The serpent that appeared to Eve was, as revealed later, none other than Satan himself, see [Rev 12:9]. Those who try to 'demythologize' the Bible believe that this account of the Fall is allegorical and not to be taken literally. They cite the talking serpent as evidence. Can the story of how the serpent deceived Eve be acknowledged as fact? The Apostle Paul thought so [2Cor 11:3], as did the Apostle John [Rev 12:9]; [Rev 20:2]. Also, this is not the only story in the Bible where animals can speak. God gave Balaam's donkey the ability to speak to counter the prophet's folly [Num 22], and the Apostle Peter took this passage literally [2Pet 2:16]. These three apostles were inspired by the Holy Spirit to write as they did. Therefore, anyone who does not accept the account of the Fall as literally true is rejecting the inspiration of the Holy Scripture. There are allegorical stories in the Bible, but this is not one of them.
Note the steps that plunged humanity into sin. First, Satan implanted doubt in God's word: 'Did God really say?' (Schl 2000). He falsely insinuated that God had forbidden Adam and Eve to eat from 'all the trees.' Next, Eve said that they should not eat from the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, nor should they 'touch it.' But God had said nothing about touching the tree! Then Satan openly contradicted God's statement that judgment upon the disobedient is inevitable, just as his followers today deny the existence of hell and eternal damnation. Satan misrepresented God's intentions, claiming that God wanted to withhold something useful from Adam and Eve.
Eve succumbed to the threefold temptation: the lust of the flesh ('good for food'), the lust of the eyes ('pleasing to the eye'), and the pride of life ('desirable for gaining wisdom') – see [1John 2:16]. By doing so, she acted independently of Adam, her head. She should have consulted him instead of assuming his authority.
In the words 'she took some and ate it' lies the explanation for all sickness, all suffering, all worries, all fears, all guilt, and all death that have plagued humanity ever since. As someone said, 'The devastation of the earth and millions, yes billions of graves are witnesses that God is truthful and Satan is a liar.' Eve was deceived [1Tim 2:14], but Adam acted willfully and in deliberate rebellion against God.
Secular humanism today continues to spread Satan's lie: 'You will be like God.'
Note the steps that plunged humanity into sin. First, Satan implanted doubt in God's word: 'Did God really say?' (Schl 2000). He falsely insinuated that God had forbidden Adam and Eve to eat from 'all the trees.' Next, Eve said that they should not eat from the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, nor should they 'touch it.' But God had said nothing about touching the tree! Then Satan openly contradicted God's statement that judgment upon the disobedient is inevitable, just as his followers today deny the existence of hell and eternal damnation. Satan misrepresented God's intentions, claiming that God wanted to withhold something useful from Adam and Eve.
Eve succumbed to the threefold temptation: the lust of the flesh ('good for food'), the lust of the eyes ('pleasing to the eye'), and the pride of life ('desirable for gaining wisdom') – see [1John 2:16]. By doing so, she acted independently of Adam, her head. She should have consulted him instead of assuming his authority.
In the words 'she took some and ate it' lies the explanation for all sickness, all suffering, all worries, all fears, all guilt, and all death that have plagued humanity ever since. As someone said, 'The devastation of the earth and millions, yes billions of graves are witnesses that God is truthful and Satan is a liar.' Eve was deceived [1Tim 2:14], but Adam acted willfully and in deliberate rebellion against God.
Secular humanism today continues to spread Satan's lie: 'You will be like God.'
