Most Christians Get This WRONG About the Serpent

The serpent in the Garden of Eden is a topic that just about every Christian is familiar with, but you’d be surprised how many Christians get aspects of the serpent wrong. In this video, Bodie and Rob will look at questions like these and many more: Did the serpent have legs? Was the serpent Satan? Did the serpent undergo a physical change?
0:00 - Intro
0:14 - What was the serpent's original appearance?
2:26 - Did the serpent physically change forms after the curse?
3:54 - Did the serpent lose its legs or something else?
5:06 - Was the serpent a dinosaur?
5:38 - Did the serpent’s physical change happen immediately or over time?
6:21 - Did the change happen to just that serpent or to all serpents?
6:50 - Was the serpent Satan?
7:45 - Who was the seed or the offspring of the serpent?
8:27 - Shouldn't Eve have been shocked that the serpent spoke?
9:24 - Why would the serpent go after Eve?
11:42 - How does the Fall in the garden affect us today?
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[@loweeization]

I woke to a phone call this morning that my sister in laws ,sister passed in her sleep last night. She was in her 30's with 3 children. The saddest part of this I don't know if the gospel was ever shared with her. I only saw her a couple of times and I know I didn't. It shows me there is never a moment to waste. Please take on an urgency to share the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ to all you come across. Our time is short. Thank you guys, you did a great job.

[@peterthePiper777]

Not to worry No one stands before the Lord without ever having to say I didn't know and if it were true God would judge them fairly, the church has conditioned the christian to think their salvation is our job it is not, our job is to share the gospel but salavtion can come just like the theif on the cross, remember me when you enter into your kingdom Lord

[@markgupton1313]

@@truthgiver8286 You should keep your comments to yourself.

[@mikeman1866]

@@truthgiver8286 oh yeah? What do you believe in?

[@truthgiver8286]

@@markgupton1313 Lol this sounds great coming from someone who doesn't take their own advice.

[@truthgiver8286]

@@mikeman1866 isn't it obvious. The truth of course.

[@cue_khb]

“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.” - Revelation 12:9 (KJV) “And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,” - Revelation 20:2 (KJV)

[@chrismba777]

Exactly, I was going to post the same thing. There is certainly Biblical context for Satan (the Adversary) being described as "The Old Serpent". Why would that be if not from the Genesis account?

[@financeyourfreedom_info]

Thank you! Literally saying this in my thoughts

[@financeyourfreedom_info]

@@velkyn1 what Bible verse is that? Must be “I” segesis

[@cue_khb]

@@velkyn1 The only way to defeat evil is to deal with it, and to let it run its course, and run out of steam.

[@cc3775]

Trying to use a highly symbolic book and the last book of the Bible to prover something?

[@nancymarihart1835]

Always look forward to listening to you. God has gifted you with so much knowledge! Thank you for sharing your gifts with all of us.. So uplifting to hear wisdom and truth!

[@jdubb45]

This was absolutely incredible! So glad I found this.

[@shadowknightgladstay4856]

Serpent is representative of beings from a heavenly home. Christ was represented as a serpent with Moses when the people were being bitten by fiery serpents.

[@omegateamsports5291]

I had never considered Eve being surprised by the serpent speaking. The thought never crossed my mind…

[@Eric-fz4fp]

I think Christians have neglected to renew their minds. Still reading and trying to understand scripture through lense of atheist ,evolutionist indoctrination. Adam named the animals. Walked in garden communicating with God. Lived centuries! long. Adam and eve as well as Noah and his contemporaries we're "superhuman" in strength and intellect. Atheist , evolutionist want us to envision them as barely evolved cavemen while only their evil ancestors were gods like Zeus, Thor, Nimrod etc.

[@earlsinks]

@Ewok Crowe and the sad thing is .we are still living in that cruse.

[@chloemartel9927]

Surprised? Apparently not since she carried on a conversation with it.

[@robbiemckenzie7822]

I was always thought it was odd that Eve didn't freak out when the snake spoke even as a child. I've have always felt that animals back then could talk.... My biggest questions about the story was how much older was Adam than Eve? Did he find her annoying and where was he during all of this and what was he doing?

[@vincentc.mercandetti9917]

@@robbiemckenzie7822 Adam was swapping stories with the Fox up the street.

[@sgt.grinch3299]

I’m not sure if the serpent had legs in the garden, but modern serpents walk on two legs.

[@LOVE-JC777]

We have many “serpents“ walking on two legs

[@skooter2767k]

Most can be seen in Washington D.C.

[@childofgod7023]

A dinosaur is a reptile just as a snake and Many of them walked upright, from very Tiny ones to Great Big ones!

[@josieherrera9017]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@warrenpuckett4203]

I have encountered more than one civil serpent in my lifetime

[@lauracaskey2753]

Thank you for this video and for sharing the truth! God bless your ministry! 🙏

[@Bdady74]

Great bit of perspective thanks for posting!

[@rhondaadams4013]

I remember the day when I was reading about the curses first coming forth in the garden and when I read God told him, "upon thy belly shalt thou go," I first thought "Well, that don't sound too bad, for a curse!" The Holy Spirit then pointed out "that's the way he left." "Oh!" I thought. If he had to leave on his belly, then that's not the way in which he came on scene. He left on his belly, but he didn't come on his belly. What a revelation. He came with legs! And concerning the forbidden fruit on the forbidden tree, if you'll notice that God told Adam "Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed..." (Gen 1:29). When I reread the verse one day, the Holy Spirit pointed out that Adam was given "every herb bearing seed...and every tree...yielding seed." I then realized that all which had seed was given to him. If it had seeds to reproduce, he could have it, and eat it. Therefore, what was forbidden, the one in the middle of the garden, perhaps, had no seed for reproduction, and was made by God for certain purposes. It could have been seedless, unable to reproduce in that way, and therefore forbidden. That's just food for thought.

[@Gcheneymusic]

Those are well thought out ideas-and ones that I’d never considered!

[@briarfox637]

That may be reading into the text and doesn’t really matter in light of the fact that God said don’t eat it. It was the fact God said don’t. His sun was desiring to be like God in that he’d “know good and evil.” Satan deceived him in that he said he surely wouldn’t die. Adam didn’t know this was a spiritual death. All in all, it was the act of disobedience. Not so much what kind of fruit it was.

[@sterlingjohnson5147]

Your perspective is interesting. My thoughts were on the statement "...be like God, to know good and evil". The tree is known as the tree of the knowledge (of good and evil). What is the "fruit of knowledge"? CHOICE! Choice is the fruit. God gave man the opportunity to choose, but commanded us not to; only to follow God, don't choice. Or simply, only choose God. Eve made her choice, Adam made his choice. They then received the knowledge. Obey God= good, or disobey God=bad.

[@zerosteel0123]

I wonder if it was more about the disobedience than anything else. The simple fact that they decided to refuse to obey God.

[@ariels8322]

The sacrificial lamb was placed on an upright pomegranate stake. Pomegranates in carved form were on the old testament s priests garments between little bells. Pomegranate translated seedy apple. The inference is a pomegranate was what was eaten.

[@1987Arby]

I remember when the History and Discovery Channels both did an investigation into the snake. They put cameras into some snake eggs and it turned out that baby snakes do have legs while in development, and when they hatch they come out legless. There has been a subsequent documentary about this same subject, but I don't know what became of it.

[@robertvann7349]

Dude. White man speaks with FORKED TONGUES. Satan possesses a snake like devils in the pigs. A snake is perfect. Dinos dont have FORKED TONGUES.❤👍😎

[@1987Arby]

@@robertvann7349 Why are you being racist by calling the white man the Devil on a Christian KZbin channel?

[@jacksonrelaxin3425]

@@robertvann7349 shut up loser

[@gr3490]

@@robertvann7349 NO ONE that is alive today has EVER SEEN a Dinosaur so WHO EXACTLY determined what a Dinosaur had or didn't have? GOD AND THE BIBLE DON'T LIE.. MEN DO.

[@samphonnetgamgee5625]

They do have leg appendages.

[@wisevirginsmedia]

The serpent was a beast of the field. It was not crawling on its belly as a beast. Then sin entered and the curse put on the serpent made it crawl on its belly. There is the description. The serpent didn't crawl on its belly until it was cursed so it had to be a walking beast.

[@ghosterdude]

yes but are there any genes for a language center?

[@daleknight8971]

Thank you, very good teaching brothers! ❤🙏💯

[@jamesfriend481]

The garden of Eden is beyond our imagination, the spirit realm and the physical realm combined, it was a place where God walked in the cool of the day.

[@rockhopper01]

@carly “some say” does not equal “the Bible says.”

[@rajacdragisic2297]

@carly Not nations...tribes(12 tribes of Israel).

[@benclark4823]

So why does Bible talk about the 4 rivers {pishon} {gihon} {hiddekel} (Tigris) and {phirat} (Euphrates) and 2 of them well know??? and also the “good” gold of “havilah” if eden is this so called “spiritual” realm

[@AtreyuKhalil]

@@benclark4823those places existed but God walked on the earth. The Garden was a timeless place until sin happened. Revelation 21:1-3 shows God coming down bringing Heaven with Him, merging the physical with the spiritual, just like it was in the Garden before the Fall of Man. “21 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. 2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.”

[@benclark4823]

@@AtreyuKhalil this so called “sin” just sounds a EXCUSE for YOU Christians to say why “magic” doesn’t exist anymore are you REALLY going to believe your so called “magical” garden doesn’t exist anymore because a “mud” man and his “rib” wife ate a forbidden ”magical” fruit from a “talking” serpent 🍎🐍🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️ ALSO you don’t explain WHY the {hiddekel} (Tigris) and {phirat} (Euphrates) and the “good” gold aren’t ALSO “spiritual” MORON 😩

[@glenmallory6181]

I have heard more often speculation about the other feature that dragons possess. Could the serpent have had wings? It would have been a more drastic change in the curse to go from flying to crawling on the ground. But there remain snakes that "fly" from high in a tree to lower in another tree today by flattening their bodies in the air. But, unfortunately, speculation about a physical change in the form of serpents too often distracts from the glory of the Gospel promise put forth in Genesis 3.

