5. Afterwards, they returned to their bad ways and sinned in the place of Torah and commandments, and retreated seven degrees. At that time, the upper serpent awakened to control them, as it is written, “And the Lord sent the Seraph serpents among the people.” “Seraph” is as it is written, “Seraphim stand above him.” They are called the “upper serpent” since initially, there were two alligators and they returned to being one, since the female was killed. Afterwards, it is written, “And God created the great alligators and all the living soul that swarms, with which the waters swarm according to their kinds.” Taninim [alligators] is written without a Yod.
6. And several serpents came out from the upper serpent and connected in Israel. Then they returned in complete repentance and adhered to the side of mercy, to bring down mercy and sweeten the world, and the serpent was removed, and all the worlds were sweetened.
7. When they sinned, it is written, “And the people spoke against God and against Moses.” When they repented, it is written, “For we for we spoke against the Lord and against you.” It is not written “God.” But after they repented, they wanted to bring back the abundance from the upper source to their place, from the Written Torah, ZA, to the Oral Torah, Malchut, and adhered to the high place, to ZA, that sweetening Malchut and drawing upper water from ZA to the place that is on them, Malchut, depends on him. This is why they said, “for we spoke against the Lord and against you,” for HaVaYaH is ZA.
8. When a person sins in the place of judgment, drawing judgments downward, it is as though he sinned in the place of the upper judgment, in Malchut. It is especially so here, when they sinned against God and against Moses. And what is the reason that the serpent came upon them? It is because they guessed and said, “If no judgment comes upon us, we need not engage in Torah, and if judgment does come upon us, we will engage in Torah.”
9. It is written, “Make for yourself a Seraph,” as it is written, “Seraphim are standing,” for because they repented in upper repentance, they are in My halls, like the high Seraphim who serve before Me.” And put it on a pole,” meaning raise Israel up, so that the place of the upper altar will nurse them, namely Bina, who is called a “pole,” with its wings, to save them from the serpent, as it is written, “and called the name of it, “The Lord Is My Banner,” HaVaYaH, ZA. “My Banner” is Bina, which is why it is written, “and put it on a pole” indeed [in Hebrew: Ness means both “pole” and “banner”].
10. It is written, “And God tried Abraham,” meaning that He raised his banner above all, since Nissa [tried/tested] means exalted. Here, too, He raised his banner above all. What is the reason that he made the serpent from copper? It is because copper depends on the place of life, since copper is Tifferet, the place where Jacob is present. This is why it is written, “And when he sees it, he shall live,” since Tifferet is the tree of life.
11. How superior is the power of repentance over all, since when a person repents before his master, a well of living waters, Malchut, is filled, and its waters come out to all the sides, and twelve gates are drawn to each tribe, to water small animals with great ones, which are the twelve tribes, who are called lion and wolf, big animals, and a lamb and a kid, small animals.
12. When Israel repented, they sang. These seven degrees that they retreated, they brought them back with their singing, and raised the upper well, Malchut, up to Bina, since there are seven degrees from Malchut to Bina.
The serpent parted from the world, as it is written, “Then Israel will sing this singing, ‘Spring up, O well! All of you sing to it,’” since the well, Malchut, rose up above to Bina, and the bottom mother, Malchut, connected to the upper one, Bina.