Verses that belong to this explanation: 1-6
1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which [is] in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 6 And when the woman saw that the tree [was] good for food, and that it [was] pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make [one] wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
 | Author: William MacDonald Rank: Author Posted on: 2024-01-02 Source: Title: Commentary on the Old Testament Title (Original): BBC – Believer’s Bible Commentary – Old Testament Year (original): 1989 Author: William MacDonald Number of pages: 1184 Publisher/Editor: CLV Print: GGP Media GmbH, Pößneck Translation: Christiane Eichler, Hermann Grabe, Sven und Esther Passig, Melanie Reimer, Alois Wagner Cover design: OTTENDESIGN.de, Gummersbach |
Satan assaulted our first parents, to draw them to sin, and the temptation proved fatal to them. The tempter was the devil, in the shape and likeness of a serpent. Satan’s plan was to draw our first parents to sin, and so to separate between them and their God. Thus the devil was from the beginning a murderer, and the great mischief maker. The person tempted was the woman: it was Satan’s policy to enter into talk with her when she was alone. There are many temptations to which being alone gives great advantage; but the communion of saints tends very much to their strength and safety. Satan took advantage by finding her near the forbidden tree. They that would not eat the forbidden fruit, must not come near the forbidden tree. Satan tempted Eve, that by her he might tempt Adam. It is his policy to send temptations by hands we do not suspect, and by those that have most influence upon us. Satan questioned whether it were a sin or not, to eat of this tree. He did not disclose his design at first, but he put a question which seemed innocent. Those who would be safe, need to be shy of talking with the tempter. He quoted the command wrong. He spoke in a taunting way. The devil, as he is a liar, so he is a scoffer from the beginning; and scoffers are his children. It is the craft of Satan to speak of the Divine law as uncertain or unreasonable, and so to draw people to sin; it is our wisdom to keep up a firm belief of God’s command, and a high respect for it. Has God said, Ye shall not lie, nor take his name in vain, nor be drunk, etc.? Yes, I am sure he has, and it is well said; and by his grace I will abide by it. It was Eve’s weakness to enter into this talk with the serpent: she might have perceived by his question, that he had no good design, and should therefore have started back. Satan teaches men first to doubt, and then to deny. He promises advantage from their eating this fruit. He aims to make them discontented with their present state, as if it were not so good as it might be, and should be. No condition will of itself bring content, unless the mind be brought to it. He tempts them to seek preferment, as if they were fit to be gods. Satan ruined himself by desiring to be like the Most High, therefore he sought to infect our first parents with the same desire, that he might ruin them too. And still the devil draws people into his interest, by suggesting to them hard thoughts of God, and false hopes of advantage by sin. Let us, therefore, always think well of God as the best good, and think ill of sin as the worst evil: thus let us resist the devil, and he will flee from us.
Verses that belong to this explanation: 1-5
1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which [is] in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
 | Author: Matthew Henry Rank: Priest AD: 1714 Source: Title: Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible Author: Matthew Henry |
The Deceitful Snake
+ The enemy of good (Satan) used an unadulterated creature (the snake) as an instrument to destroy man; the defect was not in the instrument but in the man who engaged in a futile conversation with the snake. We wish to escape from foolish, destructive discussions [2Tim 2:23]. The devil has no power over us, but he has the right to tempt us; if we give him access to our mind and let him control our thoughts we will find difficulty in expelling him, but by the grace of God we are capable of everything.
+ Adam was tempted in heaven and fell, and we inherited the seeds of corruption, therefore the Word of God became incarnate as a second Adam, was tempted in the wilderness [Matt 4] and was victorious so that we may inherit spiritual victory.
+ Their eyes were opened [Verse 7] and they acquired the new knowledge of wickedness which mixed with human life and corrupted it, as indicated by the feeling of nakedness or shame which is something alien to the nature of the body.
+ Adam was tempted in heaven and fell, and we inherited the seeds of corruption, therefore the Word of God became incarnate as a second Adam, was tempted in the wilderness [Matt 4] and was victorious so that we may inherit spiritual victory.
+ Their eyes were opened [Verse 7] and they acquired the new knowledge of wickedness which mixed with human life and corrupted it, as indicated by the feeling of nakedness or shame which is something alien to the nature of the body.