[@paulsimpson3113]

I've always thought it was winged but listening to them say "beasts of the field" maybe I'm wrong

[@robertvann7349]

Probably a snake. Why? White man speaks with FORKED TONGUE IE. LIARS. SATAN THE FATHER OF FORKED TONGUED DEVIL CHILDREN. ❤👍😎

[@robertvann7349]

@@paulsimpson3113 Snakes have FORKED TONGUES like all LIARS.

[@joshuaamitai]

@@robertvann7349 thanks to the snake Adm and eve where saved from this despicable half gd of the old testament

[@chachadodds5860]

Excellent point, and nd eloquently put! I tend to agree.

[@dmdartfx13]

Yes, I came across your article and interesting point. I took it upon myself to start to read the Bible from the beginning in Genesis. It is not only the foundation of Christianity, it is in fact the foundation of why we exist today, how everything came to be . I am very amazed by understanding Genesis more clearly now than I have in the past. I see what I read like a movie in my head, although it is hard to try & figure out what Lord God truly made as the serpent. We all picture a lizard that turned into a snake, I kind of had the idea that it wasn’t like that at all. Something else, serpent could have very well been like a dinosaur that ate grass . & walked on legs, until after that moment when Adam and Eve ate the fruit from that one & only tree in the garden that was forbidden to eat the fruit from. Then Sin was brought into our world from that moment on. Now the serpent is cast down from walking on legs to crawling on its belly , could be like an alligator like creature. Is what I got out of it all, when I read Genesis. Either way, it is hard for us to even think what our Lord God made happen to the serpent, or what kind of serpent it was in the first place. The main thing to know is that all the answers are in the Bible. Thank you & God Bless you both for this article & spreading the Word.

[@ValkieezUkelele]

Or a dragon maybe...

[@1moderntalking1]

Amazing video - great work.

[@motorTranz]

Fascinating discussion! Thank you AIG!

[@LindseyMinakerMusic]

Thank you guys for your ministry and always pointing your audience back to the Gospel! Because the Gospel changes everything!

[@joshuaamitai]

gospel ??? a gd who says he is the jealous gd and there is no other beside him ? who gives laws to respect life and a few pages later destroys a whole city animals included ?? you should be ashamed of believing the crap they feed you !

[@joeldemings7064]

Thank you for your explanation regarding die and die die that was helpful. Has anyone reading the comments ever listened to Michael S Heiser explanation of “What happened in the Garden?” I thought his explanation was plausible

[@lauralowery9303]

Great video! Great speakers too!

[@lizblizz7741]

The Chinese dragon makes and interesting prospect for what the serpent originally looked like. Additionally, the fact that it is a mythological creature seems to perhaps support this idea. Perhaps it's not a myth but rather a memory?

[@chrismba777]

Considering man hadn't discovered fossilized remains of dinosaurs until just a few hundred years ago, yet symbolism of dragons has existed for millennia (both in and out of the Bible), yes, it was a memory - or even perhaps an eye witness account of dinosaurs living long after the Flood, but eventually dying out due to climate and atmospheric changes.

[@nickshively1192]

Amen. I’ve always thought that the beast system would come out of China due to them symbolizing a dragon.

[@noseal543]

@@nickshively1192 Satan is an angel, and angels look like men (Genesis 18, Joshua 5:13-14; Mark 16:5, Matthew 28:2). - It's just poetic language being used of Satan, he's not a literal snake, just as the Lord Christ Jesus is not a literal lamb, or lion, or branch etc. - REVELATION 20:2 "And he laid hold on the dragon, that old SERPENT, which is the Devil, and SATAN, and bound him a thousand years," the fallen angel who is Satan/that old "serpent" was in the garden - Ezekiel 28:13, 14 "You were in Eden, the garden of God;... 14“You were the anointed cherub who covers;..." - GENESIS 3:14 "And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:" The being cursed to be on his belly seems to be a sign of degradation, that he will never be anything more than low, someone who is low, crawls on top of the dust and eats it, but it's not literal cause Satan/"the serpent" continued to walk upright after he was in the Garden - JOB 2:2 "And the LORD said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from WALKING up and down in it." The crawling on, and eating of "dust" could also represent that he is above men and has power over them and consumes them (men's flesh being made of dust). - Psalm 103:14 "For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust." - 1 PETER 5:8 "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:" (devouring men = eating dust) But if a man follows the Lord Christ Jesus then they (through Christ) can be above Satan and he cannot consume them as dust. Satan is above men, but Christ is above Satan, so if a man will join to Christ then Christ will take that man out from underneath the power of Satan/"the serpent" and place that man above with Him. - LUKE 10:19 "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you." Satan is under Jesus so he could only touch Christ's heal (I think this is that Satan could only kill Christ is the flesh), but Christ is above Satan and crushed his head (by taking Satan's power over men away by freeing them from spiritual death (if they join to Him and eventually destroying Satan for good in hell). - GENESIS 3:15 "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” - HEBREWS 2:14 "Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;" - EZEKIEL 28:18-19 "...therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. 19All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, AND NEVER SHALT THOU BE ANY MORE." - MATTHEW 10:28 "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." (Also I'm pretty sure that the seed of the serpent are the actual physical children of Satan through his son Cain (the Kenites) - John 8:44, Matthew 23:33, 1 Chronicles 2:55, Revelation 2:9, and 3:9 etc.)

[@noseal543]

@@chrismba777 Satan is an angel, and angels look like men (Genesis 18, Joshua 5:13-14; Mark 16:5, Matthew 28:2). - It's just poetic language being used of Satan, he's not a literal snake, just as the Lord Christ Jesus is not a literal lamb, or lion, or branch etc. - REVELATION 20:2 "And he laid hold on the dragon, that old SERPENT, which is the Devil, and SATAN, and bound him a thousand years," the fallen angel who is Satan/that old "serpent" was in the garden - Ezekiel 28:13, 14 "You were in Eden, the garden of God;... 14“You were the anointed cherub who covers;..." - GENESIS 3:14 "And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:" The being cursed to be on his belly seems to be a sign of degradation, that he will never be anything more than low, someone who is low, crawls on top of the dust and eats it, but it's not literal cause Satan/"the serpent" continued to walk upright after he was in the Garden - JOB 2:2 "And the LORD said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from WALKING up and down in it." The crawling on, and eating of "dust" could also represent that he is above men and has power over them and consumes them (men's flesh being made of dust). - Psalm 103:14 "For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust." - 1 PETER 5:8 "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:" (devouring men = eating dust) But if a man follows the Lord Christ Jesus then they (through Christ) can be above Satan and he cannot consume them as dust. Satan is above men, but Christ is above Satan, so if a man will join to Christ then Christ will take that man out from underneath the power of Satan/"the serpent" and place that man above with Him. - LUKE 10:19 "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you." Satan is under Jesus so he could only touch Christ's heal (I think this is that Satan could only kill Christ is the flesh), but Christ is above Satan and crushed his head (by taking Satan's power over men away by freeing them from spiritual death (if they join to Him and eventually destroying Satan for good in hell). - GENESIS 3:15 "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” - HEBREWS 2:14 "Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;" - EZEKIEL 28:18-19 "...therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. 19All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, AND NEVER SHALT THOU BE ANY MORE." - MATTHEW 10:28 "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." (Also I'm pretty sure that the seed of the serpent are the actual physical children of Satan through his son Cain (the Kenites) - John 8:44, Matthew 23:33, 1 Chronicles 2:55, Revelation 2:9, and 3:9 etc.)

[@noseal543]

Satan is an angel, and angels look like men (Genesis 18, Joshua 5:13-14; Mark 16:5, Matthew 28:2). - It's just poetic language being used of Satan, he's not a literal snake, just as the Lord Christ Jesus is not a literal lamb, or lion, or branch etc. - REVELATION 20:2 "And he laid hold on the dragon, that old SERPENT, which is the Devil, and SATAN, and bound him a thousand years," the fallen angel who is Satan/that old "serpent" was in the garden - Ezekiel 28:13, 14 "You were in Eden, the garden of God;... 14“You were the anointed cherub who covers;..." - GENESIS 3:14 "And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:" The being cursed to be on his belly seems to be a sign of degradation, that he will never be anything more than low, someone who is low, crawls on top of the dust and eats it, but it's not literal cause Satan/"the serpent" continued to walk upright after he was in the Garden - JOB 2:2 "And the LORD said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from WALKING up and down in it." The crawling on, and eating of "dust" could also represent that he is above men and has power over them and consumes them (men's flesh being made of dust). - Psalm 103:14 "For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust." - 1 PETER 5:8 "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:" (devouring men = eating dust) But if a man follows the Lord Christ Jesus then they (through Christ) can be above Satan and he cannot consume them as dust. Satan is above men, but Christ is above Satan, so if a man will join to Christ then Christ will take that man out from underneath the power of Satan/"the serpent" and place that man above with Him. - LUKE 10:19 "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you." Satan is under Jesus so he could only touch Christ's heal (I think this is that Satan could only kill Christ is the flesh), but Christ is above Satan and crushed his head (by taking Satan's power over men away by freeing them from spiritual death (if they join to Him and eventually destroying Satan for good in hell). - GENESIS 3:15 "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” - HEBREWS 2:14 "Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;" - EZEKIEL 28:18-19 "...therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. 19All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, AND NEVER SHALT THOU BE ANY MORE." - MATTHEW 10:28 "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." (Also I'm pretty sure that the seed of the serpent are the actual physical children of Satan through his son Cain (the Kenites) - John 8:44, Matthew 23:33, 1 Chronicles 2:55, Revelation 2:9, and 3:9 etc.)

