This particular atheist' response was a result of these two posts: (1 and 2.) I will acknowledge his comments, below:
ajistotle: I don't see the point in this really.
genesis/science: Of course not. Because you didn't read where the atheist wrote above, emphatically, SNAKES DO NOT EAT DIRT. But they do eat dirt, all the time in fact.
However, sadly the atheist never bothered to look up the definition of "dust" vs. "dirt" in his Hebrew word studies, nor concordance, for one would soon realize the term "dust" translated from Hebrew doesn't refer exclusively to "dirt". It is dust, which can apply to lice for instance. Would you agree lice is "dirt"? Perhaps, dirty, but not dirt. Yes, lice is dust according to the bible. Also, in the Bible, "dust" can be many things, including tiny bits and pieces. Small creeping things, amidst the litter of the ground. But I gather you are an atheist, who doesn't like your patent truth(TM) of atheism (aka another sorry religion) questioned. Atheism is afterall, "the one true truth" is it not? Agnostics do tend to offer more coherent discussions as they're seldom guided solely on emotions, guarding their "patent truth of truths".
ajistotle: Several animals crawl on their abdomen, even the ones with legs like lizards, snails, tortoises and so on and obviously the food they ingest will be stained with dust or dirt to some extent. Were they also cursed?
genesis/science: Yes, they do, and they also possess in their dna the capability to evolve. In the case of the snake, however, they will "forever go on their belly". Tis true.
Paraphrasing a Herp Expert (Lenny Flank):
From genetic analysis, we know why snakes don't have vestigial fore-limbs.
There was a change in one of the HOX genes that shifted the body plan forward. Snakes have no neck vertebrae --- they are all thoracic and abdominal. Genetically, fore-limbs form where the cervical vertebrae begin. Snakes can't grow front limbs. The vestigial rear limbs appear where the abdominal vertebrae meet the tail. Even though a snake looks like it is all neck or all tail, in reality, it is all body."
Now, if you wish you may go argue with Lenny Flank, as I'm sure you don't like what he has to say, but be forewarned, he's an atheist and also an expert on snakes. So pack a lunch.
ajistotle: Even cattle and other animals that eat grass will take in a bit of dust with it too.
genesis/science: Thank you for making that case. Yes, and the snake was cursed above the cattle.
ajistotle: After a lion hunts a prey, it is also likely the struggle between them causes the prey to be stained with dust, is the lion also caused with eating dirt.
genesis/science: There you go again, presuming the Hebrew term translated into "dust" means "dirt". A mistake many Atheists make, but in fact, a learned scholar would inform you, "dust" may refer to bits and pieces of burned sacrifice. Litter...
ajistotle:You are simply oversimplifying things to suit your case.
genesis/science: And you sir, are simply trying to overcomplicate the facts, to suit your purpose... that is, to promote atheism, in spite of actual facts. I have provided two important facts in this post:
- Snakes DO eat dirt. Atheists have (quite ignorant needless to add) denied snakes eat dirt.
- "Dust" in Hebrew does not mean "Dirt" to the exclusion of all other things and substances. Anyone who thinks it did, has proven their lack of understanding of Biblical languages.
ajistotle: What that part of the bible represents is a definite curse on a single animal and as such, the punishment must be unique to that particular animal.
genesis/science: Again sir,
Paraphrasing a Herp Expert (Lenny Flank):
From genetic analysis, we know why snakes don't have vestigial fore-limbs.
There was a change in one of the HOX genes that shifted the body plan forward. Snakes have no neck vertebrae --- they are all thoracic and abdominal. Genetically, fore-limbs form where the cervical vertebrae begin. Snakes can't grow front limbs. The vestigial rear limbs appear where the abdominal vertebrae meet the tail. Even though a snake looks like it is all neck or all tail, in reality, it is all body."
All other animals, including other legless varieties of creatures that slither, may eventually evolve legs, but snakes will continue to "go on their belly and eat dust all the days of their lives.
ajistotle: If several other animals also slug in dust and dirt with their food, the the curse is absolutely pointless.
genesis/science: and cattle quite enjoy a good dip in the dust.