Verses that belong to this explanation: 1-7
1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which [is] in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 6 And when the woman saw that the tree [was] good for food, and that it [was] pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make [one] wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. 7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they [were] naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
 | Author: Tadros Yacoub Malaty Rank: Monk Posted on: 2022-11-03 |
The enemy used the good creation made by God, as a tool to destroy man; The fault was not in the tool, but in man who agreed to enter into a vain dispute with the serpent; especially that the woman started to distort the words of God, claiming that He commanded them not to touch the fruit, which was a kind of exaggeration! That is why the apostle advises us to avoid such dispute, corruptive to the mind and soul, saying: “Avoid foolish and ignorant disputes” [2Tim 2:23].
St. John Chrysostom often confirms , that the devil could not have been able to infiltrate into us, and to overcome us, if we did not give him the chance through negligence or entering with him into vain dispute; Of his words:
[Somebody may say: Did not the devil harm Adam, corrupting him and causing him to loose the paradise? No! The responsibility for that was the negligence of him who was harmed, his lack of self control, and of strife. The devil with his diversified tricks could not overcome Job; so how could he, by a lesser way, overcome Adam, if the later had not overcome himself by himself?].
[Negligence and laziness, and not the devil, are the means to overcome the non-alert ... through giving the opportunity for the devil to go far with his evil ways].
[I do not say this to claim the innocence of the devil, but in order to warn you against laziness. The devil wants us to put the blame upon him when we do wrong ... By that, we drown ourselves in all kinds of evil, increase our punishment, and deprive ourselves of forgiveness; through throwing the responsibility upon him, without presenting repentance].
Concerning the vain dispute that Eve entered with the serpent, St. John Chrysostom says: [She should have kept silent, and should not have conversed wit it. She foolishly revealed God’s commandment, so giving the devil a great break... Consider the extent of evil, when we deliver ourselves in the hands of our enemies, and those who plot against us!! That is why the Lord Christ says: “Do not give what is holy to the dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces” [Matt 7:6]. That is what happened with Eve; She gave what is holy to dogs and swines; so they trampled them under their feet, turned, and tore the woman].
I wish we do not fear the devil, as he is not capable of violently forcing his way into our hearts; but we should fear ourselves, as we accept his tricks and vanities; as we allow him to infiltrate into our depths, to take over the leadership of our will, and the control over our heart, thought, and senses; thus falling under his bitter servitude.
In that dispute between Eve and the serpent, the devil did not present to man anything but promises, saying:
“You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil”
[Gen 3:4]-[Gen 3:5]
St. John Chrysostom often confirms , that the devil could not have been able to infiltrate into us, and to overcome us, if we did not give him the chance through negligence or entering with him into vain dispute; Of his words:
[Somebody may say: Did not the devil harm Adam, corrupting him and causing him to loose the paradise? No! The responsibility for that was the negligence of him who was harmed, his lack of self control, and of strife. The devil with his diversified tricks could not overcome Job; so how could he, by a lesser way, overcome Adam, if the later had not overcome himself by himself?].
[Negligence and laziness, and not the devil, are the means to overcome the non-alert ... through giving the opportunity for the devil to go far with his evil ways].
[I do not say this to claim the innocence of the devil, but in order to warn you against laziness. The devil wants us to put the blame upon him when we do wrong ... By that, we drown ourselves in all kinds of evil, increase our punishment, and deprive ourselves of forgiveness; through throwing the responsibility upon him, without presenting repentance].
Concerning the vain dispute that Eve entered with the serpent, St. John Chrysostom says: [She should have kept silent, and should not have conversed wit it. She foolishly revealed God’s commandment, so giving the devil a great break... Consider the extent of evil, when we deliver ourselves in the hands of our enemies, and those who plot against us!! That is why the Lord Christ says: “Do not give what is holy to the dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces” [Matt 7:6]. That is what happened with Eve; She gave what is holy to dogs and swines; so they trampled them under their feet, turned, and tore the woman].
I wish we do not fear the devil, as he is not capable of violently forcing his way into our hearts; but we should fear ourselves, as we accept his tricks and vanities; as we allow him to infiltrate into our depths, to take over the leadership of our will, and the control over our heart, thought, and senses; thus falling under his bitter servitude.