[@larryfrederick6871]

Love your program. Very educational!

[@toni2503]

God bless your ministry! These videos are wonderful, I love the way you address the viewers.

[@ladillalegos]

Great conversation

[@Brandaniron]

The die die part was something I never heard before. Explains why they didn’t die immediately and why death and decay are in the world. Very interesting.

[@fredadockrell1862]

When you unplug an electric fan, it slowly comes to a stop. When Adam and Eve unplugged themselves from God, so to speak, they slowly died.

[@louiefriesen]

@@fredadockrell1862 That's a very interesting analogy

[@heyalun]

I just always looked at it as God being able to execute judgment whenever he pleases to suit his purpose. It’s like him using pharaoh to make his name known. Judgment was rendered that day and they began the decline into death, but they hadn’t had children, so he used them to carry out his purpose to populate earth. If they had reproduced, they probably would have died on the spot. I don’t know. That’s just my take.

[@heyalun]

But it’s definitely interesting and I want to look into it

[@booboos223]

Just a quick question. If there was no death before sin, it means that it did not exist. So how can you say/threaten someone with something that does not exist?

[@rodneyclements6190]

If you are worried about what the serpent looked like and creating images of it, you have missed everything important happening in Genesis.

[@christiantompkins6423]

Or you haven’t and you just want to consider that aspect as well…

[@cc3775]

Eve spoke with the serpent. What serpent? The Hebrew word is חשׁ, nachash, and it is pronounced 'naw-khawsh' H5175 in Strong’s Concordance. In the Old Testament, this word is rendered as “serpent” by the translators who compiled the King James Version. Strong’s defines “חשׁ⁠” as “snake”. Nachash is the noun form of a primitive root meaning properly to hiss, that is, whisper a (magic) spell; generally to foretell the future. You can see how they associated these mystical ideas with snakes, but snake alone doesn’t convey these ideas to the reader. Rather than serpent, “hisser” or “whisperer” would better give the sense of “nachash”. In the Old Testament “nachash” describes: Eve, the tribe of Dan, snakes 8 times, Moses’ rod 2 times, the serpent of brass 2 times, invaders 5 times, evil people twice, a constellation of heaven, too much wine and the Nations. “nachash”, in Genesis 49, refers to an attribute of the tribe of Dan: Gen 49:17 “Dan shall be a SERPENT by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall backward.” In this instance, the serpent is clearly NOT LITERAL. Take away the tribe, and the serpent is gone, because it only describes an attitude of the tribe and has no separate independent existence. Gen 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. I believe that Eve’s seed mentioned in Genesis 3v15 refers ultimately to our Lord Jesus Christ. If the Lord is the “woman’s seed”, then surely God is not saying that serpent would literally bite the Lord, nor would the Lord literally stomp on that serpent The serpent must then be figurative or a symbol of something else, and so it cannot be a literal animal. Now that we are aware of this original Hebrew word, we can understand that the nachash in Eden is something other than a snake. Supporting this is the fact that everything created was seen by God to be “very good”.(Genesis 1v31) God would not punish a serpent that was not under any law. If it was under a law, sin came into the world by a snake and not by man. God would not bring retribution on an animal for doing what it was created to do. It follows then, that the alternative view of the Genesis 3 “serpent” is that it provides animation to those thoughts of Eve which produced Sin. Importantly, this conclusion maintains God’s Righteousness. This understanding of Eve does not allow the error that God provided His agent to tempt Adam and Eve.

[@HeatherHogue73]

@@cc3775 Oh my gosh, that’s so deep! Thanks for sharing! I highly recommend you repost that to the top level of comments. You inspired me to look into that some more. 😊

[@cc3775]

@@HeatherHogue73 of course KZbin deleted my response to you linking some videos to watch. I use to believe in a literal Satan and all these things as well. Now I have a better understanding without having to believe that Gods heavenly messengers sin and there is division and strife in heaven. Otherwise why would we pray for Gods will to be done on earth as it is in heaven? Hebrews 1:14 says all angels are ministering spirits to those who inherit salvation. The way I understand it is the serpent is temptation, the seed of the serpent is sin and death. If we understand personification in scripture it’s not hard to see. If you want to know more I suggest joining a Christadelphian Facebook group, there’s also one called The devil, Satan and demons in the Bible parables or reality.

[@linebylinebiblestudies4125]

100%

[@johnnymontalvo5620]

I wonder if there is another option. One interpretation of the Seraph is a winged snake or winged serpent. Perhaps the serpent was a seraph; a winded creature.

[@ABC-po6be]

I agree, and according to the Bible, angels can also change their physical form.

[@e.m.8094]

This is my belief. Michael Heiser and Tim Mackie teach this too.

[@4himministries541]

I am certainly no expert in the field, but in my small study of this specific topic, I came across something interesting that I thought I might share here. When we look at the primitive root meaning of the word "nãhaš" which is the word used for serpent, we find this The strongs dictionary says: Root Word (Etymology): A primitive root TWOT Reference: 1348 Outline of Biblical Usage: to practice divination, divine, observe signs, learn by experience, diligently observe, practice fortunetelling, take as an omen (Piel) to practice divination to observe the signs or omens So, there might be a whole lot more to the serpent than what we know. Thanks for the amazing work guys! Keep fighting the good fight. Shalom

[@walter1383]

The Greek word that our modern 'dragon' comes from also has a very similar root, albeit coming from a completely different language family than semitic languages. Meaning 'to watch/see/observe'. The current etymological theory behind this having to do with the fact that snakes do not blink, but I find it fascinating that the same two completely unrelated lingual groups have the same association in meaning for the same creature and see it as reinforcement to the confusing of tongues at Babel.

[@mosessubba]

Great content 👍🏻 we appreciate your efforts. God bless

[@matttdb]

Wow great video! The editing style is engaging and I retain the information better this way. Awesome work!

[@KelvinCain]

I'm always amazed at how so many of us reason with natural thinking and almost never include or blatantly exclude the supernatural power & nature of God. The debates are folly because they are wrapped in logic & the leaning on of man's limited, proud, minuscule understanding. Natural thinking has no means of understanding the supernatural but by faith. Question: Which is more amazing, the creation of existence or causing an animal to go from a upright creature to a slithering reptile? I'm learning to forsake entertaining natural thinking when it comes to supernatural subjects. Love your ministry, gentlemen. God bless!!

[@mildlyextreme]

Great video again, AiG. One question that occurred to me though is: isn't "(blank)ing you shall (blank)" a common Hebrew construction used throughout the Old Testament with the meaning of "you shall surely (blank)" as opposed to what Bodie says around 11:00 where he instead says it has the ingressive meaning of "you shall begin to (blank)"?

[@demontejohnson4102]

I think the serpent looked more like a dragon, reasoning comes from revelation where they call the devil that.

[@isaackauffman5478]

Interesting!!

[@cylixdemas]

This is correct, the serpent possibly had legs and wings... A description of a cherub (2 set of wings). A Leviathan/Dragon stripped of legs and wings, would crawl on the ground as a serpent.

[@gracekelehar4014]

I can imagine he wanted to take a creation if God's and twist it so much that it would be associated with him. Remember though, Satan can't create anything...which means dragons were made by God.

[@siervodedios5952]

​@@gracekelehar4014 Satan can't create anything original, he can only corrupt what was once good and pure.

[@theholyark4443]

Also, the dragon is considered a mighty beast of the field. The greatest of all beasts. Of course Satan would possess it for himself.

[@Mary_Kraensel]

Whenever questions like this arise, MY first inclination is if it's a salvific issue: Go to Scripture - does it tell us? How does it matter? What bearing does it have on salvation? Priorities, people...

[@yolandesolomons7611]

Well said. What bearing does it have on the message of salvation whether the serpent had legs or not. Surely that is not the focus of the event described in Gen 3.

[@verum-in-omnibus1035]

As Protestants, none of you can authoritatively answer any of these questions anyway. Sacred Scripture is not self interpreting, which is why Saint Paul said, the “pillar and foundation of all truth“ is the Church, not a book that the Catholic Church put together. As holy and wonderful, as it may be, a book cannot interpret itself.

[@Thehuskarl]

Of course it's not a salvific issue. But if you were building and ark encounter type of exhibit to educate young people, and encourage people toward Christ, wouldn't that question come up? And would it be worth digging into a little bit? It did come up for them therefore they have put some thought into it.

[@222ableVelo]

I think it's a very important issue for our times. Because Genesis has been under "assault" so-to-speak by so-called "scientific" theories like evolution. This is very important for younger people being taught evolution in schools. Instead of God's word. It has to do with whether or not people will trust the Bible. If you don't trust the rest of scripture, how can you trust the most important aspects of it?

[@theeternalsbeliever1779]

I would argue that calling God liar is in fact, a salvation issue. That's the most dangerous thing anybody can do after blaspheming Him.

[@germanwulf40]

You guys really do know your theology. One of the Pastors of my church, for the last few years, has been in and out of a verse-by-verse study of the book of Genesis, and I hear you guys echoing a lot of what was taught at my own church. As far as the main discussion of this video regarding the serpent goes, I'm not sure it really matters at the end of the day. Sure, it's an interesting debate, but I think we can all agree that it will have zero bearing on our salvation in regards to what we believe about the serpents physical appearance before the deception of Eve. Btw, this is my first Answers in Genesis video.

[@lisanicholls2706]

Thank you both

[@LA6507a]

This is an awesome discussion, gentlemen! Thank you for sharing this!!! Be blessed!

[@savedbyjesus2145]

This presentation was good, both in content and style!!! Good job!!

[@robertvann7349]

Snake no doubt. Satan possesses pigs. Snake humans speak with FORKED TONGUES IE. LIARS.❤😍👍😎

[@tomjackson1661]

Really? Like how? It was actually garbage. These two do not understand the Bible at all. Of course most don’t.

