Numbers 21:8 - Exposition

Make thee a fiery serpent. A saraph. The Septuagint, not understanding the meaning of saraph, has simply ὄφιν (cf. John 3:14 ). Set it upon a pole. גֵם Septuagint σήμειον . V ulgate, signum. The same word is better translated "ensign" in such passages as Isaiah 11:10 ; "banner" in such as Isaiah 60:4 ; "standard" in such as Jeremiah 51:27 . The "pole" may have been the tallest and most conspicuous of those military standards which were planted (probably on some elevation) as rallying points for the various camps; or it may have been one loftier still, made for the occasion.