In that dispute between Eve and the serpent, the devil did not present to man anything but promises, saying:
“You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil”
[Gen 3:4]-[Gen 3:5]
Verses that belong to this explanation: 1-3
1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which [is] in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
| Author: Tadros Yacoub Malaty Rank: Monk Posted on: 2022-08-24 |
Do not think of the snake the way he currently is, since we now run from him and are disgusted by him. It was not this way in the beginning; the snake was a friend of humanity, even the closest of servants. What, then, made him our enemy? The declaration of God: “You are more cursed than all the cattle, and more than every wild animal. I will place hostility between you and the woman.” This hostility destroyed the friendship. I say “friendship,” but I do not mean an intellectual relationship, it was instead one which mindless creatures are capable of having. The snake used to serve humans in the same way the dog displaces friendship—not with word but by body language. Since it was a creature who held such great closeness to humanity, the snake was a convenient tool for the devil…. So the devil spoke through the snake in order to deceive Adam. Please hear me in love and do not receive my words carelessly. My question is not easy to take. Many scoff, “how did the snake speak, with a human’s voice or with a snake’s hiss?” or “how did Eve understand him?” Before the fall, Adam was filled with wisdom, discernment and prophecy…. When the devil noticed the snake’s intelligence and Adam’s high opinion of it (Adam considered the snake very wise), the devil spoke through the snake so that Adam would think that the snake, being intelligent, was able to imitate even human speech.
 | Author: Severian of Gabala Rank: Bishop AD: 425 |
We must, however, listen to the words that have been read. Blessed Moses, remember, told us that they were naked without feeling shame (for they did not know, after all, that they were naked, clad as they were in ineffable glory, which adorned them better than any clothing), and added: "But the serpent was the wiliest of all the beasts upon the earth made by the Lord. The serpent said to the woman: 'Why is it that God said, Do not eat of any tree of the garden?'" [ Gen 3:1 ] See the evil spirit's envy and devious scheming. I mean, he saw that the human being, creature though he was, had the good fortune to enjoy the highest esteem and was scarcely inferior in any respect to the angels, as blessed David also says, "You have placed him on a level scarcely lower than the angels," [ Ps 8:5 ] and even this "scarcely lower" was the result of disobedience, the inspired author, after all, uttering this after the disobedience. The author of evil, accordingly, seeing an angel who happened to live on earth, was consumed by envy, since he himself had once enjoyed a place among the powers above but had been cast down from that pinnacle on account of his depravity of will and excess of wickedness. So he employed considerable skill so as to pluck the human being from God's favor, render him ungrateful and divest him of all those goods provided for him through God's loving kindness. What did he do? He discovered this wild animal, namely, the serpent, over coming the other animals by his cunning, as blessed Moses also testified in the words, "The serpent was the wiliest of all the beasts on the earth made by the Lord God." He made use of this creature like some instrument and through it inveigled that naive and weaker vessel, namely, woman, into his deception by means of conversation. "The serpent spoke to the woman," the text says.
Consider from this, dearly beloved, how in the beginning none of the wild beasts then existing caused fear either to the man or to the woman; on the contrary, they recognized human direction and dominion, and as with tame animals these days, so then even the wild and savage ones proved to be subdued. But perhaps in this case some may raise a difficulty and seek to find out if the wild animals also shared the power of speech. Not so perish the thought; rather, people, following Scripture, need to consider the fact that the words came from the devil, who was spurred on to this deception by his own ill will, while this wild animal he employed like some convenient instrument so as to be able to set the bait for his own deception and thus upset the woman first of all, being ever more readily susceptible of deception, l and then, through her, man the firstformed. So he employs this irrational animal for laying his plan, and by means of it he speaks to the woman in these words: "'Why is it that God said, Do not eat of any tree of the garden?'" Notice in this case the extreme subtlety of his malice: in the unfolding of his planning and inquiry he introduces words not spoken by God and acts as though motivated by care for them. This, in fact, is what emerges from his words, "'Why is it that God said, Do not eat of any tree in the garden?'" As if the evil demon were saying, Why did he deprive you of such enjoyment? Why does he not allow you to share in the good things in the garden instead of granting you the pleasure of looking at them while not permitting you to possess them and thus gain the greater enjoyment? "'Why is it that God said?'" What, he is saying, is the reason for this? What is the advantage of life in the garden when you aren't free to enjoy the things in it, but are even worse off in incurring the more intense pain of having sight of things but missing out on the enjoyment that comes from possessing them?