[@zionasohun3994]

Thank you for this educational channel. I like watching it. Please tell me if there's a way to contact you guys less publicly than a public comment like this. Thank you.

[@kingofbudokai]

"More crafty than any OTHER beast of the field". Other is the key word. This is a way of knowing for certain that the serpent used to have limbs. Every animal that qualifies as a 'beast of the field' has four limbs. Every single one. Rhinos, cattle, giraffes, kangaroos, armadillos, bears, wolves, you name it. The animal categories are all physiological in nature. If the serpent is also listed among 'beasts of the field', it must also have 4 limbs.

[@SeanBeatsMapson]

Dragon/dinosaurs

[@SeanBeatsMapson]

Think about it, snakes are seen as the serpent. But think, on your belly you shall go. On your belly/ eat dust this symbolises death, end, extinction.

[@AtreyuKhalil]

@@SeanBeatsMapsonThe Serpent was Satan. That verse just says he was “more crafty and subtle than any of the other animals God made” it doesn’t say the Serpent was a beast. Being called the Serpent is just describing Satans character

[@SeanBeatsMapson]

@@AtreyuKhalil Satan is just anyone who is against God from my knowledge. The serpent is more than likely lucifer, or a follower of lucifer.

[@dondgc2298]

“Other” is not in the Hebrew and aside from the ESV I don’t believe it’s in most modern translations.

[@blank-964]

that part about the die and die die was really interesting

[@elliechewny6924]

Such a great video! Thank you!

[@jennifermichener4273]

I've been looking for this answer, and every answer I got was "God was speaking metaphorically, not literally". Although there r a lot of metaphors in the Bible, I actually take this literally. And I'm very glad u brought up the "thorns & thistles" and the "pains in child birth", and Adam "working the fields for his food" bc all of that was LITERAL SPEAKING. Why would everything else be literal speaking, but the ONE THAT STARTED IT ALL, would be metaphorical? It doesn't make sense. And I actually CAN visualize thorns and thistles growing AS GOD SPEAKS IT !!! BC that's what happens. GOD JUST SPEAKS IT, AND IT HAPPENS, INSTANTLY !!!!! I know that nobody actually knows, bc we weren't there, but according to other scripture, we can speculate. Thank u, very much for taking this literally, bc I truly do believe it was literal. Great Great video, btw. I def subscribed. ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[@Glaciershark]

Good. Thank you gentlemen.

[@Lemonadefromlemons]

Never knew that about "die die" in Hebrew! Thanks for all the great info!

[@jonathanclouse1344]

I used to believe it was a literal snake that tempted Eve, but I came across an interesting video from the KZbin channel InspiringPhilosophy in which they note that the root Hebrew word used in Genesis can mean snake, diviner, or shining one depending on what vowels were supplied. Also, in speaking of the Seraphim, that the word Seraph is also a word for snake. Thus it isn't a literal snake, but a winged, serpentine, angelic being. That the curse refers not so much to losing literal legs, but being cast down in a humbling position before God and crawling away, and eating dust is linked to Sheol being a house of dust. Like this rebellious Seraphim will be cast out of the presence of God to the lowest parts of the cosmos. Finally, the creator posits that Eve was well aware of these divine angelic beings surrounding God's throne, and was perfectly fine having a casual conversation...not being aware of malicious intent until it was too late.

[@justaguy4167]

You sir hit it on nail.

[@sublime1061]

Careful, Satan as taught in Ezekiel, was of the order of Cherubim and not Seraphim. He was the cherub of the covering. That was his annointing.

[@Gracenglory5]

Exactly. Ha satan is not the same as Nachash. Dr. Heiser’s The Unseen Realm explains the difference well. For any who care to dig into the topic, his book is peer-reviewed scholarship, not mere speculation.

[@BoaConstrictor126]

Good to know. As a reptile keeper the Genesis story sadly is a stumbling block that prevents many of my co workers form converting to Christianity

[@donnacarr9660]

So Eve trusting gods creation is what doomed us then if she was tricked sounds like she was set up

[@dellagilchrist7647]

I'm sorry for your loss, and for the loss of the opportunity to participate with the Lord in sharing His good news with her. However, God is the One who knocks on the door of our heart, and it is His ultimate work to do that. We miss out on the blessing by not joining Him, but I think your relative heard the gospel and had the opportunity to respond to Him. I hope you see her again, the Lord knows.

[@JJJJspam]

I had a vision. With a man on a throne in a giant room with four fifty foot golden arches entering the room. . He had a cane made of acacia. Halfway down the cane was a golden snake wrapped around the cane going toward the bottom. It's head was positioned under the bottom of the cane so when the cane was struck on the ground, the serpents head was smashed. I got scared and opened my eyes. I was back in my room until I heard a very loud very profound voice say, "From who do you hide? Am I not the arbiter? Do I not see all?" Suddenly I was immediately back in the room in front of the throne. He told me some very critical things about my life and my future, smashed the serpents head into the ground which caused me to fly backwards through the gate, into blackness, away from the light where I slammed back into my body. I landed in my body so hard it knocked the wind out of me and my ears were ringing. I'm convinced I had consumed "the fruit". It was so profound. I'll never stop repenting for that. We all bear the fruit because of the choice and and Eve made.

[@charlesdavis3923]

God bless you all for spreading the gospel

[@robertvann7349]

Dinos don't have FORKED TONGUES, snakes do. Liars have FORKED TONGUES. Simple.

[@meghoughton562]

It looks like you're making an effort to reach the younger generations in your stylistic approach here and I applaud that! 👏👏👏

[@robertvann7349]

White man speaks with FORKED TONGUE. PROBABLY A SNAKE FOR SURE. DINOS DON'T HAVE FORKED TONGUES INDICATIVE OF A LIAR LIKE SATAN THE FATHER OF FORKED TONGUED DEVIL CHILDREN. SIMPLE.❤😍👍😎

[@mexvantil7523]

Agree wholeheartedly. Thank you.

[@MyRoBeRtBaKeR]

Thorns and thistles came about as a means of the death side of the world and life. Before the fall, I believe, the world was full of green pastures and I would also imagine the waters became roaring after the fall as well since He will lay us by still waters and the Garden was very good!

[@warren286]

Serpent can also be translated as dragon. "To crawl on its belly" I believe is a parallel for satan's fall.

[@therant3837]

I wanted to write on my own but I figured... what the hey... let's write a random dude and see what happens...... So..... you ready??? The Serpent in the Garden of Eden is a Seraph, or Seraphim in it's plural form. Seraphim are 6 winged fiery serpents with arms and legs. Whoa.... what? Dude how do I know that? Was it Isaiah.... ??? Yeah... let's go with that. Isaiah ran into a Seraph/Seraphim. Well.... it picked up tongs to grab a coal.... boom! Arms and hands! It walked over to Isaiah... boom! Legs and feet. Also any Hebrew scholar will attest to the six winged fiery serpent that is the Seraphim. Okay.... so how do I know that The Satan is a Seraph? Gosh darn it how do I know The Satan was the serpent? Dude..... Revelation calls The Satan "the serpent of old." Oh boy here we go!!! God said to the serpent..... "On your belly you will go and eat the dust of the earth." Booyah! God removed The Satan's arms, legs, and wings. Yeaaayah! Oh wait there's more!!!! Check this one out!!! No one EVER catches this..... God said to the serpent.... "I will put enmity between YOUR SEED and the woman's seed." You know what that means? The Satan can reproduce, i.e. have children..... children that are obviously other snakes. Oh boy here we go!!! Kinda makes sense with the whole Sons of God (Angels) coming down and having sex with the ladies creating The Nephilim thereby inciting God to flood the whole earth thingy. Am I done now? I think I am..... Oh wait.... finality!!! There's nowhere in scripture that says that The Satan was the most beautiful angel or that The Satan is a Cherub/Cherubim, and there's nowhere in scripture that states that The Satan was the chief musician either. However (there's always a however).... The Seraphim are singers that fly around The Throne of God singing "Holy Holy Holy" like in Revelation, and Cherubim are warriors and guardians like we see in The Garden of Eden with the fiery sword. This is how The Satan is so charming.... music/singing/songs are meant to entice people, right? Who better than that crap sucker The Devil to sing a sinful tune to get people to do what he wants? Okay I'm done now. Reeses Peaces, ya'll. Oh yeah.... Booyah!

[@YAHWEH-SAVES777]

@@therant3837 I would have taken you more serious if you were more serious In Your writing

[@therant3837]

@@YAHWEH-SAVES777 I'm Bipolar. Forgive me. I can be.... weird sometimes, but my psychotic obsession with The Bible and God remains unchanging. While many people see that as a bad thing I call it good. There's nothing more awesome than finally having the source of all life and knowledge at our fingertips and tips of the mind and heart. I apologize. I get worked up from time to time.

[@cc3775]

Satans fall? This is no where in scripture. Gods heavenly messengers do not sin. There is or never was division and strife in heaven. Why would we pray for god will to be done on earth as it is in heaven if this was the case?

[@therant3837]

@@cc3775 Then dude.... Why was Michael in opposition to The Satan about Moses's body after he died? Why did Satan tempt Jesus? Why did The Satan challenge God about Job? And it IS written of The Satan (Adversary) will be going to Hell in The Revelation of Jesus Christ, and that Hell was reserved for Satan, his Angels (the ones who joined him) and all those outside of Christ. To be honest I highly doubt there was a "war" in Heaven. However there is certainly a war down here. The Devil has been with me for quite some time. I've railed myself in the head, bashed it off of walls, and even tried to kill myself twice. Dude all it takes is a couple of syllables from The Devil to accomplish my madness. He's nothing to mess with. Yet much like Job God is still in control of the situation. This is why I became obsessed with The Devil, who he is, and why God allows him to attack us in the first place. The last one I still don't know.... yet. And as for God's will done on earth as it is in Heaven it's obvious isn't it? God's will is barely done down here due to the sin of mankind, and yet God's will is still accomplished. It's not much of an answer but it's the best I can personally think of.

