The serpent’s question to Eve in Genesis 3, “Did God really say…?” Satan’s first attack was aimed at God’s Word and character.
Do you believe the serpent was literally speaking through Satan or is this symbolic imagery?
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A serpent is what we see today, but that doesn’t mean that the serpent in Eden looked like what it does today. What it looks like today was God’s punishment of the beast that spoke to Eve.
“Because you have done this, You are cursed more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, And you shall eat dust All the days of your life.” Gen 3:14
Who knows what a serpent looked like in Eden before it’s punishment. All we really know is that God created it and it was more cunning than any other beast of the field. 3:1
What it was, God created.
We also know that this beast wasn’t comparable to Adam. When he named all the beasts of the field, God determined that there was no beast suitable to be a helper to man and He created Eve to be his helper.
So this particular beast, called a serpent in Genesis didn’t necessarily crawl on the ground then. It was a beast of the field created by God and it possessed a nature that was more prudent than any other beast.
Other than that, I’m guessing. I think Satan was able to use this beast to speak to Eve and that the serpent’s cunning nature allowed for it. It was Satan that deceived her, but the beast was also held responsible because it was punished. If Satan is speaking through this beast that allowed Satan to move in, then it is Satan that deceived Eve.
What we are left with today is a beast that crawls on the ground and is stripped of anything it once had.
There were different to explain that whole story. Literally, if it is believed that it was all literal conversations, than we would have to be believe that the world was created with six days, and that the Lord did speak with some serpent. Some christians do believe that, and they defend their faith by all means. In my view though that whole story has a spiritual implication, that is, that whole creating thing talks spiritually about the spiritual formation/regeneration of the man, and historically about the creating of the first, most ancient church in the human race.
And so everything in that story, earth, moon, son, heaven, garden, Adam, Eve, Serpent have the spiritual signification.
I am lost. Can you elaborate? I take it literally.
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I tend to think there can sometimes be both literal and symbolic meaning in Scripture at the same time.
Even if someone reads the Genesis account literally, the serpent also clearly represents temptation, deception, and rebellion against God. That symbolism continues throughout the Bible all the way into Revelation.
At the same time, I also understand why some people see deeper spiritual symbolism throughout the creation account itself.
Personally, I think the core message remains important either way: humanity was given trust, freedom, and relationship with God, and chose distrust instead.
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Roaming, walking, prowling are terms used to describe the movements of Satan our enemy. We know too that evil, spiritual forces are in the heavens and the waterless places. The evil spirit himself is the ruler of the power of the air. (The forces of wickedness don’t have a fixed HQ.)
However the evil spirit and spirits manage to shift from place to place, we know that Satan made his evil intentions clear in Judas’s heart. In fact, “Satan entered him.” He caused others to lie to the Holy Spirit. He works internally and externally.
Right from the start we learn that we have an enemy that directly interacts with people. In Genesis the term “serpent” is used to describe him. In my thinking, since God is responsible for the words of Scripture, it’s clear He has used this word intentionally. It is what it is.
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