Do you see how he uses the words like a bait to inject his poison? The woman should have been able from his very approach to recognize the extremity of his frenzy and the fact that he deliberately said what was not the case and made a pretense of care for them as part of his plan so as to be in a position to find out the instructions they had been given by God, and thus lead them to their downfall. So he did not want her to be able to recognize his trickery immediately and thus abandon converse with him as being idle speech and so avoid being dragged down to a low level. After all, there was no need for her to get involved in conversation with him in the first place; she should rather have conversed with the person for whose sake she came into being, with whom she shared everything on equal terms, and whose helpmate she had been made.
But acting impetuously how, I know not she got involved in conversation with the serpent and through him as through an instrument she took in the devil's deadly words; so it ensued that she learnt from the devil's speech the very opposite to the words' real sense, and that whereas the Creator gave one set of directions, the devil said the opposite to the Creator about avoiding him, quitting further conversation with him and having only abhorrence for the creature presuming to sharpen his tongue against the direction given to them. In fact, through her grave negligence she not only failed to turn away but revealed the whole secret of the Lord's direction, thus casting pearls before swine and fulfilling what was said by Christ: "Don't cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under foot, turn on you and tear you to pieces," [ Matt 7:6 ] as in fact happened in this case. I mean, she exposed to swine, to that evil beast, that is, to the demon acting through it, the divine pearls; he not only trampled on them and opposed them with his words, but turned and led into the rupture of disobedience not only her but also the firstformed man with her. Such is the evil of idly and casually exposing to all and sundry the divine mysteries. Let those give heed who idly and indiscriminately open their mouths to everyone.
Christ, after all, is not talking about real swine in that verse, but referring to people who behave like swine and, in the manner of animals, roll in the mire of sin; he thus teaches us to recognize differences in people and look to the propriety of their life style whenever it is necessary to keep secret any of the divine sayings, lest we bring harm on them and ourselves. Such people, after all, not only reap no benefit from what is said, but of the times even drag down into the same depths of ruin as themselves those who incautiously offer them these beautiful pearls. Hence we must guard them scrupulously lest we suffer the same fate as those who are deceived in this regard. You see, if in the present instance also the woman had decided not to offer pearls to swine, she would not have fallen into the abyss herself nor dragged her husband down with her.
 | Author: John Chrysostom Rank: Bishop AD: 407 |
As for the serpent’s speech, either Adam understood the serpent’s own mode of communication, or Satan spoke through it, or the serpent posed the question in his mind and speech was given to it, or Satan sought from God that speech be given to the serpent for a short time. .