[@IrishGigs]

It seems more probable to me that this was not the first time the serpent had spoken with her. My thoughts are that he couldn’t have deceived her into in just one singular conversation. This was in ongoing issue and could explain why she wasn’t surprised that the serpent was speaking to her.

[@dannys6976]

It could be that all the animals talked in the garden of Eden. But then lost that ability once the curse happened

[@Bibleguy89-uu3nr]

@@dannys6976 Sounds like an acid trip.

[@hackman669]

What about telepathic or some other method of communication? So people today appear to have an uncandid way of communicating with animals 🤔

[@IrishGigs]

@@hackman669 Absolutely. I think animals may be able to see more clearly a persons “spirit” or “light” so to speak. And I personally believe the demonic can also communicate telepathically. This would be why the Bible relates to us that a sheep knows the voice of his shepherd, master.

[@briantroyer5404]

@@hackman669I think it actually talked the demonic can influence and take the form of animals and probably spoke through it

[@forlatagate1]

The babylonian sirrush dragon is probably the best version of what the serpent looked like, with its variations of course.

[@hackman669]

That thing looked almost dog like. Weird

[@jennifermichener4273]

I just looked that up, and it's actually not a bad depiction at all. I think u might be on to something. I can see the original serpent looking similar to that. Then take it's legs away. ❤❤❤

[@forlatagate1]

@@jennifermichener4273 the babylonian sirrush is a theropod aka the t-rex type dinosaur , these are the only serpent created, when you look at theropods, their front legs are shrinking, eventually becoming snakes

[@jennifermichener4273]

@@forlatagate1 interesting

[@leechjim8023]

The bone and muscle structure on snakes and the way they move is VERY ingeneous and complicated!😀

[@ooshta]

This was great. Thanks you guys. May God our heavenly father continue to bless you, your families & your ministry. In Jesus (Yeshua's) Amen!🙏

[@ricknofzinger]

"Satan, that old serpent of old" Revelation.

[@VM-wv7fd]

Revelation 12:9,20:2.

[@cc3775]

Temptation is the adversary, serpent is personification of that temptation.

[@manofthekingdom]

I believe also that the serpent went to Eve because he had already had an encounter with Adam. Remember that Adam was the one to name him. Which offers another question - Could the serpent speak prior to meeting Eve? If he couldn’t then Adam would’ve red-flagged this right away compared to his initial interaction with the Serpent. Amazing depth to God’s word! All-in-all, Genesis stands as my absolute favorite book to study!

[@AtreyuKhalil]

The “Serpent” was Satan not a real snake. Satan is an Angel, Angels appear like men. The serpent is just a title for Satan because of Satans character, a slithering plotting cunning serpent.

[@manofthekingdom]

@@AtreyuKhalil The “spirit” of Satan had overcome an ACTUAL serpent. The Bible even describes the animal as “more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.” It tells us the serpent was a creation of God (and all His creations are good). Yet, in being used for deception against Creation, it was also given a special punishment by God to crawl on its belly. Why punish the animal if it wasn’t a part of the deception at all?

[@phantomsylla4617]

Buddy the Bible says word for word why… woman are the weaker vessel. And woman aren’t created in Gods imagine. That’s why the serpent went for eve. Bc he couldn’t change Adam.

[@leslieladyhawke]

I loved this! More plz

[@notmyrealname2592]

Love this!

[@itzcaseykc]

Some believe that the serpent was capable of flying. Even the Chinese have images of flying serpents and with arms/legs, just as dragons are depicted as possess both legs and wings. I don't think the serpent crawled on its belly *until after* the holy pair sinned. It's said that there is a snake today that have short vestigial leg-like appendages. Either way, despite it being an interesting topic, it's not a salvational issue which many ought not fret over.

[@forlatagate1]

Like some people, I've been questioning the snake with legs. When you look at the evidence, a snake only shows that it had rear legs, we see this on constrictor snakes, so it walked on two legs, by the fact that snakes eat a huge meal shows it was a big upright creature, more than likely a trex veliciraptor type creature and its variations,if not it was a trex. But looked nothing like a snake today as God changed it.

[@annelarrybrunelle3570]

One point about snakes. They seem to be engineered astonishingly well for going about on the belly. Note "the way of a serpent upon a rock" mention in Proverbs 30. Videos of large species show clearly the "walking" motion upon the ribs, which I believe they can all do. A number of species have the sidewinding motion. Many can climb trees; some seem to manage a vertical wall. I read the mamba can attain 12 MPH; a man in good shape can run, but not walk, faster. A number of species are expert swimmers. Despite the absence of limbs, they are highly capable predators. A venomous species could in some cases be 1/100th of your mass and still kill you. A constrictor could possibly do so at less than a quarter of your mass if, say, wrapped around your neck. All of them can eat things that appear to us too large to engulf. Some can, and do, strike with G forces far above accelerations we can survive, and they can do this repeatedly with no harm to themselves. They hardly excel in intelligence, but have all the instinctual skill they need to survive handsomely. Skeletons of some species exhibit what appear to be vestigal hips - but a key point is that they don't need them. Whether or not they had limbs of any sort in the beginning, it seems quite evident that they are designed to do quite well without them, even spectacularly so. And not all of them primarily crawl upon the ground; some are arboreal, some primarily aquatic, some are even sea dwellers. All of this makes me wonder whether the snake of the garden was maybe a particular species. Certainly, however, the enmity between men and snakes seems universal across all species; we mostly don't like them, and they mostly at least regard us as to get away from, with some species strongly tending to aggression. Could they have had legs, or wings, to begin with? Certainly, if God made them that way. But the inference remains questionable, and, in my view, unnecessary. We know the encounter in the garden had Satan in it, that Eve was deceived, that Adam was with her and that he was NOT deceived - but took and ate the fruit anyway. And here we are.

[@klausjeager1493]

When I see a snake I don't think of Satan. I'm fascinated by them and don't fear them but do respect them. I'm very appreciative of the nonvenomous rodent control.

[@mikelambrecht7267]

I have a habit of cursing Adam as I am digging up weeds.

[@Starbuckin]

@@mikelambrecht7267 Don't do that! Did you ever stop to think that he ate because he wasn't gonna let her take the fall all by herself just like God didn't let us? He sent Jesus an actual PART Of HIMSELF to fix all that!

[@saliadee2564]

@@Starbuckin You're right, that was a part of Adam's thinking, but it was still disobedience. Adam didn't come under the influence of the serpent, so he wasn't 'deceived' like Eve was (not that I'm making excuses for her). He could see what had happened and chose to participate anyway. Who knows what could have happened if Adam had chosen differently? We're told that he's the 'one man' through whom sin entered the world. But I agree, curse neither Adam nor Eve, because we just don't know what any of us would have done in their place.

[@dustygatrell-ru7tg]

God could of done anything who really knows,

[@onehappydawg]

The serpent in the garden was not a snake 🐍 We are told in the last book of the Bible who this serpent is in the first book of the Bible. Revelation 12 says satan was this serpent of old. Not that he possessed the serpent, but that he was the serpent. You did not read the whole curse that God told the serpent. If the serpent was actually a snake then the “seed” of the woman crushing the head of the serpent can not be used to represent Jesus crushing the head of satan. It doesn’t make any sense if it is actually a snake. From dust you were made and to dust you will return. Adam is told he is dust and will return to dust. The serpent is told he will eat dust. In the New Testament it says in 1 Peter “…your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour…” It wasn’t a snake 🐍

[@LostsTVandRadio]

It's hard to pin down in the Hebrew of Genesis 3 whether the serpent was or wasn't one of the beasts of the field. Certainly it says that the serpent had more עָר֔וּם (craft/prudence/nous) THAN the wild beasts. The question here is whether it had more craft than the 'OTHER' wild beasts. On this issue the ESV translation (which includes the word 'other') is at odds with the NASB, NIV and KJV, which don't. The implications of not having the word 'other' are very considerable. The simplest explanation is that the serpent was not one of the wild animals at all, but was simply the fallen anointed cherub of Ezekiel 28 - a cherub who is named 'The Serpent'.

[@ramonalee1]

Talking about “die” & “die, die”, my mother in law used to say, “He is sick, sick.” That meant he was really bad sick, not just mildly sick. But you made me think and I’ve never considered this before, how would Eve even know what die meant? If we were originally created to live forever on earth, how would she know? I wonder how long they had been created when this event happened. Had there been time to see animals die? If so, did they know that they, being made in God's image, would not die but other living creatures did and would? Animals all ate plants then so the animals would not be killing each other. It would take a long time for them to die naturally. Would she have even seen any plants die in a perfect world? Maybe she was so easily tempted because she didn’t even know what it meant, really, to die. ????

[@norseman615]

CS lewis touched on some of these concepts in his book Perelandra the 2nd book in the space trilogy

[@cc3775]

Doesn’t make it true

[@norseman615]

@@cc3775 doesn't make what true?

[@kriegjaeger]

A very interesting and important point on the definitions of death. Being "You will begin to die" vs "Die immediately". I have seen contemporary Sadducees or Satanists pretending to be Christians who proclaim god lied and the Serpent was right because Adam and Eve did not die immediately after eating the fruit.

[@ojaiallen8004]

The Hebrew term is MUWTH MUWTH meaning "dying: you shall die" indicating not necessarily immediate death but a gradual process of degeneration.

[@meghoughton562]

So because Eve believed the lie that even *touching* the fruit would kill her and after touching it was (obviously) still alive, she felt confident that *eating* it probably wouldn't lead to her/their death either. Lesson: Believing lies is at least dangerous, if not deadly.

