Numbers 21:6

21:6 So the Lord sent poisonous ¹  snakes ²  among the people, and they bit the people; many people of Israel died.

Numbers 21:8

21:8 The Lord said to Moses, “Make a poisonous snake and set it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks ³  at it, he will live.”

[21:6]  ¹ tn Heb “fiery.”

[21:6]  ² tn The designation of the serpents/ snakes is נְחָשִׁים (nÿkhashim), which is similar to the word for “bronze” (נְחֹשֶׁת, nÿkhoshet). This has led some scholars to describe the serpents as bronze in color. The description of them as fiery indicates they were poisonous. Perhaps the snake in question is a species of adder.

[21:8]  ³ tn The word order is slightly different in Hebrew: “and it shall be anyone who is bitten when he looks at it he shall live.”