 | Author: Ephrem The Syrian Rank: Monk AD: 373 |
Having spoken of their naked state--which, because it was adorned with a heavenly raiment, was not shameful--Scripture turns to write about the astuteness of the serpent, as follows: "And the serpent was more astute than all the other wild animals that the Lord had made. " [ Gen. 3:1a ] Now even though it was astute, it was only more astute than the dumb animals which are under the control of mankind: it had not yet, just by reason of its having surpassed the level of animals in its astuteness, been raised to the level of mankind. That irrational creature was only more astute than the cattle; that mindless serpent was only more crafty than other animals. For it is clear that the serpent did not have a human mind, seeing that it did not possess human wisdom; whereas Adam, who surpassed the serpent in the way he was fashioned, by having a soul and an intellect, by his glory and by his location, clearly also infinitely surpassed the serpent in astuteness. For Adam, who had been set in authority and control over animals, was wiser than all the animals, and he who gave names to them all was certainly more astute than them all. For just as Israel could not look upon the face of Moses, [Exod. 34:33-35] neither were the animals able to look upon the radiance of Adam and Eve: at the time when they received names from him they passed in front of Adam with their eyes down, since their eyes were incapable of taking in his glory. So even though the serpent was more astute than the other animals, compared to Adam and Eve, who had authority over animals, it was foolish. Having spoken of the serpent's astuteness, it turns to describe how the deceitful one came to Eve, as follows: "And the serpent said to the woman, 'Did God really tell you not to eat of any of the trees of Paradise?'" [ Gen. 3:1b ] On the matter of the serpent's words: either Adam knew the serpent's own language, or Satan spoke through it; or the serpent asked the question mentally, and speech was granted it, or Satan asked God that speech should temporarily be granted to the serpent.
| Author: Ephrem The Syrian Rank: Monk AD: 373 |
Although the serpent was cunning, it was only more cunning than the dumb animals that were governed by Adam. It is not true that because the serpent surpassed the level of animals in cleverness, it was immediately raised up to the level of human rationality. It was only more clever than those animals that lack reason and was only more crafty than the animals that had no mind. For it is clear that the serpent, which did not have the mind of man, did not possess the wisdom of mankind. Adam was also greater than the serpent by the way he was formed, by his soul, by his mind, by his glory and by his place. Therefore it is evident that in cunning also Adam was infinitely greater than the serpent. .
| Author: Ephrem The Syrian Rank: Monk AD: 373 |
The tempter then turned its mind to the commandment of the One who had set down the commandment. Adam and Eve were commanded not only to not eat from the tree, but they were not even to draw near to it. The serpent then realized that God had forewarned them about even looking at it lest they become entrapped by its beauty. With this in mind, the serpent enticed Eve to look upon it. .
| Author: Ephrem The Syrian Rank: Monk AD: 373 |
The serpent signifies the devil, who was certainly not simple. His cleverness is indicated by the fact that he is said to be wiser than all the beasts. The serpent was not said to be in paradise, though the serpent was among the beasts that God made. For paradise signifies the happy life, from which the serpent was absent, since it was already the devil. He had fallen from his beatitude because he did not stay in the truth. And we must not be confused as to how the serpent could speak to the woman, when she was in paradise and it was not. The serpent entered the paradise spiritually and not bodily, as the apostle suggests: “You were living by the principles of this world, obeying the ruler who dominates the air, the spirit who is at work in those who rebel.” .
 | Author: Augustine of Hippo Rank: Bishop AD: 430 |
The cause of envy was the happiness of man placed in paradise, because the devil could not brook the favors received by man. His envy was aroused because man, though formed in slime, was chosen to be an inhabitant of paradise. The devil began to reflect that man was an inferior creature yet had hopes of an eternal life, whereas he, a creature of superior nature, had fallen and had become part of this mundane existence.
 | Author: Ambrosius von Mailand Rank: Bishop AD: 397 |
Since every creature is subject to passion, lust stole into man’s affection with the stealth of a serpent. Moses was quite right in representing pleasure in the likeness of a serpent. Pleasure is prone on its belly like a serpent, not walking on feet or raised on legs. It glides along, so to speak, with the slippery folded curves of its whole body. Earth is its food, as it is the serpent’s, for it has no comprehension of heavenly food. It feeds on things of the body, and it is changed into many sorts of pleasures and bends to and fro in twisting wreathes. It has venom in its fangs, and with these the dissolute individual is disemboweled, the glutton destroys himself, the spendthrift is undone.
| Author: Ambrosius von Mailand Rank: Bishop AD: 397 |
[The Devil] aimed to circumvent Adam by means of the woman. He did not accost the man who had in his presence received the heavenly command. He accosted her who had learned of it from her husband and who had not received from God the command which was to be observed. There is no statement that God spoke to the woman. We know that he spoke to Adam. Hence we must conclude that the command was communicated through Adam to the woman.
