Absolutely, and I’ll show you where …
… after we review the two suggestions that I made in my last article. First, when reading the Bible, you must remember that it is God’s story first — not yours. He is the Author, and Primary character, and all other characters are secondary — that’s you, me, and everyone else ever born on the planet. Within that understanding, you will be presented with things that make total sense, things that make some sense, and there will be plenty of things in His story that make little or no sense at all and/or are at least … WEIRD.
But remember that in His story, He establishes Himself as God of all the omnis — He is omnipotent (all-powerful), He is omnipresent (everywhere), He is omniscient (all-knowing), He is omni-benevolent (all-loving). Thus, since He is all these things, He knew from the beginning how all of history would play out, and for reasons known only to Him, He chose to reveal His story to us in the places, time, and manner that He has.
Now, this certainly doesn’t make all the weird stuff go away, but if we believe in the God of all the omnis, we will have to decide to trust Him and dive headfirst into His omni-amazing story. The sooner that we do so, the sooner we will begin to get a grip on where we might fit into His great story.
That brings us to remembering my second suggestion from the last article — the Bible was written for you, not to you. It’s His story, written to particular people groups, in particular cultural contexts, over a period of, at least, 1,500 years. It was written by prophets, farmers, doctors, tentmakers, shepherds, royalty and commoners; written in the genres of narrative, prophecy, wisdom literature, gospel, pastoral letters, and mind-blowing apocalyptic literature.
Some of these books will make perfect sense, some will make some sense, and some will leave you in a quandary for days, months, years, and maybe a lifetime — and I can’t help but think that’s by design. If we understood everything about reality, God, and His story, we would have no need for Him. The path would be paved for us to live on our own power, make our own decisions, and establish little kingdoms all to ourselves.
The Dragon-Snake Makes Its Entrance
In the beginning of God’s story, from Genesis 1:1-2:4, we have a picture of God establishing His kingdom on earth. He speaks matter into existence by divine fiat — from nothing to something. He establishes a rhythm that is both powerful and beautiful at the same time. He says something, it is so, and it is “good.”
This rhythm happens six times over six days, and then God interjects in it a higher level revealed through a woman mysteriously taken from the side of man, declaring that with her it was now “very” good. Adam and Eve, created by God Himself in His image, placed into His garden to tend it for Him — and it was very good. Chapter 2 ends with a beautiful marriage declaration from Adam to his newly formed bride and then a blissful pronouncement from the narrator about the shamelessness in which they existed:
Then the man said,
“This at last is bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
this one shall be called Woman,
for out of Man this one was taken.”
Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.
— Genesis 2:23-25 (NRSVue)
What a beautiful setting: Man, woman, God’s perfect rhythm, and no shame to be found. Within His order, He provided for their sustenance via a multitude of trees in the garden. There was only one prohibition: to stay away from one tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Then, into this rhythmic, shameless, euphoric setting, walks the incarnation of shame himself — the shiny, crafty, talking Dragon-Snake:
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden’?” (Genesis 3:1 NRSVue)
“Walking, shiny, crafty, talking, Dragon-Snake,” you ask? To each of these I reply with a hearty “Yes.”
Weird Stuff in Genesis 3
Very WEIRD STUFF here. On so many levels. Let’s address them in reverse order.
1. The Term ‘Dragon-Snake’
First, the “Dragon-Snake” terminology. The term “serpent” in the original text is known in Hebrew as the nahash and can refer to something that is more of a dragon, angelic, shiny, flying, and/or walking creature. That’s why I prefer to call it a Dragon-Snake.
Obviously, Adam and Eve weren’t afraid of it and seemed to be captivated by its appearance and abilities. In my opinion, the Dragon-Snake wasn’t slithering on the ground like a typical serpent — yet. It walked, strolled with them, and became their friend.
2. The Dragon-Snake Talks
Second, it’s obvious that the Dragon-Snake was able to speak. Many have asked me whether the Dragon-Snake was really speaking, and I am convinced that the text is asserting that it was.
