the serpent-rod of Moses which becomes, when it assumes power over life, and death, not just a serpent-rod, but which is transformed into a serpent-dragon-rod, Nehush-tannin נחש–תנין).
On . . . [a] marble pillar at Bergama (Pergamum) we see three health symbols: snakes, olive branches, and the wheel of life. Asclepius, son of Apollo, was taught medicine by the centaur Chiron. According to myth, he even learned how to bring the dead back to life using Gorgon’s blood. No wonder Asclepius’s symbol was two serpents entwined around a staff: the caduceus (or kerykeion). It’s still the symbol of medicine even in our times. As with so many other aspects of our modern culture: it all started here, in the ancient Aegean world, especially in Aegean Turkey.
Sacred Snakes of Pergamum.
Sacred Snakes of Pergamum.
John
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John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
The centaur Chiron (mentioned in the quotation above) is said to have been fathered by a Titan ---Cronus--- (one of the great men/creatures of "renown" as found in Gen. 6). The concept of a "centaur" is related to a perverted-marriage (per-gamous) that births offspring which are a per-version in that the offspring are half one creature, and half another. Chiron was the mentor of Asclepius who carries a healing serpent-rod ala Moses.
Importantly, Asclipius post-dates Moses and the book of Numbers where the narrative of the transformation of Moses' serpent-rod into the healer and angel of, and over, death, Nehushtan, is first revealed. Moses' rod is the prototype of Asclipius rod, both of which lead directly into the idea of a per-verse (per Rev. 2:13) marriage of Satan and God (the angel of death, and the Tree of Life) made into the icon par excellent in the transformation of Moses' rod into Nehushtan such that it no longer can merely curse and cure more mundane maladies (water to blood, bitter water to sweet), but where and when, post-transformation, it can cure a sentence of death already written into the book of life.
In an irony that's no doubt kept the identity of Nehushtan hidden to this very day, we can say with the authority of the holy spirit, and the holy text of scripture, that Nehushtan is a perverted marriage of Satan and God, i.e., the serpent, and the Branch (or stump of the Tree of Life), whose offspring will spring into action as the man of sin, the future Titan, centaur, known as the anti-Christ, the abomination that causes desolation while indwelling the very flesh of the Branch and the serpent such that most of those reading these words will find it quite natural to worship the son of sin sired in, and of, Per-gamos, and who's slated to become one of the most famous immigrants to Rome and Jerusalem (their most beloved son) of all time.
John
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John D. Brey
Well-Known Member
Revelation 2:13 goes further than merely revealing that the church in Pergamos is situated in the very throne of Satan; they "dwell in Satan's throne." The verse goes on to justify the exegesis that situates Nehushtan, Moses' latter day serpent-rod, as the perverted-marriage of Satan and God.
Satan is "Samael": God's left-hand of Judgment, to include the ultimate: death. While the Branch is, and is in, God's right hand: the stump of the Tree of Life, which, the Tree of Life, has been cut down, broken, or withered, with only a stump left, so that the serpent might ascend, for a time, to the heights of the now broken Branch.
I know thy works, and where thou swellest, i.e., Satan's throne. And yet thou still clutcheth fast onto my Name and have not denied faith in me.
Revelation 12:13.
Behold, I send a fallen angel before thee to guard thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my Name is in him.
Exodus 23:20
Then he remembered the days of old, Moses and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd rod of his flock? Where is he that put his holy spirit within it? The rod that led them while in the right hand of Moses, the glorious branch that divided the water before them to reveal itself as his everlasting Name?
Isaiah 63:11-12.
Why withdrawest thy hand, specifically thy right hand? Pluck it out of thy bosom for it's God who is my King who in ancient times provided salvation in the midst of the earth the one who divided the sea by strength and broke the head of the dragons תנינים.
Psalms 74:11-13.
Revelation 12:13.
Behold, I send a fallen angel before thee to guard thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my Name is in him.
Exodus 23:20
Then he remembered the days of old, Moses and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd rod of his flock? Where is he that put his holy spirit within it? The rod that led them while in the right hand of Moses, the glorious branch that divided the water before them to reveal itself as his everlasting Name?
Isaiah 63:11-12.
Why withdrawest thy hand, specifically thy right hand? Pluck it out of thy bosom for it's God who is my King who in ancient times provided salvation in the midst of the earth the one who divided the sea by strength and broke the head of the dragons תנינים.
Psalms 74:11-13.
In his brilliant commentary (The Call of the Torah), Rabbi Ellie Munk wonders how on earth a copper snake can affect life and death? So does the Talmud (Rosh Hashanah 29a). Rabbi Munk says:
The answer given is that when the Israelites raised their eyes to Hashem [the Name] they were healed. . . when the people looked at the serpent at the top of the pole and held the thought that Hashem alone could cause a wound or its healing, then the healing soon followed.