| Author: Ambrosius von Mailand Rank: Bishop AD: 397 |
In the statement 'the serpent was more cunning' you understand to whom reference is made. This is our Adversary, whose wisdom is of this world. Gratification of pleasure has been fittingly called wisdom, because it is called the wisdom of the flesh as in the statement, 'The wisdom of this flesh is hostile to God.' [ Rom 8:7 ] The seekers after pleasure are shrewd in their choice of means for its gratification. If you understand, therefore, gratification of pleasure to be, in fact, an act contrary to the divine command and hostile to our senses, this is in accord with what Paul states: 'I see another law in my members warring against the law of my mind and making me prisoner in the law of sin. [ Rom 7:23 ] If you ascribe this to the Devil, what other cause of enmity is there except envy? As Solomon says: 'By the envy of the devil death came into the world.' [ Wisd. 2:24 ] The cause of envy was the happiness of man placed in Paradise, because the Devil could not brook the favors received by man. His envy was aroused because man, though formed in slime, was chosen to be an inhabitant of Paradise. The Devil began to reflect that man was an inferior creature, yet had hopes of an eternal life, whereas he, a creature of superior nature, had fallen and had become part of this mundane existence. This is the substance of his invidious reflection: 'Will this inferior acquire what I was unable to keep? Will he leave the earth and attain heaven, whereas I have fallen to earth thrust down from heaven? I have many ways and means by which to deceive man. He was made of slime, earth is his mother, and he is involved in things corruptible. Although of superior nature, his soul is nevertheless subject to temptation, since it exists in the prison house of the body- witness my own experience in being unable to avoid sin. This, therefore, is my first approach, namely, to deceive him while he is desirous of improving his condition. In this way an attempt will be made to arouse his ambition. The next approach is by way of the flesh, promising fulfillment of all his desires. Finally, how else can I appear to be wiser than all men if not by the exercise of cunning and fraud in my warfare of entrenchment against man?' Accordingly, he contrived not to attack Adam first. Rather, he aimed to circumvent Adam by means of the woman. He did not accost the man who had in his presence received the heavenly command. He accosted her who had learned of it from her husband and who had not received from God the command which was to be observed. There is no statement that God spoke to the woman. We know that he spoke to Adam. Hence we must conclude that the command was communicated through Adam to the woman.
The nature of the temptation presented on this occasion is now clear. In addition to this, there are other occasions when many other kinds of temptations are in store for us. Some of these come from the Prince of this world, who has vomited into this world what might be called poisonous wisdom, so that men believe the false to be true and are emotionally carried away by mere appearance. The Enemy's attack is not always in the open. There are certain powers who put on the external form of what is desirable and gratifying so as to pour into our thoughts the poison of their iniquities. From this source come those sins which arise from indulgence in pleasures or from some infirmity of the mind. There are still other powers who may be said to wrestle with us, as the Apostle says: 'For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood but against the Principalities and Powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness on high.' [ Eph 6:12 ] They wish by this belligerency of theirs to break us and, so to speak, to force out the breath of life from our bodies. Wherefore, like a good athlete, Paul knew how to parry the blows of the opposing powers and even to strike them as they advanced to the attack. Hence he says: 'I strike with my fists, not as one beating the air.' [ 1 Cor 9:26 ] And so like a good athlete he merited the crown of victory. [ 2 Tim 4:8 ] The temptations of the Devil, then, are manifold. For that reason he is believed to be a deadly, double tongued serpent, doing the Devil's work by saying one thing with the tongue and by harboring other thoughts in his mind. There are other servants of the Devil who aim at us poisonous shafts of word and thought, such as are described by the Lord: 'You brood of vipers, how can you speak good things when you are evil?' [ Matt 12:34 ]
| Author: Ambrosius von Mailand Rank: Bishop AD: 397 |
The listed verse explanations of the individual persons have nothing to do with the explanations of the other persons. This also applies to the Bible translations.