That’s also a major problem for Adam and Eve here. Why would they speak with a being without getting permission from the Creator? I think they were taken aback by the Dragon-Snake, his shiny, angel-of-light-esque appearance, and his smooth, alluring speech.
3. The Dragon-Snake Is Crafty
Third, the Dragon-Snake was/is crafty. This term, arum, can mean shrewd, cunning, and discerning. The Dragon-Snake was able to shrewdly, verbally call into question the rules established by the Creator for His creation and His garden that they were tending on His behalf.
The Dragon-Snake was shiny, beautiful, and cunning. In my opinion, he was jealous of Adam and Eve’s position in the Creator’s Kingdom and was staging a coup.
Adam and Eve Seduced
Genesis 3:2-13 records the terrible seduction perpetrated upon Adam and Eve known as the Fall. The Dragon-Snake seduced them into believing they would not die after choosing to eat fruit from the forbidden tree.
It was a fall so cataclysmic and deadly that it has been perpetrated upon every human ever born on the planet since that dreadful day. However, since He is God of all the omnis, the Creator had a plan to set everything back in order — yet not without a price and not without an epic, eternal battle. Here are the verses in Genesis 3 that record in God’s own words the results of the Fall and a precursor to the battle:
The Lord God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this,
cursed are you among all animals
and among all wild creatures;
upon 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 [seed] and hers;
he will strike your head,
and you will strike his heel.”
— Genesis 3:14-15 (NRSVue)
The word of God, setting things in order. The Dragon-Snake is now cursed to slither and eat dust for his crimes against the Creator and all of humanity. His angelic, dragon wings had been clipped.
The Battle Between the Seeds
Verse 15b of Genesis 3 is what has come to be known as the “Proto-Evangelium” or the first evangelistic proclamation:
“…He will strike your head,
and you will strike his heel.”
Yes, there they are in the third chapter of the first book of the Bible — evangelism and grace. Two terms that are typically associated with the New Testament and the work of Jesus recorded in that testament. But remember, He is God of all the omnis, and He had/has a plan for the gracious redemption of the mess that the Dragon-Snake, Adam, and Eve perpetrated upon the entirety of humanity and the planet they inhabit.
That plan has to do with a certain “He,” and yes, I have capitalized it here, because it is none other than Jesus Himself.
Many Bible students don’t know that Jesus is prophesied in Genesis 3. You don’t have to wait until the New Testament to hear the Gospel; it’s right there. Jesus, Seed of the woman, Eve, will come and ultimately crush the head of the Serpent, the Nahash. The rest of the Bible, every remaining book of the Old Testament, culminating in the New Testament, will emphasize this fact and declare it repeatedly.
He is undoubtedly the point of, or thesis of, the entire Biblical narrative, and you will want to dive into my next article as I highlight those heroes of the faith who engaged in this epic battle.
Join Dr. Jeff Voth and Dr. Nathan French for Weird Stuff in the Bible, a unique video series from Cavetime and Study Gateway! Try it free for 7 days!
In the Weird Stuff series from Cavetime, Dr. Jeff Voth and Hebrew scholar, Dr. Nathan French, discuss and make sense of some of the weird stuff in the Bible to ultimately point us back to the needed redemption of Jesus Christ.
Dr. Jeff Voth is a pastor, professor, and Founder of Cavetime. Jeff has a Doctorate of Ministry-Leadership in Community Spiritual Formation, a Master of Divinity, and a Master of Arts with an emphasis in Philosophy, Apologetics & Christian Worldview. He is the author of Cavetime, Defending the Feminine Heart, Why Lewis?, Jesus is the Thesis, A Thousand More Amens, and Serpent Crusher. He was selected into the Resident Scholars Program at the Kilns (home of C.S. Lewis) to do research at the Weston and Bodleian Libraries in Oxford England. Jeff has been married to his wife Lori for 40 years. They have three sons, one daughter, a son-in-law, a daughter-in-law and four grandchildren. They make their home in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