[@jepizzo2]

@@meghoughton562 The command was originally given to Adam. When he repeated it to Eve after her formation he likely added "not to touch it" as an added precaution to protect her.

[@jepizzo2]

@@ojaiallen8004 (Genesis 2:17) "in the day you eat from it you will certainly die.” Jehovah certainly could have easily and rightful executed the humans and Satan immediately. However, hundreds of millions of other angels were watching. Issues had been raised. Jehovah’s universal sovereignty had been brought into question. Did Jehovah have the right to rule? Could humans successfully rule themselves apart from God? Would any humans choose to follow Jehovah despite temptation? If Jehovah removed them and created new humans, the issues would still be unresolved and could happen again with other humans and angels. Only time could resolve these issues and Adam and Eve would have to live and produce offspring to provide answers. It was Jehovah’s stated purpose to fill the earth with the descendants of Adam and Eve. (Genesis 1:28) Jehovah’s purposes may be delayed, but they can never go unfulfilled. (Isaiah 55:11) If they had been destroyed, you and I would not be alive today and able to make a different choice. This was a great act of love upon Jehovah’s part. From the moment he pronounced judgment upon Adam, Eve and Satan; Jehovah had already begun arranging a plan for our eventual deliverance. Genesis 3:15b “He will crush your head, and you will strike him in the heel.” The strike in the heel of the woman’s offspring would be the temporary sacrificial death of Jesus and crushing the serpent’s head points to Satan’s eventual eternal destruction. Everything which happened with Israel: the setting up of the kingship and priesthood, the legal precedences establishing that blood represented life and a life could be offered up in place of own’s own life after sinning (Lev 17:11) , etc. was all going towards the eventual redemption of all obedient humans of every heritage and nationality. (Hebrews 6:18) “it is impossible for God to lie.” (Titus 1:2) God, cannot lie From Jehovah’s perspective, Adam and Eve died the very day they sinned and ate the forbidden fruit. You have heard the expression “Dead man walking” about prisoners who have been condemned to death, but have not been executed yet? Realize that Adam and Eve were not like us. They were perfect. Would they still be alive if they had never sinned? Yes. They had the expectation of living forever on earth as perfect humans, a hope which righteous ones will again have after God’s Kingdom brings an end to this wicked system. Psalms 37:29 The righteous will possess the earth, and they will live forever upon it. At the moment Adam and Eve sinned they were no longer perfect. As sinners, they were as good as dead. Rebellion against their Creator and source of life made themselves no longer mentally or emotionally perfect. An immediate indication of their changed mental state was their hiding from God and being ashamed of being naked. One cannot be partially imperfect. Since they were mentally imperfect, they were also physically imperfect. Mental distress can affect one’s physical health. Prov 14:30 A calm heart gives life to the body, but jealousy is rottenness to the bones. Because they were still so close to physical perfection it took a long time before their bodies deteriorated to the point they died. (Gen 5: 5) all the days of Adam’s life amounted to 930 years, and then he died. From a certain perspective this could be considered dying within a day since Adam lived less than 1,000 years. 2 Peter 3:8 one day is with Jehovah as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. However, since sin brings death there is precedence for living unredeemed ones to be considered like they are dead. Matt 8:22 Jesus said to him: “Keep following me, and let the dead bury their dead.” Speaking of the Prodigal Son repenting, Luke 15:32 “we just had to celebrate and rejoice, for your brother was dead but has come to life; he was lost and has been found.’” Ephesian 2:1-5 God made you alive, though you were dead in your trespasses and sins,2 in which you at one time walked according to the system of things of this world, according to the ruler of the authority of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience.3 Yes, among them we all at one time conducted ourselves in harmony with the desires of our flesh, carrying out the will of the flesh and of our thoughts, and we were naturally children of wrath just as the rest. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us,5 made us alive together with the Christ, even when we were dead in trespasses-by undeserved kindness you have been saved. When did the Devil become a murderer? “When he began” to sin. Who did he murder? Adam and Eve and their offspring. Thus, Adam and Eve did die in the day they sinned and ate the forbidden fruit. John 8:44 the Devil . . . was a murderer when he began, and he did not stand fast in the truth, because truth is not in him. When he speaks the lie, he speaks according to his own disposition, because he is a liar and the father of the lie. Satan is considered to have killed Adam and Eve on the day he convinced them to sin. Perfect people cannot be forgiven, because their actions are deliberate. Eve believed the lie, and she herself had stated Jehovah’s command and knew she was rebelling and then convinced Adam to join her. Adam knew what Satan said was a lie and he went along with it anyway. 1 Tim 2:14 Adam was not deceived, but the woman was thoroughly deceived and became a transgressor. What was that first lie? “You positively will not die” and “you will be like God.” (Gen 4:4) Satan slandered Jehovah by saying God had lied. Instead, they lost their perfection, began aging and died. Still Jehovah offers a hope to obedient mankind through his Kingdom which Jesus told us to pray for. (Matthew 6:10) www.jw.org/en/bible-teachings/questions/what-gods-kingdom-will-do/

[@1WhoConquers]

They're over-thinking this. Genesis 2:17 ESV - but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in _the day_ that you eat of it you shall surely die.” 2 Peter 3:8 ESV - But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Apostle Peter is actually quoting Moses here, who wrote _this_ Psalm, and Genesis... Psalm 90:4 ESV - For a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night. So, when did Adam die exactly? Here... Genesis 5:5 ESV - Thus all the days that Adam lived were 930 years, and he died. Just under one _millennial_ day. That might seem like a long time to us now, but for a being who was supposed to be eternal, it's kind of a big deal.

[@kaemccorkle]

Thankful for this ministry!

[@heavenboundtoourlord]

"In order to accomplish his work unperceived, Satan chose to employ as his medium the serpent-a disguise well adapted for his purpose of deception. The serpent was then one of the wisest and most beautiful creatures on the earth. It had wings, and while flying through the air presented an appearance of dazzling brightness, having the color and brilliancy of burnished gold. Resting in the rich-laden branches of the forbidden tree and regaling itself with the delicious fruit, it was an object to arrest the attention and delight the eye of the beholder. Thus in the garden of peace lurked the destroyer, watching for his prey." The angels had cautioned Eve to beware of separating herself from her husband while occupied in their daily labor in the garden; with him she would be in less danger from temptation than if she were alone. But absorbed in her pleasing task, she unconsciously wandered from his side. On perceiving that she was alone, she felt an apprehension of danger, but dismissed her fears, deciding that she had sufficient wisdom and strength to discern evil and to withstand it. Unmindful of the angels’ caution, she soon found herself gazing with mingled curiosity and admiration upon the forbidden tree. The fruit was very beautiful, and she questioned with herself why God had withheld it from them. Now was the tempter’s opportunity. As if he were able to discern the workings of her mind, he addressed her: “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the gar-den?” Eve was surprised and startled as she thus seemed to hear the echo of her thoughts. But the serpent continued, in a musical voice, with subtle praise of her surpassing loveliness; and his words were not displeasing. Instead of fleeing from the spot she lingered wonderingly to hear a serpent speak. Had she been addressed by a being like the angels, her fears would have been excited; but she had no thought that the fascinating serpent could become the medium of the fallen foe." {Patriarchs and Prophets p. 53-54} Eve decided to trust herself, her own heart/judgment and senses. She could not tell the difference between this tree and any other. Do most Christians use the same argument to defend breaking the fourth commandment; that all days are 'alike'? Does Paul in Colossians 2 16-17 really teach that we can break the ten commandments? What does God write in our heart for the new covenant? Matthew 5:19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. James 2:10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. 2:11 For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law. 2:12 So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.

[@johnpaulmoriba683]

I always watch this program from sierra Leone, West Africa. Thanks for bringing the Gospel close 🙌 .

[@KingArtexerxes]

I have a quote from Ellen White. She’s a 19th century prophet that co-founded the Seventh-Day Adventist Church. This quote is from her book, Patriots and Prophets. The description of the serpent sounds a whole lot like the Chinese dragon that someone else has mentioned here. In order to accomplish his work unperceived, Satan chose to employ as his medium the serpent-a disguise well adapted for his purpose of deception. The serpent was then one of the wisest and most beautiful creatures on the earth. It had wings, and while flying through the air presented an appearance of dazzling brightness, having the color and brilliancy of burnished gold. Resting in the rich-laden branches of the forbidden tree and regaling itself with the delicious fruit, it was an object to arrest the attention and delight the eye of the beholder. Thus in the garden of peace lurked the destroyer, watching for his prey. PP 53.4

[@vedinthorn]

Ellen white was a false prophet

[@KingArtexerxes]

@@vedinthorn False only to those who don’t read her works. She had many antagonists throughout her life. I used to believe these many false arguments against her, but overall, you will eventually discover she was a true prophet when you read from a spiritual and nonjudgmental viewpoint.

[@vedinthorn]

@@KingArtexerxes you mean if I ignore the bible and shut off my brain? No thanks.

[@KingArtexerxes]

@@vedinthorn No. I mean if you treat the Bible the same way you treat Ellen White’s writings, you’d be an atheist.

[@vedinthorn]

@@KingArtexerxes I treat the Bible as something historically demonstrable. If it weren't, I'd have no use for it. Ellen White contradicts it many times over, so she must be a liar.

[@davidyancey8743]

I have a question about the serpent, viper thing. The Genesis, God took Satans legs away from him. I grew up in Rattlesnake infested Southern Arizona and separated all that I came across from their heads. When I think about all of this, and listen to the discussion, I researched snake skeletons a little. I found that the snakes that produce hemotoxin or neurotoxins did not have even some semblance of what may have been legs. Some snakes have bacteria in their saliva that can be bad, but they don't inject or spit poison. Other snakes, I believe were maybe lizards or other reptiles that just stopped using their legs and their skeletons usually show that some form of what were legs. In conclusion I think that Satan spit out Poison and Vipers, cobras, and poisonous snakes with teeth may be the serpent that God cursed ! What do you guys think about this ?