Cattle happily bathing in dust.
Your point?
Does anything you've said up to this point change either fact that's been pointed out?
- Snakes DO eat dirt. The ATHEIST was in error.
- Dust does not exclusively imply "dirt".
ajistotle: In fact since the bible says the snake is cursed above every cattle....
genesis/science: There we go with overcomplicating things. The ATHEIST said, "Snakes do NOT eat dirt."
ajistotle: and above every beast of the field, your explanation fails terribly as cattle
genesis/science:Did the Atheist say, "Snakes do NOT eat dirt". Well, snakes do eat dirt. I can point you to several scientists who will confirm that scientific fact for you. Atheism falls short, and fails terribly in the science department.
ajistotle: and a lot of beasts take in dust with their food and therefore the snake doesn't suffer more than any of them.
genesis/science: Let me repeat this fact, one last time. With hopes it will finally sink in.
Paraphrasing a Herp Expert (Lenny Flank):
From genetic analysis, we know why snakes don't have vestigial fore-limbs.
There was a change in one of the HOX genes that shifted the body plan forward. Snakes have no neck vertebrae --- they are all thoracic and abdominal. Genetically, fore-limbs form where the cervical vertebrae begin. Snakes can't grow front limbs. The vestigial rear limbs appear where the abdominal vertebrae meet the tail. Even though a snake looks like it is all neck or all tail, in reality, it is all body."
The snake shall go on its belly all the days there are snakes on the planet... until they evolve into some other form of creature though that's doubtful to happen any time soon since they've been around for a hundred million years or so. Snakes will never have four limbs as do cattle, they will slither in the dust, and consume dust. Ask a rabbi to explain what "dust" means... perhaps a mouse for dinner could compare with a chunk of leftover sacrificial lamb. Meat... yes, meat can be dust. However, snakes will forever, be on their bellies. They never again will rise and walk like cattle or any other beasts because of something called a "HOX" gene.
ajistotle: Therefore, the point still holds, snakes DO NOT eat dirt.
genesis/science: You're an atheist. ;-) Just like any liars for their religion. You do your creed proud!
Had it been an Agnostic, they'd shrugged their shoulders and said "So what? So snakes consume dirt, big deal. Now I'm off to enjoy life!" But an Atheist wallows in denial of facts, miserably hung up on shitpicking details to overcomplicate truth, science and indisputable facts for the cause of converting others (who do not even want their fanatical militant atheism shoved down their throat) and lie. Sir, snakes DO eat dirt. The atheist (above) who was writing, sadly, he was writing out of ignorance. Obviously he assumed in his limited understanding of Hebrew, that "dust" meant the English equivalent of "dirt". I'm sorry that Atheists fail to actually study before taking on serious subjects like theology. He should go obtain a master's or PhD in biblical studies, THEN come back and write his presentation, until then, he was wrong. Snakes DO eat dirt.
ajistotle: Snakes may swallow dust and dirt WITH food like SEVERAL other animals, but snakes do not exclusively eat dirt.
genesis/science: Sir, scorched meat and remnants left over from the ancient Hebrew sacrifice constitutes "dust". Lice constitutes "dust". If we are speaking of the Bible, then you must stick with the Hebrew definition and quit superimposing a modern English context into a language that is thousands of years old, and very different from your own. But then again, you are an atheist, and atheists are quite religious-minded, where reality itself is limited to their perception of truth. If in your reality the word dust only means "dirt" then 3500 years ago when the Hebrews wrote of "dust," of course they thought to themselves, "In 3500 years there will be an atheist named ajistotle, and we must write the whole bible to accommodate his egocentric reality... therefore, we're speaking of dirt." Yeah, sure. Sir, the Hebrews didn't give two flips about the modern English context of "dust," because English did not exist back then, and I'm sure in your limited Atheist perception, that too seems impossible. A world without the English language. Well sir, English too evolved... just like snakes lost their legs, re-evolved their legs, and lost them again. And there was a HOX gene that shifted, and therefore snakes will NEVER walk again. That is the only reality, unless science has changed its opinion on the effect of what a HOX gene shift may do to a snake's body plan.
ajistotle: And oh, the other appendages of your argument likes dust may mean bones or lice or anything else still fail,
genesis/science: because you are an atheist, and quite content with those patent arguments with Y.E.C. and other fundamentalists. The facts are
- The Atheist was wrong. Snakes DO eat dirt.
