Daily Archives: May 25, 2014

Sunday Brunch – The Serpent

Photo courtesy of Romanticando

Do you believe that Satan is the serpent in the Garden of Eden? Do you know the meaning of the curse against the serpent in the Garden of Eden?

When I was involved with the Jehovah’s Witnesses, several decades ago, they gave an interpretation to Genesis 3:14-15. The interpretation was convoluted, didn’t make a whole lot of sense unless you put serious thought to it. Also, they referenced a series of other scriptures to interpret their meaning to the aforementioned scripture.

Were you ever taught anything in Bible school, Sunday school, church, etc. regarding the following scripture? If so, could you share what you were taught? I sense there are several interpretations out there, and I wonder what others believe regarding this scripture. This is what God said to the serpent after he’d tempted Adam and Eve to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil:

Genesis 3:14-15

14 So the Lord God said to the serpent:

“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.
15 And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her Seed;
He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel.”

I believe Satan took over the form of the serpent and spoke to Eve – this was ‘somewhat’ referenced in Revelations.  However, I can’t find a scripture that CLEARLY states that the serpent was Satan. Other than the scripture in Revelations, is there any other scripture that CLEARLY states that Satan was the serpent in the Garden of Eden?

Here’s the scripture in Revelations:

Revelation 12:9

So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

Satan is called a serpent in Revelations. However, the Genesis scripture quoted above has always had me scratching my head. Is God cursing Satan – apart from the serpent creature? Is God stating that there will be hatred between man and Satan? What does bruise your head and bruise his heel mean? Was the serpent a non-crawling creature before he tempted Eve? God said that the serpent would go on his belly and eat dust the rest of his life – does that mean the serpent was an upright creature prior to the temptation?

Share your thoughts!!