The Talmud, and a beloved, orthodox Rabbi (Elie Munk), concede that the Name, Hashem, is to be perceived when looking at Nehushtan. It's difficult for them to swallow. And so they haven't had the stomach to exegete where it all leads, as is similarly the case for the Christian exegetes who should know better, such that the mystery of Nehushtan, though it's there staring everyone in the face, remains hidden, only to be revealed at the revelation of the mystery of iniquity that's the return of he who was, is not, but who is to come (Rev. 17:8).
John
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Nehushtan: Brazen Idol or Prince of Darkness?
In the book of Numbers 21:4-9 there is a story about Moses and the Jewish people during their time in the desert. In short, the people were complaining that the all-powerful and all-loving god was, for some reason, barely allowing them to survive on terrible food and without water. Being who he is, Yahweh sent serpents to viciously bite his people for their complaints, causing them to suffer horribly and many to die. To survive the bites, Yahweh told Moses to place the symbol of the Serpent on a pole or cross, and all who looked upon it would be healed.
“They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; 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!” Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 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. 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.” 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.”
The story is then referenced later in the Torah as well, in 2 Kings, 18:4. Supposedly King Hezekiah was upset that the people had been worshiping the Serpent when, in his belief, the power came from Yahweh and not the idol. Therefore the worship of it was seen as a form of idolatry. When he supposedly cast it down, he called it "Nehushtan", which many take to mean "brass" or "brazen" Serpent. It is thought to be an insult, that it was "a thing of mere brass" with no divine power[1].
“He removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan).”
However, I plan to show "Nehushtan" was more likely a proper name at the time of an ancient snake deity, maybe even the one from Genesis, and that Hezekiah meant no insult to it.
We start in Ancient Egypt with the Uraeus Serpent and the goddess Wadjet. The Uraeus and Wadjet in specific both date back to predynastic Egypt. These cobras adorned the headdresses of both kings and gods, a symbol of divine strength, sovereignty, and protection[2]. In certain periods the Uraeus was depicted with wings, sometimes multiple pairs. Wadjet was an extremely important deity and was known as the Eye of Ra, at times represented by many other strong goddesses as well, such as Sekhmet. In later Osirian stories she helped Isis protect and raise Horus the child, though alternatively she was sometimes associated with Set and the Was Scepter[3], another common symbol of divine strength often carried by royalty and deities. Thoth actually carried a Was Scepter specific to him with a Serpent winding up it, likely to original staff of Hermes and uniting Set, Thoth, and the Serpent even more.
Another ancient and local example is from Mesopotamia with the god Ningishzida, a snake deity who was the "Lord of the Tree of Truth" or "the Good Tree" and similar translations[4]. He was also depicted with wings at times, as a dragon. Ningishzida was associated with the underworld and night sky (possibly one in the same), and agriculture, thus being a regenerative being. As his title implieshe was a serpentine tree deity. Interestingly, it seems that "Nin" generally dictates a female goddess rather than a male god, even though Ningishzida is seen as male[5]. I'm not sure if this is a mistranslation or what, but it would fit the pattern if Ningishzida was a female deity rather than masculine.
[6]
A third deity in the area that we need to discuss is Asherah[7]. She was a classic goddess associated with both trees and snakes, and "Asherah trees" were often found next to altars of her and Ba'al (the deity, not as a title)[8]. She was often seen holding snakes and closely tied with them. In myth she was a Chaoskampf heroine along with Ba'al, driving back the Serpent of Chaos and taming it in the same manner as the Egyptian Set defeated Apep. She has also been identified at times as both Anat and Astarte, both wives of Set, who himself was associated with Ba'al as proven by the 400 Year Stele. Sometimes she was the mother of the other gods. Not only was she wife of the infamous Ba'al, but some believe she was even the wife of Yahweh himself before monotheism - Yahweh often being seen as descending from Ba'al (or a perversion of Ba'al).
[9]
On top of these specifics beings, the Serpent was the sign of healing in many cultures. This symbolism is still widely spread thanks to its use in medicine – both the staffs of Hermes and of Asclepius remain a daily sight. It is interesting to note that while it's common knowledge Thoth of Egypt and Hermes of Greece represent the same deity, Ningishzida is also associated with Thoth and therefore Hermes. Further, do not forget this Serpent staff symbolism itself appears to descend from the Egyptian Serpent goddess Wadjet and the Uraeus. Elsewhere, such as Minoan Crete, there were snake goddesses and those dedicated to serpents, who were immortalized in art dancing topless with their animal companions entwined in their arms[10]. Even the Eastern Kundalini slithering up the spine brings the same imagery to mind.