- Dust can mean sacrificial remnants of meat.
All your proselytizing for Atheism will not change either fact, not one iota.
ajistotle: because the fact still remains that none of this problems is unique to a snake and not to any other animal.
genesis/science: Did you actually just say THAT?!?
One last time for good luck!
Paraphrasing an Atheist and a Herp Expert (Lenny Flank):
From genetic analysis, we know why snakes don't have vestigial fore-limbs.
There was a change in one of the HOX genes that shifted the body plan forward. Snakes have no neck vertebrae --- they are all thoracic and abdominal. Genetically, fore-limbs form where the cervical vertebrae begin. Snakes can't grow front limbs. The vestigial rear limbs appear where the abdominal vertebrae meet the tail. Even though a snake looks like it is all neck or all tail, in reality, it is all body."
Now Mr. Atheist, if you can prove worms and other legless creatures all have that shift in the HOX gene, you just let us know. Then you can say it's "not unique" to snakes. The Bible was correct on that note. The snake shall go on its belly... ALL the days of its life, unless it evolves and learns to walk on two legs as man did. But that's doubtful to happen sir, as man has only been on this planet for about four million years (counting hominids) and snakes have been around for about 150 million and haven't mastered bipedalism. So its a safe bet to say, Snakes "shall go on their bellies all the days of their lives."
Oh wellll, I suppose this conversation was more interesting than more of those idol worshipers arguing again that the snake was the mythological satan... aka the "war in heaven" between Tiamat and Marduk and a rehash, in the Titans cast down by Zeus to the lowest hell... yes, THAT satan, the myth, the idolatry of modern theism. Atheists and Theists have quite a lot in common. They really don't enjoy a fact-based reality.
Addendum
On this post, I used a video of donkeys taking a dust bath.
Deliberately. Purposely.
If it is an atheist, he/she will freak out. Because "donkeys" are not "cattle" ... at least in the modern English definition of what constitutes "cattle".
But Hebrew was very limited to its meanings/context. Just as the Hebrews confused whales with fish. Perhaps their confusion is actually our own, lost on the language barrier. Or perhaps, the Hebrews really did believe whales were fish and completely lacking knowledge that whales were mammals. Its very difficult to properly translate Hebrew, a 3500 year old language, into modern English. I've even asked myself at times...
Europeans EAT horse meat, and horses are also used as beasts of burden.
So, does that make the horse "cattle" as well?
I don't know. AND you know what else, does it really matter? Hebrew is a culture, buried in history, deceased and many things will just never be known about what the Hebrews may or may not have meant. But does it really matter to anyone? Because, if we're looking to Atheists and Theists, its obvious neither of these two extremes even care about the truth! That's right. If you present a fact to an atheist, and he feels that fact threatens his precious beliefs he shall surely conjure up fantastic lie upon desperate lie to deny a fact. ANY fact! Same goes for Theists, they dislike the truth about their "Holy Bible" so much, most refuse to even read "The Word of God". Well at least, the first half of the Bible and when their intermediater (preachers, not Jesus) interpret the Old Testament for them (they must, because the sheep are too afraid to think for themselves)... the Old Testament is handled with kid gloves instead of the courage to accept hard facts, including the distasteful facts about the Old Testament.
What does it matter when besides, I'm interested in LIVING in the here and now... today. Atheists do need to get a life.
