Genesis_ The Serpent (Nachash) Dr Michael S Heiser

[@12gaPunisher]

Amazing analysis of the scriptures. This is one of my favorites from Heiser. Thank you for editing and posting!

[@KathyStrickland-nh9vx]

I believe it was a fallen angel. And I'm really hoping heaven is free of snakes.

[@NEMO-NEMO]

The passage where Satan says to Eve, “ you’ll become like gods” is where I realized that there was more going on in Eden than I was understanding.

[@fiona1327]

keep going and surly ABBA has blessed you with hunger for him and i get rewards i am across the other side of the world and you teach Bless you in the will of YHWH

[@hannasylph3400]

YHWH is His name. I love to see someone who knows that! 😀

[@fiona1327]

thank u Mr Hieser im learning alot from you and i appreciate it sooo much

[@joyceruserious7920]

I just got the connection, the serpent on the mountain walking on stones of fire, seems to match what John saw in Revelation 8:8 And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood; Ezekiel 28:16 By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Ezekiel 28:14 Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.

[@Tom-xg1kj]

If Lucifer or Satan is fallen, whyis he described as god of this world in 2 Corinthians?

[@Tom-xg1kj]

Dr. Heiser did not see the "dragon" in Scripture. A new book "Lucifer Has Not Yet Fallen" by Robert Wassong provides some information on this subject. A worthwhile read.

[@Jeffrey2038]

Excellent. This makes so much sense. The Genesis writer using serpent imagery to describe what happened in the beginning.

[@KC-fb8ql]

Being that I’m not a scholar of ancient languages and literature, I read Genesis in my native language. The curses of the man, woman and serpent all seem to be meant to be understood as literal explanations of those realities: the man must labor and toil to survive, the woman suffers in childbirth, and the serpent now crawls upon the earth. Is that not correct? If one misses the point of the passage, and therefore is prone to form errant doctrines from that misunderstanding, what does that say about the perspicuity of scripture? Heiser says that the serpent was a supernatural being. The serpent is called a ‘beast of the field’ twice in Gen 3.

[@mvwil]

God spoke in the language of the times. I too see these stories first as simple "just-so" stories. But these things are spiritually discerned. Christ too appeared to be a man, although there were depths hidden in Him which no man can comprehend.

[@lysdexic5205]

I don't see where the serpent is called "a beast of the field" he is more cunning than any beast of the field and he is cursed above every beast of the field but is never said to be a beast of the field. If he was a covering cherub and was cast to earth he would be crawling on earth instead it's former role in "heaven". Snakes can't talk or reason but this serpent did. The narrative suggests this serpent was intentionally seducing Eve to sin, man is the only creature in this world who has the mental capacity to come up with that idea and implement it.

[@Jz-en9pi]

In Ethiopian language ( Amharik ), Nekash means the biter.

[@msrhuby]

Jacob and Esau "Then the other twin was born with his hand grasping Esau's heel." Esau is red, Jacob is blue

[@msrhuby]

I learn a lot using Google images "the shining one" or "the shining ones" lead me to: The Shining Ones - The World's Most Powerful Secret Society Revealed by Philip Gardiner and Gary Osborn

[@skilz8098]

The serpent in Genesis is a Fallen Angel!

[@JellyBellyButter]

So does this spiritual being literally eat dust? If it can be metaphorical when applied to a spiritual being it can be metaphorical when applied to a snake. Snakes literally do not eat dust but metaphorically they do as they slither across dry lands.

[@nicechock]

From dust didst you came. He devours material being, humans and so on.

[@nicechock]

It also means has to stay on earth

[@nicechock]

The being is not a snake.

[@Jim-Mc]

Little help, can anyone direct me to somewhere Dr. Heiser addresses more directly the "the serpent was more wise than ANY OTHER beast of the field," for his interpretation to work I'd like to understand the Hebrew for this phrase, and how it may have been changed in Greek or Latin etc., since it seems pretty straightforward that the creature is at least being treated as a beast/snake.

[@Shiloh410]

Jim Strongs 5172, 5173, 5176 Nachash - Jesus & John called the pharisees and sadducees serpents & brood of vipers. They were / are legalistic and very ‘wise’ in the law. Satan himself is the chief deceiver. That’s why even Michael the archangel won’t get into a battle of words with satan. Jude 1:9

[@Aaron-iu3zp]

I am wondering the same thing. "Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field". (Gen. 3:1) If the serpent was a divine being (not a member of the animal kingdom) why is he compared to members of the animal kingdom. I love Mike's work, but perplexed on this point.

