The Bronze Serpent and Jesus

What is it about the bronze serpent account (Number 21:4-9) that made it the ideal example of the “lifting up” of Jesus? How is Nicodemus the representative Israelite? What is the dual meaning of the Greek verb “lift up”? How does the Greek translation of Isaiah 52:13 provide the background for John 3? And, in the famous John 3:16 passage, did God love the world “so much” or “in this way”? Chad Bird explores all these questions in this week’s episode of “Reading the Gospels through Hebrew Eyes” as he focuses on John 3:14-16.