[11][12]
[13]
At this point we can return to Judaism. We will start with a species of flying serpentine beings in the Bible, the Seraphs or Seraphim. In most cases these beings were simple venomous (literally "fiery") snakes that guarded the deserts. The story from Numbers is an example of people being attacked by these serpents, and Nehushtan was the image set up to heal the Jewish people from them. However, there is another far more fascinating description of Seraphim from the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah describes Yahweh sitting on a throne of the heavens. These entities are called "Seraphim", having six wings and hiding their faces and bodies[14].
Not only did they accompany Yahweh but they also stood above him as he sat on his throne. The Seraphim performed a ritual on Isaiah's lips that allowed him to speak purely before Yahweh. They even refered to Yahweh as the "Lord of Hosts", the entities were being "hosted" as if they were part of a larger divine hierarchy. In Deuteronomy it is implied that the stars are the other divinities, as well as that they were the gods of other nations prior to monotheism[15]. Who were these polytheistic beings that stood above Yahweh’s throne? Why are they connected with these flying Serpents? How come they hid their features? Most interestingly, what is this ritual they did to Isaiah? It immediately brings to mind the Opening of the Mouth ceremony from Ancient Egypt, which allowed the ascended dead to speak and consume sustenance. The idea of winged, flying Serpents in Judaism are also thought to come from the Egyptians and their winged Uraeus, but we will get back to this.
The Serpent of Eden is the next piece of our puzzle. Hopefully the symbolism of the Serpent and the tree is clear at this point in relation to the above information. Ningishzida was a literal serpent deity who was Lord of the Tree of Truth, a term easily equated with the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Likewise, the Serpent and tree symbolism is very reminiscent of Asherah[16] and her relationship to both trees and snakes, as well as her relationship to the pre-monotheistic Yahweh and trees beside her altars. [17]Further, the Serpent in the garden appears to have been one of these Seraphim beings, as part of Yahweh's curse against it includes having to slither on its belly. We know the Seraphim had wings, removing such wings would force it to crawl and eat dirt. We quickly move from the Serpent - the nachash - as a random beast of the field or minor devil to a divine being that stood above the throne of Yahweh, was related to Yahweh’s wife and other more ancient divinities, and seems connected all the way back to the divine Uraeus of predynastic Egypt while using Egyptian magic.
But our journey does not stop there. The term "nachash" was a common term for snakes in scripture but it was not a proper name. The base of the word, Nun-Chet-Shin, is actually the root of 3 words: Snake, Divination, and "Shining". The concept of "shining" was like the shine of copper and brass, material the Nehushtan would be made of. It usually ties to enemies of Yahweh, such as the Babylonian king who was called "the shining one", which itself was interpreted by the Church as the fall of Satan from heaven. Even the term "Lucifer" meaning "bearer of light" ties to this, which solidified the story of Babylon with the fall of "Lucifer".
In the book of Numbers 21:4-9 there is a story about Moses and the Jewish people during their time in the desert. In short, the people were complaining that the all-powerful and all-loving god was, for some reason, barely allowing them to survive on terrible food and without water. Being who he is, Yahweh sent serpents to viciously bite his people for their complaints, causing them to suffer horribly and many to die. To survive the bites, Yahweh told Moses to place the symbol of the Serpent on a pole or cross, and all who looked upon it would be healed.
“They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; 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!” Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 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. 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.” 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.”
The story is then referenced later in the Torah as well, in 2 Kings, 18:4. Supposedly King Hezekiah was upset that the people had been worshiping the Serpent when, in his belief, the power came from Yahweh and not the idol. Therefore the worship of it was seen as a form of idolatry. When he supposedly cast it down, he called it "Nehushtan", which many take to mean "brass" or "brazen" Serpent. It is thought to be an insult, that it was "a thing of mere brass" with no divine power[1].
“He removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan).”
However, I plan to show "Nehushtan" was more likely a proper name at the time of an ancient snake deity, maybe even the one from Genesis, and that Hezekiah meant no insult to it.
We start in Ancient Egypt with the Uraeus Serpent and the goddess Wadjet. The Uraeus and Wadjet in specific both date back to predynastic Egypt. These cobras adorned the headdresses of both kings and gods, a symbol of divine strength, sovereignty, and protection[2]. In certain periods the Uraeus was depicted with wings, sometimes multiple pairs. Wadjet was an extremely important deity and was known as the Eye of Ra, at times represented by many other strong goddesses as well, such as Sekhmet. In later Osirian stories she helped Isis protect and raise Horus the child, though alternatively she was sometimes associated with Set and the Was Scepter[3], another common symbol of divine strength often carried by royalty and deities. Thoth actually carried a Was Scepter specific to him with a Serpent winding up it, likely to original staff of Hermes and uniting Set, Thoth, and the Serpent even more.