[@jennifermichener4273]

Also, I'm very glad u pointed out that "die die" (means to die slowly) & "die" (to die instantly), although I didn't know they were 2 different forms of dying, I knew God meant they will slowly die, although I've heard people say that THAT is another metaphor used, but I know that's not true, bc they did die. Where r they now? They're dead. So idk Y people think so low of God to speak metaphorically, when He's clearly a strong and demanding God, especially when it comes to His commands. Thank u very much for that "die die" lesson as well !!! ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ ❤️

[@kait-01751]

What do you think of Heiser's commentary on the serpent, that the nachash is a triple entendre meant to signal to the original reader multiple images (each with their own metaphors/meanings): snake, bronze/shining one, and diviner?

[@cc3775]

Eve spoke with the serpent. What serpent? The Hebrew word is חשׁ, nachash, and it is pronounced 'naw-khawsh' H5175 in Strong’s Concordance. In the Old Testament, this word is rendered as “serpent” by the translators who compiled the King James Version. Strong’s defines “חשׁ⁠” as “snake”. Nachash is the noun form of a primitive root meaning properly to hiss, that is, whisper a (magic) spell; generally to foretell the future. You can see how they associated these mystical ideas with snakes, but snake alone doesn’t convey these ideas to the reader. Rather than serpent, “hisser” or “whisperer” would better give the sense of “nachash”. In the Old Testament “nachash” describes: Eve, the tribe of Dan, snakes 8 times, Moses’ rod 2 times, the serpent of brass 2 times, invaders 5 times, evil people twice, a constellation of heaven, too much wine and the Nations. “nachash”, in Genesis 49, refers to an attribute of the tribe of Dan: Gen 49:17 “Dan shall be a SERPENT by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall backward.” In this instance, the serpent is clearly NOT LITERAL. Take away the tribe, and the serpent is gone, because it only describes an attitude of the tribe and has no separate independent existence. Gen 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. I believe that Eve’s seed mentioned in Genesis 3v15 refers ultimately to our Lord Jesus Christ. If the Lord is the “woman’s seed”, then surely God is not saying that serpent would literally bite the Lord, nor would the Lord literally stomp on that serpent The serpent must then be figurative or a symbol of something else, and so it cannot be a literal animal. Now that we are aware of this original Hebrew word, we can understand that the nachash in Eden is something other than a snake. Supporting this is the fact that everything created was seen by God to be “very good”.(Genesis 1v31) God would not punish a serpent that was not under any law. If it was under a law, sin came into the world by a snake and not by man. God would not bring retribution on an animal for doing what it was created to do. It follows then, that the alternative view of the Genesis 3 “serpent” is that it provides animation to those thoughts of Eve which produced Sin. Importantly, this conclusion maintains God’s Righteousness. This understanding of Eve does not allow the error that God provided His agent to tempt Adam and Eve.

[@Bibleguy89-uu3nr]

You will find that a lot of people are afraid of heisers views because they can’t refute them. Keep reading his books.

[@michaelshannon6558]

@@Bibleguy89-uu3nr very true. What many people miss is that none of what Heiser teaches were his original ideas. A large number of Bible scholars wrote about the weird stuff in the Bible. Heiser just connected the dots.

[@Bibleguy89-uu3nr]

@@michaelshannon6558 Yes for sure. When something seems to much to be coincidence it should at least be considered.

[@JadeDragon407]

I feel Satan's physical/actual form is something we would call a dragon, although it is possible that that got attributed to him because that is the creature he used to sway Eve. Likely he went after Eve, swaying her feminine nature with all sorts of charms and kind words, and also knowing that he could get to Adam through her because of the love they shared as the first couple. As to my first, whether if Satan himself had a form akin to the original serpent or took possession of one's mind/body and spoke through it, I feel this was a physical change that the serpent went through, and as I would imagine one beforetime, a depictions of the Eastern dragon would likely be the best descriptor. As I understand it [if I am correct on this], even in the new heavens and new Earth, it shall yet then go about its belly.

[@Rigamus11]

God is the one described as a dragon.... I mean, it's literally in the Bible.

[@GraphixHurricane]

@@Rigamus11 he calls Satan a dragon in revelations

[@BoaConstrictor126]

@@GraphixHurricane true but in Esther Mordecai has a dream of two dragons battling each other and the good one defeating the evil one. Mordecai is the good dragon in the dream and Haaman is the evil dragon

[@IsraelCountryCube]

​@@Rigamus11nope. It's literally not. God isn't a physical animal a dinosaur is a new word for dragon. Dragons are dinosaurs. Dragons probably exist in both sense of the words terrible big lizards and some also capable of breathing fire and fliying.

[@IsraelCountryCube]

Apparently Satan isn't actually a serpent but manifested as one yet serpentine looking but not a slithering belly one.

[@batboylives]

I got asked 'so once you get saved, you are always saved? I said only if you 'always' meaning 'at all times on all occasions' ; without keeping at it, then the always doesnt work. Get saved, stay saved.

[@davidpatton3180]

One thing I have always wondered is did animals speak before the fall? Eve obviously is not surprised and has what appears to be a normal conversation with a serpent so was this a commonplace event? I would have thought Eve would have immediately gone running to get Adam to see this miraculous talking beast before having a chat or had she been talking to this creature before this took place and was in a secret relationship with it before this took place?

[@Gebri3l]

How have you naver seen a snake between man and woman?

[@quilabill]

I think the nature of humans like Adam and Eve was also different back then- God’s original design for humanity surely surpassed what we have become now - just like the serpent original form has changed due to sin / disobedience to God - I think that’s also why we get new bodies bc rn we are in a corrupted state of humanity- but with Christ our connection to God Yahweh is redeemed

[@warren286]

The seed of the serpent refers to those who carry the spirit of satan.

[@bswihart1]

I've had a real problem with death in the last few years, it's been close to me and is uncomfortable. I know it's not what God intended for us and I find myself mad about it and very upset. I really can't stand it when people say it's a part of life, no no no its not.

[@aliciaragsdale3220]

I can understand your pain for sure. You are right that death is not how it “ought to be,” because when God created, everything was perfect and death was not a factor. But the moment of the “fall”, death was the consequence. Fortunately, God didn’t just leave us there though. Redemption is coming and death, through Jesus Christ, will have no hold on those who are his. ❤️

[@Ytarry]

Death is part of life as we know it now, but death is not part of our eternal life that we have with Jesus. Praise God and glorify Him! There will be no more pain nor suffering. God bless you my brother and give you peace.

[@craigslist6630]

1 Thessalonians 4: 13 Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. 14 We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage each other with these words.

[@sublime1061]

well it is just a door to the next existence. just like you came out of your nother's womb and found yourself here. You will come out of the womb of the world into heaven.

[@sublime1061]

Plus, the death of Jesus Christ took away the 'sting,' of death in that 'whoever believes in Him and does as He taught, will not die, but have eternal life, once this body dies off. Their soul will be saved and then dressed in an incorruptible body.

[@jodymccabe2586]

One thing the Holy Spirit just led me to concerned Eden and the Garden "in" Eden. God placed man in a garden in Eden, located in the East part of Eden. The Bible separates the two, so it's not the "Garden "of" Eden," like Eden was this Garden that humans had the run of - they didn't. It's the Garden located in the East part of what is called Eden. I don't know if Eden covered the earth or it was just a part of the earth, but I think it was where God dwelled while here on earth. The Garden in Eden was where God could walk with the humans without His shekinah glory killing them. Genesis 2:8 "And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the East, and there he put the man who he had formed." By verse 15, we had changed it to read: "The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden 'of' Eden to work it and keep it." We completely lost the meaning of Eden as being a separate place - the garden was in Eden, not of Eden. It does make a difference - the garden was a place where man and God could be together, but it was not Eden. Revelation 22: 1-3 is all about restoring the garden so we can again be with God. "Of" indicates belonging or origin of something, a function word to indicate a possession. The garden does not possess Eden. The word "in" indicates the location or position of something. The garden is located in the East part of Eden. It is a separate place in Eden. The original Hebrew says gan b ē'den mi qe'dem, which most literally means "a garden towards the east, in Eden." It should be pointed out that "Eden," literally speaking, is the territory where the garden is located, not the actual garden itself. From the geography given in the following verses, it seems logical to conclude that Eden was in the region of Mesopotamia. By implication, Genesis' original audience would have been to the west of that area. Most Christians miss this as they believe Eden was the garden, instead of understanding the full meaning.

[@lucasolson9132]

Guys, go to ground with the Hebrew. Bereshit (Genesis) 3:1 "Now the serpent (Nachash, Nahash; serpent, snake, glimmering, coppery, bronze-like; the phrase in Numbers 21:9, "a serpent of bronze," is a wordplay as "serpent" (nehash) and “bronze” (nehoshet) are closely related in Hebrew, nehash nehoshet) was more subtle (עָרוּם, Arum: cunning, naked, shrewd) than any beast of the field which Ha-Shem (God) had made. And he (the serpent) said unto the woman: 'Yea, hath God said: "Ye shall not eat of any tree of the garden?'" (The verb “nahas” can also mean “to practice divination, observe signs” (Gen.30:27; 44:5, 15; Lev. 19:26; Deut. 18:10). It's incredible to see the contrast here. The man (Ha-Adam; earthling, man of dirt, reddish, one of blood) and his wife (Havah; life, living, giver of life) are naked (Arum; the word for 'nude' or 'naked' is arum. The second time we find the word used is in verse 1 of chapter 3: "Now the snake was more shrewd than all the living-things of the field that YHWH, God, had made." Here arum is translated by the word 'shrewd' or literally the most arum of all the living things of the field) lots of very complex word-play and poetry wrapped around the history here. The Nahas is very much a real creature in the text. It isn't a sort of archetype or metaphor, and it isn't Ha-Satan the Accuser, whom we see later on. This is a real animal; a very shrewd, cunning, creature. It is the progenitor of our current snake on earth, and did not crawl at first but flew or walked. (It's possible it is a corollary to a Seraphim (Burning One) who became associated with snakes later on because of the burning venom and the burning lightning through which they travel (Yeshua says HaSatan fell like lightning from heaven and the Seraphim flash back and forth in flashes of lightning, but that's a long talk for another time. Seraphs, as they appear in Isaiah (6:2, 6; 14:29; 30:6) would appear to be winged serpents, with arms, legs and wings. Extra-biblical traditions, found in the "Life of Adam and Eve" (c.5th century AD) 26:3; Josephus "Jewish Antiquities" 1.1.4; and rabbinic sources, "Genesis Rabbah" 20:5 and "Targum Pseudo-Jonathan" 3:14, all seem to indicate that the snakes we see today are debased or devolved forms of what had earlier, in the wider world of the ancient Near East, been impressively scary beings.) While we cannot rely on EB sources as terribly authoritative as compared to the accepted canon of scripture, they can be useful in determining context)

[@castironmonkey3186]

I think the Serpent had wings. The Hebrew word for serpent is seraph which is also the name for a type of angel.

