SUNDAY SCHOOL EPISODE 3: The Snake in the Garden

Welcome back. As you can tell by my confused upload schedule, I missed last week's lesson. 100% my fault with personal matters in my family. I apologize for that, but now is the time to press on. 

If you’re here I’m sure you’ve read episode one and two, but in case you didn’t and don’t have the patience to read two lessons in one day let me give you the abridged version. God made the world, he did not make it perfect, he made the ideal in the Garden of Eden, and then made man to dominate and bring the rest of creation into the Kingdom of Heaven. Make the whole world like the idyllic garden.

Still with me? Good. Today we’re going to talk about the other sons of God who were not pleased at the idea that God would claim the entirety of the physical creation with his new children: man.

Now I know what you’re thinking. If you’ve watched enough T.V. or read a book or two you’ve probably seen a few pop culture references to the Garden of Eden and the fall of man so you’re ready for that talking snake. Back on up there hombre. Now read Genesis 3, and then come back for the rest.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You[fn] shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” Genesis 3:1

Was there actually a talking snake in the garden? If you’re new to the faith you probably haven't heard of this particular debate. I know as a young Christian I’d never thought about the passage critically, and didn’t run into varying opinions on the subjects till later years.

There are two camps as you might guess. Three if we want to fudge the lines a bit. Those who take the passage completely literally, those who want all of the first few chapters of Genesis to be nothing more than metaphor, and those who want to take some parts literally and other metaphorically.

        Question 1: Have you ever been dragged into a pointless argument between two passionate parties? Did that make you more or less interested in the subject of the debate?

First off we should start with the “everything is literal” crowd. I’m more sympathetic to this side if I share the whole truth. That said, this view does not hold up to scrutiny. You would be hard pressed to find someone on either side of the debate who doesn’t claim that the snake either was or represents the Devil. Right off the bat we have an issue as all sides agree that old Scratch is a, or rather the, fallen angel from Heaven.

Obviously, our forked tongue rebel can’t have started his existence as a snake and be a fallen son of God. This means that we have some form of metaphor being used. Furthermore, the themes of snakes throughout culture shouldn’t be ignored. More than one ancient culture painted the snake as an evil creature, and the Genesis account closely matches many of these old stories.

Metaphor only types I have a deep annoyance with. Usually their attempts to metaphorize the entire Bible is designed to make the word more palpable for “modern” audiences, and shape the text to their image and preferences. Taking this view puts the majority of the Old Testament into question allowing cultists and such to pick and choose which parts of the Bible they wish to declare as fact. God is God. You are not God. Stop trying to put words and deeds in God’s book. I hear he doesn’t take too kindly to that kind of behavior.

Last we come to the middle of the road types. You may think I rest here now, but it’s more complicated. First let me state the obvious. This debate, except for when dealing with a metaphor only crowd members attempting to justify heresy, does not matter. How much metaphor or how literal the text is hardly affects the end result. 

The important part is the fact that man was tricked into sinning by a divine being disgruntled with how God had laid out his creation. Because we were tricked, God promises us mercy, and crushes the snake's head, the Devil’s head, and gives the first prophecy of Jesus Christ coming to Earth.

The LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring[fn] and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:14-15

That is the important part. Don’t let debates sidetrack you on your search for truth. Sometimes these sorts of detours can lead you closer to God, but more often than not you’ll reach the end, realize both sides are nonsense, and end up back tracking to where you started. A theme I will continue to tout in these lessons until your ear bleeds at the mere mention of it is the fact that we cannot and were meant to understand everything in the Bible or about the world. Not as humans. So every now and then you must follow Paul’s advice and avoid silly arguments and quarrels.

Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. 2 Timothy 2:23

Now I know what the disgruntled amongst you are going to say. Did I really just waste a lesson talking about a debate that ultimately didn’t matter? Yes and no. I want to warn you young Christian about those who would waste your time and energy on pointless arguments as our demonic enemies corrupt our cultures and churches in the background.

There is another reason why we explored this random foray into ultimately pointless theological debates. Sometimes we can glean a fact or two that makes the Bible more interesting. The important part is to remember that many will remain mysteries until God reveals them when Christ returns.

In this case we can make the argument even more silly. Eve was in the Garden of Eden where God himself walked in some kind of physical form. His angelic host would’ve done the same, and thus Eve wasn’t surprised to be talking to a snake. Angelic beings are known to take on physical forms in the Bible. Why couldn’t one take on the form of a snake to mask his presence in the garden? Not to mention this isn’t the only time in the Bible where animals talk, and in this case no one can legitimately claim metaphor. 

Then the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?” Numbers 22:28

God opens the mouth of the donkey. If we were to make theories we can’t prove, and have no true theological implications we could ask a question. Did the animals in God’s presence talk? Seems reasonable since God has proven his ability to do so. Being a talking snake may actually let one slip into the Garden unnoticed, and make the future caretakers of Earth drop their guard. After all, this is another beast who God had “opened” its mouth so it could speak surely this was a trustworthy beast. 

Ah, but what of the snake motif in all those other ancient stories? The answer is those epics get their tales from this event. This is where we decided snakes were untrustworthy when God’s angel used the form of one of these legless reptiles to deceive us into rebelling against our creator. So, whenever a new epic was created the snake was often used as a villain referencing that first divine trickster.

        Question 2: Can you think of other epics with talking animals, and specifically where snakes are the villains? Do you see similarities between them and Genesis 3?

However, we have to say that even with this theory we must use metaphor. Whether or not the literalists are right, and snakes used to have legs it makes no sense to punish snakes for something one of his royal entourage had committed. That would be like punishing all bears because a bankrobber used a bear mask. 

Moreover, some of the curses are spoken directly against the Devil. Does it make more sense that snakes are going to be in an endless battle with the children of man, or the children of the Devil? I know plenty of people hate snakes, but they’re only animals. No, that curse is against the children of the devil as Christ himself puts it when dealing with the Pharisees.

You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44

See? Exploring this extra ultimately unnecessary theology can be fun. The speculation can go on forever, but notice how I showed this as a theory. All of what I just said is unprovable till we get to the Heavens to ask the big man himself. So remember in the words of Paul don’t get caught up in pointless arguments.

The Devil deceived Eve and man fell with her. God punished man, but also the Devil. Man was given an opportunity for redemption even as the “children” of the “snake”, the Devil, fought against the descendants of Adam and Eve. So don’t get caught up in the pointless details like whether the snake was a metaphor, a partial metaphor, or literal in its description.

Be sure to come back next Sunday for Lesson Four gentlemen.

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Grizzly signing out…