Another ancient and local example is from Mesopotamia with the god Ningishzida, a snake deity who was the "Lord of the Tree of Truth" or "the Good Tree" and similar translations[4]. He was also depicted with wings at times, as a dragon. Ningishzida was associated with the underworld and night sky (possibly one in the same), and agriculture, thus being a regenerative being. As his title implieshe was a serpentine tree deity. Interestingly, it seems that "Nin" generally dictates a female goddess rather than a male god, even though Ningishzida is seen as male[5]. I'm not sure if this is a mistranslation or what, but it would fit the pattern if Ningishzida was a female deity rather than masculine.
[6]
A third deity in the area that we need to discuss is Asherah[7]. She was a classic goddess associated with both trees and snakes, and "Asherah trees" were often found next to altars of her and Ba'al (the deity, not as a title)[8]. She was often seen holding snakes and closely tied with them. In myth she was a Chaoskampf heroine along with Ba'al, driving back the Serpent of Chaos and taming it in the same manner as the Egyptian Set defeated Apep. She has also been identified at times as both Anat and Astarte, both wives of Set, who himself was associated with Ba'al as proven by the 400 Year Stele. Sometimes she was the mother of the other gods. Not only was she wife of the infamous Ba'al, but some believe she was even the wife of Yahweh himself before monotheism - Yahweh often being seen as descending from Ba'al (or a perversion of Ba'al).
[9]
On top of these specifics beings, the Serpent was the sign of healing in many cultures. This symbolism is still widely spread thanks to its use in medicine – both the staffs of Hermes and of Asclepius remain a daily sight. It is interesting to note that while it's common knowledge Thoth of Egypt and Hermes of Greece represent the same deity, Ningishzida is also associated with Thoth and therefore Hermes. Further, do not forget this Serpent staff symbolism itself appears to descend from the Egyptian Serpent goddess Wadjet and the Uraeus. Elsewhere, such as Minoan Crete, there were snake goddesses and those dedicated to serpents, who were immortalized in art dancing topless with their animal companions entwined in their arms[10]. Even the Eastern Kundalini slithering up the spine brings the same imagery to mind.
[11][12]
[13]
At this point we can return to Judaism. We will start with a species of flying serpentine beings in the Bible, the Seraphs or Seraphim. In most cases these beings were simple venomous (literally "fiery") snakes that guarded the deserts. The story from Numbers is an example of people being attacked by these serpents, and Nehushtan was the image set up to heal the Jewish people from them. However, there is another far more fascinating description of Seraphim from the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah describes Yahweh sitting on a throne of the heavens. These entities are called "Seraphim", having six wings and hiding their faces and bodies[14].
Not only did they accompany Yahweh but they also stood above him as he sat on his throne. The Seraphim performed a ritual on Isaiah's lips that allowed him to speak purely before Yahweh. They even refered to Yahweh as the "Lord of Hosts", the entities were being "hosted" as if they were part of a larger divine hierarchy. In Deuteronomy it is implied that the stars are the other divinities, as well as that they were the gods of other nations prior to monotheism[15]. Who were these polytheistic beings that stood above Yahweh’s throne? Why are they connected with these flying Serpents? How come they hid their features? Most interestingly, what is this ritual they did to Isaiah? It immediately brings to mind the Opening of the Mouth ceremony from Ancient Egypt, which allowed the ascended dead to speak and consume sustenance. The idea of winged, flying Serpents in Judaism are also thought to come from the Egyptians and their winged Uraeus, but we will get back to this.
The Serpent of Eden is the next piece of our puzzle. Hopefully the symbolism of the Serpent and the tree is clear at this point in relation to the above information. Ningishzida was a literal serpent deity who was Lord of the Tree of Truth, a term easily equated with the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Likewise, the Serpent and tree symbolism is very reminiscent of Asherah[16] and her relationship to both trees and snakes, as well as her relationship to the pre-monotheistic Yahweh and trees beside her altars. [17]Further, the Serpent in the garden appears to have been one of these Seraphim beings, as part of Yahweh's curse against it includes having to slither on its belly. We know the Seraphim had wings, removing such wings would force it to crawl and eat dirt. We quickly move from the Serpent - the nachash - as a random beast of the field or minor devil to a divine being that stood above the throne of Yahweh, was related to Yahweh’s wife and other more ancient divinities, and seems connected all the way back to the divine Uraeus of predynastic Egypt while using Egyptian magic.
But our journey does not stop there. The term "nachash" was a common term for snakes in scripture but it was not a proper name. The base of the word, Nun-Chet-Shin, is actually the root of 3 words: Snake, Divination, and "Shining". The concept of "shining" was like the shine of copper and brass, material the Nehushtan would be made of. It usually ties to enemies of Yahweh, such as the Babylonian king who was called "the shining one", which itself was interpreted by the Church as the fall of Satan from heaven. Even the term "Lucifer" meaning "bearer of light" ties to this, which solidified the story of Babylon with the fall of "Lucifer".