[@GEES44DC]

@@Aaron-iu3zp Because you're thinking in modern times, not as the ancient people would have

[@JellyBellyButter]

If it wasn’t a serpent and was instead a spiritual being, then why did God punish all snakes?

[@KC-fb8ql]

I agree. The scripture calls the serpent a ‘beast of the field.’ The curses of the man and woman are things observable today. Yet why the tendency to hyper-spiritualize the serpent and it’s curse?

[@nicechock]

What are you 2 talking about? The curse was only for the serpent being. Who was the angel satanail.

[@nicechock]

There are were many beast of the field. Some were even monsters like the leviathan and other beings.

[@thepossessor]

Mike says that there's no indication that the serpent is part of the animal kingdom, which he does give some valid points. However, it's confusing because the text says "out of all the beasts of the field" referring to the serpent, is God being poetic or trying to confuse us, or are the writers of Genesis trying to confuse us?

[@stealth8294]

That's explained here kzbin.info/www/bejne/bWO3Y5WNbceenKM

[@GEES44DC]

This is an example of us reading with modern eyes instead of ancient eyes. The ancient readers would have been able to make the comparison instantly.

[@kurakuson]

How is it that God's throne needs a guardian? And, guarded from what.....threat? God needs protection?

[@hannasylph3400]

Not a protector of the Creator. He doesn't need protection. I think the problem is a proper understanding of the word guardian for that language and time period, as well as the duties of a guardian.

[@hendybarthelemy1890]

The problem is comprehending the God in the bible are Elohim. multiple people the annunaki. physical advanced beings at the time. and that's why "God" of the bible needed protection.

[@tom_bout]

So the womans tempted by the devil and the man's tempted by the woman

[@Agitated_Hamster]

Ezekiel calls out Satan has being a "Guardian Cherubim of Eden", all 4 of the Living Creatures are called Cherubim and not described as serpent. Because they are beast creatures and each have different features of animals/man. "IF" Isaiah is seeing a serpent like cherubim, which I would argue that he is (since all the descriptions of the Seraphim match the description of the living creatures, people get confused when they read Ezekiel and don't know how to read Ezekiel correctly)...the reason why Isaiah calls it a Seraphim instead of a Cherubim is because this is Satan himself playing the role of the "accuser" prior to his fall to earth. He sees Satan in heaven. Heiser does nail that both cherubim and seraphim are the same thing, which was my conclusion after deep investigation. The only thing I disagree with is him saying the Ezekiel 28 is describing God's throne when he mentions the stones. He is describing Satan as having stones all over his body, my supporting argument is because how Ezekiel says there are "eyes" all over the bodies of the living creatures and their wheels (paths). The word "eyes" is used to describe "stars or stones", since there is no underlining lemma associated with it...hence the translators left the word blank and didn't translate it. We know this because ancient text use the word "eyes" for "stars and stones", Heiser himself agrees with this and brought it up in other sermons. The living creatures are either transparent or sky blue with jewels that shine like stars right under Polaris, below the 2nd firmament.

[@ezekialbones7151]

Can you explain how multiple times in the book of Hebrews the author repeatedly points out that angels are not sons of God? How does the OT justify calling them that then? Or the new Testament saying they are not?

[@dennymiller89]

Different classifications of angelic being. Sons of God (council), archangels (warrior angels) and regular (messenger) angels. In the NT Sons of God is extended to humans as well, we become sons of God and rule over angels.

[@mollygriffith2073]

So... a brazen or bronze serpent then becomes a Savior in the wilderness when the people are bitten by fiery serpents. Ugh. What in the world??? AND right after God commands no carving of anything- commandment #2. No graven images. This is so confusing!