[@sublime1061]

But Satan was not a seraphim. He was a cherub as explained in Ezekiel. The cherub of the covering.

[@MichaelAdjuya]

Personally, I think that satan was referred to as a serpent because he lied. The serpent has double tongues so i believe that also, the serpent is crafty, creepy, and scary just in a sight. Human being always turns their fears into something real. You should see most Nigerian Christians using machetes and whips to beat satan. A Funny scene though.

[@MercyandAgape]

Not most Nigerian Christians but a lot.

[@Mothobius]

How do they beat up Satan? Is he just standing there or something?

[@anthonycucuta9027]

Have you gentlemen ever read or listened to the late Dr. Michael Heiser’s teaching on the serpent? Fascinating look into the Hebrew language concerning the serpent in Genesis.

[@aggabus]

00:00 = highlight or footnote

[@veeveevenn]

Look into the bronze tree of the Sanxindui museum. It was excavated and depicts an attractive footed feathered serpent undulating in a life-size tree with forbidden fruit.

[@arcguardian]

Attractive in what way?

[@padillas4357]

Good point about who the seed of the serpent is.

[@trudymaenza9672]

Cain

[@padillas4357]

@@trudymaenza9672 No. They quoted Jesus when He referred to the religious opposition as a brood of vipers. Those who oppose the work of the Messiah are of the seed of the serpent. This is a Biblical metaphor, not literally, just like in John 8:44. These people do not literally have the Devil as their father.

[@berylackermann8240]

The questions I ask myself was WHY YaHshua referred to the Pharisees as "serpent's/vipers". (Because YaHshua is describing a CHARACTER not an entity. WHY did YaHshua say to the Pharisees "You are the SONS of your Father the devil (not written in Capital letter) who was a murder and lie from the beginning. (WHO from the beginning was this - CAIN. He murdered his brother Abel and lied to Father/Creator our Eternal Father. WHY - did the YaHoveH say "man is inherently evil and his thoughts are mostly evil" WHY does YaHshua say "Take every thought captive. Having studied scripture from a HEBREW perspective with the HEBREW language I realize is MAN because he has been given "CHOICE", is is man who falls into TEMPTATION, through the lusts of the FLESH - LOOKS, DESIRES WANTS AND TAKES. Why did YaHshua tell us to pray "Lead me not into TEMPTATION. (Not the true rendering of this verse) for we ask our Father YaHoVeH to strengthen us so as NOT to fall into TEMPTATION but to OVERCOME IT. YaHshua not only healed the PHYSICAL DISEASES AND handicapped, but also HEALED MENTAL diseases, the hidden ones in the mind. Mankind is no different to those of that time and because we know more about mental diseases today YaHshua already knew about them as he is ONE with our Father YaHoVeh our Creator who knows ALL things. Too many person's do not understand the scriptures and take it out of context because because of their mindset and perspective is not from a Hebraic one. The words satan, devil, demon, lucifer are NOT written in Capital letters so are NOT nouns but adjectives describing characterisation not an entity. YaHshua was tempted of his "FLESH" just as we all are and he OVERCAME IT not falling into i and continued to walk in the "HOLINESS of SPIRIT (written from right to left in HEBREW - describing the very nature and character of YaHoVeH Elohim our Creator. One only has to also read the vetsw written in GENESIS what YaHoVeH said about the thoughts (mind - where the seeds are down not the heart where the feeling - an action word is acted out from) of man. Blessing to all our brethren scattered all over the World. Stay strong in the FAITH and TRUST not man only our Father YaHoVeH and YaHshua His SON who is ONE with Him that we TOO may be ONE with YahShua and our Father YaHoVeH.

[@careinitiatives5698]

May I suggest this perspective as the 3rd Option? If you look into Ezekiel 28, it describes satan in the following manner - Ezek 28.12ff - .... You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you....14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you.. 15 You were blameless in your way from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you..." By seeing the Bible as a whole, we can picture Satan in the form of a cherub, like an angel of light, not repulsive but attractive, a familiar and pleasing sight to Adam and Eve. However, the "serpent" was described as being crafty in Genesis 3. This is not a physical description, but a character description of satan, similar to when a despicable person we will refer to as a "snake" or a "rat". This is the most natural and harmonious reading we can get from Genesis 3 without having to wrestle with the physical transformation of satan or the serpent. Satan is indeed once an angel of light, once blameless, but transformed into a crafty and wicked being, who can take any form, a shape-shifter - whether as an angel, a lovely lady, a handsome gentleman, a serpent or an alien. Can you picture this whole perspective as harmonious to the whole of Scripture?

[@WKGWOMANINTN]

Thank you for the probing questions. There is much that we are not given answers for in the Bible. But we are given information on the MAIN thing: Jesus Christ's sacrifial death covered the curse -- and saved our souls.

[@JerryN7970]

One other thing that always confused me was where it said the serpent would eat dust. Snakes don’t eat dirt (or dust) so I was wondering if that meant something else? The only way I can think to reconcile this was that all animals were vegetarian at this point, and since all flesh turns to dust, maybe it became the first carnivorous animal? I’m probably way off on that, but it’s the only thing I can think of. Any insights on that?

[@restorationlifeuniversity1635]

Brother, you're asking the right kind of questions. The difficulty is that dogmatic fundamentalist explanations of subject matters like this ignores the wealth of scholarly exploration which shines much light on these things. Spoiler alert: 'the serpent" was not a literal, snakelike, naturally occurring creature. "Nacash" = shining one. The recording of this narrative, which likely occurred thousands of years after it's happening reflects the author's intent of transmitting something that would have made sense to the contemporary ancient near eastern audience. There is so much nuance in the way of symbology and analogy that we could never understand in western 2022. ALL of this material must be read in light of the author's intent and the audience's understanding. I might suggest Dr. Michael Heiser's book 'The Unseen Realm'. It will challenge you and present a resolution to so many of the common conflicts like the one you have presented.

[@mplsfarmer]

I never took the phrase “eat dust” literally but figuratively. For example, in a race one competitor might say to another that “you’re going to eat my dust.” Some snakes are constantly sticking out their tongues as a way to “smell” to explore their surroundings. I’m sure that they get a lot of dust particles on it.

[@Bibleguy89-uu3nr]

The eating dust and crawling on the belly comes from Satan being made low in Ezekiel 28 when he was thrown out of Gods council.

[@56username]

Where The wind Blows Jet Stream you can’t feel that The gentle breeze on your Head and arms make you feel good. And the ground breeze that stores up , dust for the serpent , he needs Dust to eat all the days of his life.

[@moirarussell1950]

🧐 hmmmm. Interesting

[@batboylives]

People in the Church get touchy when I mention people being raptured before the 7th seal in Revelation. Rapture/start of Trib is Rev 4:1. Then 5 is heaven. 6 is the seals poured out (raptured saints in heaven). Then "after these' a great multitude was seen coming 'out of' meaning 'within' the great trib. This group will never hunger nor sleep, but serve God in Heaven forever. Wont be part of the saints, when Jesus returns after Tribulation and sets foot on the Mount of Olives. Its like they think im trying to say there is a plan B when really all i am saying is what the Word says. Rev 1:19. Things which thou has seen (vision of Christ), things which are (2,3 or the Church) and the things which must come after this, after the things which are (the church or saints) So if a chapter start 'after these' than what was stated prior has passed.

[@blackronin5578]

I enjoyed Moses staff turning into a snake and back into a staff dat was dope n da serpent is definitely a interesting animal that always made me wonder for years, great video💯💯💯

[@joshlamb9443]

What if the serpent could fly like a Quetzalcoatl or an eastern style dragon?

[@teresamcnulty8471]

I believe the archeopteryx was what Eve addressed in the tree. It had feathers, it could climb the tree and glide down. It had beautiful coppery plumage, iridescent, and a lovely graceful form. Peggy teeth for eating fruit. I believe God also made snakes. How could He not have? This creature became very like one of them. (I think the change was not immediate...there are only a very few fossils of these creatures.)

[@dreamdiction]

hahahaha

[@John-gu4rw]

Clark's commentary interprets the word from the original as being closer to simian than serpent.

[@in-powered3392]

It's pretty cool that the Strong's Concordance defines the serpent by the sound it makes... Hisss... Like an electric short in a wire.

[@empirelight5477]

Could the serpent have been plumed as opposed to having legs being a dragon or as depicted in other religions?

[@cedriceric9730]

Whatever it was it was the subtlest " beast" of the field. It was most certainly NOT a dragon which is the strongest most fearsome beast God made

[@empirelight5477]

@@cedriceric9730 Rev 12:9 KJV 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.