[@kayden1253]

its different. when one carves an image of something that is alive, it is idolatry and that thing is blasphemous since it does actually live, but Moses was given the ability of animation aka to give life to something, so yes he carved the serpent and then it came to life

[@jonnyeatonboy]

Yah i liked it. Wrong interpretation of Isaiah 14 (thanks to the Latin) but otherwise it was a great study. For your information: Jesus says in Rev 22:16, "I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star." Is Satan, in Isaiah 14:12, also called the "morning star" or even the "son of dawn". Simply, in Hebrew, Isaiah 14:12 reads, “O how you fell from heaven, cry out (hallelu - הֵילֵ֣ל ) you son (ben - בֶּן) of darkness (shachar - שָׁ֑חַר ), you were hacked down to the earth, in which you did weaken the nations”. Isaiah 14:12 In Genesis 32:24, Shachar is part of a two word phase; breaking/עלה, the darkness/שָׁ֑חַר. This phrase “breaking of the darkness” became translated as a single word, "dawn". Which carried influence in the translation of Isaiah. Shachar means darkness but "dawn" is lazy Latin (thanks Vulgate) to English. This word Hallel/hallelu הילל was used approximately 50 times by King David (and yes the modern spelling differs a bit). It is certainly not calling Satan the morning Star or son of the dawn. Satan is being called the son of darkness. Otherwise I do like how beautiful the depths of God are. 🙂

[@robertcain3426]

I would like to disagree on two points. First this is not about Satan. It is written concerning the King of Babylon. It describes how God set him on his thrown - and gave him pre-eminence in the world, hence the reference to him being compared to the the brightest star in the heavens appearing before dawn which happens to be the morning star, Venus.

[@kinnerstreet]

"realm of the dead" I would posit that "the antithesis of life" would convey a better understanding. God is life/love, and all that is created. The opposite of this could be described as 'all that is dead' but connotatively the word 'dead' may be troublesome. In other words, instead of "life" vs "death", since our concept of dying references a passing away of our mortal containers, we might say "all that is life" vs "a total absence of any kind of life", or perhaps simply a void not containing either time, space, matter, or anything of God. :-)

[@wisdom1604]

114 coiled serpent uncoils in your back . by Bill Donahue on you tube . enjoy bless you.

[@LoftOfTheUniverse]

keep your pagan Gnosticism to yourself

[@wisdom1604]

+LoftOfTheUniverse religion doesn't exist! I am

[@wisdom1604]

+LoftOfTheUniverse hahahahahahahahahabahahah religion brainwash puppet

[@wisdom1604]

+LoftOfTheUniverse John 3:14 and as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness even so much the Son of man be lifted up!!!!! what do you think it was talking about

[@LoftOfTheUniverse]

+wisdom The staff Moses had. If you didn't dabble in witchcraft you never would have imposed that nonsense on that verse. It's your demons laughing well they won't be laughing after the Son of God deals with them.

[@nevig6557]

And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Simple scripture annihilates Heiser's word salad. No deep technical stories are necessary to know its the SAME entity from OT to NT.

[@lindseyharris194]

Whatever helps your mind understand

[@stevegold7307]

The serpent is NOT a fallen angel!!!. ... look at the curses!... 2 are literal, Adam and Eve ... and one is symbolic, the serpent.... Hebrew is a pictoral language in many instances.... the serpent being cursed is symbolic of something, and it's not another person, or animal, or fallen angel ....

[@nicechock]

False. It has to be since Kain was the serpents son.

[@Agitated_Hamster]

Ezekiel says he is, he calls out Satan as being a “Guardian cherubim of Eden”. Ezekiel also describes the other cherubim along God the Fathers throne.

[@NEMO-NEMO]

Ellen White speaks on this subject very clearly as a shinning entity.

[@robbracken1758]

EGW was a false teacher with failed prophecies who plagiarized others works.

[@bentheredonethat-lx6nh]

Simple, it's Satan.

[@lysdexic5205]

I'm thinking that the serpent in Genesis 3 is actually the other cherub. Cherubim were placed to guard the presence of God from man (Eden is where God and man dwelled together). The serpent in Gen 3 was cast to the earth (out of "heaven") then and there, but the adversary is not cast to earth until after Jesus has ascended. The Ark had 2 cherubim shielding the mercy seat, The place of God's presence has cherubim shielding it from man. The serpent in Gen 3 seduces man to be his own god. This is the same spirit as Babel and the "goddess" Ishtar/Inanna/Aphrodite while the false "god" of these same peoples seeks direct worship and the worship of the king/ruler as his presence on earth. "The Satan" comes before God to accuse Job the serpent from Gen 3 couldn't do that if it had been cast out. In Revelation 17 and 18 there is a woman (Babylon) riding a beast that was but is not. "She" is in control of this beast system, not the "dragon". Why? It is because when the beast "is again" it will ascend from the bottomless pit and it will destroy the woman riding it.

[@bentheredonethat-lx6nh]

@@lysdexic5205 Mankind has and is in Satan's little season. Revelation 20:7 }