Strong's Concordance
( http://biblesuite.com/hebrew/4735.htm )
miqneh: cattle
Original Word: מִקְנֶה
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: miqneh
Phonetic Spelling: (mik-neh')
Short Definition: livestock
Word Origin
from qanah
Definition
cattle
NASB Translation
acquired (1),
cattle (10),
cattle* (1),
flocks (1),
herds (1),
livestock (54),
possessions (3),
purchased (1).
THE MODERN ENGLISH ( PROPER BIOLOGY ) DEFINITION OF "CATTLE" EXCLUDES animals beyond cows and oxen. Even sheep aren't classed among the cattle in our modern perception of what properly constitutes "cattle". But I read "cattle" in the Hebrew Bible and it feels as if it indicates a context, like described in Strong's Concordance, a most rudimentary term for "livestock". And I think those of us with an inkling of knowledge about the Hebrews would agree the Hebrews were certainly not Biologists or familiar with zoological classifications to differentiate "cattle," as cow vs. horse, no more than they differentiated fish from whales.
Hebrew can be summed up as simple thoughts make for simple words. Atheists zealously overcomplicate things, and prove absolutely nothing except their militant religious zealotry. As if others fail to recognize what's going on... ZEALOT is stamped on their forehead: A total turn off to *whatever brainwashing* they're promoting.
The concordance stated "cattle" (Hebrew) can be translated in the general sense as "livestock".
Are Horses livestock?
What is livestock?
Livestock is most commonly considered animals kept or raised in a farm or ranch setting and used in a commercial enterprise. The raising of livestock is an agricultural endeavor that promotes the preservation of green space and a way of life that many in today's society desire.
Are horses livestock?
Yes, horses are livestock. Traditionally, and legally, horses have been considered livestock in the United States. Even today, horses are still kept and raised on a farm or ranch and are used in a commercial enterprise.
http://www.thehorse.com/articles/10520/definition-of-horses-as-livestock
An AGNOSTIC Response
An Agnostic Respondee: At least the snake wasn't cursed with pain in childbirth or having to farm the land and clear weeds to get its food. So all in all the snake wound up O.K. compared with the curses placed on Adam and Eve. *smile*
But I'm still pondering what kind of a "curse" is it for an animal to be cursed millions of years before any humans it could "tempt" ever lived?
Or to be "cursed" to do the same things many animals already do that crawl on their bellies on land?
genesis/science: I don't know. I guess I would have to be the Hebrew who wrote Genesis, to know the exact context in which the book was written in. But we both agree that God did not write the Bible. So your guess is good as mine.
Just a small thought here about what that Hebrew term translated to the English term, "curse" even means: Perhaps its pointed toward a cultural thing. Snakes above all animals, are feared immensely by most people. I doubt you would disagree with that. Just as the Hebrew culture "cursed" swine as filth and unclean, and in other cultures, pork is highly prized as a delicious meat. In some cultures snails are treated with disgust and in others, as a delicacy. Same for shellfish... the Hebrews abstained from all of it as unclean. BUT WHY???
Here we have God sanctifying ALL meat as clean to eat:
"Every moving thing that liveth shall be food for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things:"
- Webster's Bible
Genesis 9:3
Then Moses and the priests, (organized religion) proceed to yet change again, God's own command... as they did with practically everything else.
Forgive me for getting sidetracked, on the overall, snakes are despised, universally. Dreaded as slippery, slithering, venomous fang-bearing [predators as you say] and dreaded... cursed... one of the worst insults is to say of a person, "He's a snake in the grass!!" Perhaps because it states it would "cursed" to forever strike at the feet of humans, and that humans would forever "bruise" its head, and that's pretty much so, for every snake I've ever seen deliberately killed, they strike for the head of the snake. Where they might allow a poison tree frog the liberty to leave, even spiders, every nasty, poison, stinger bearing pest and predator... humans tend to allow them to escape. But snakes, its seldom so. People will run for a hoe to chop its head off. Fear fills most people when realizing they're in the presence of a snake and rightfully so I suppose. I've seen the horrific injuries snake venom can cause.
So, who knows what precisely the Hebrew implies?
Embraced by a few who have nerves of steel to handle Cobras, Black Mambas and the like... but on the overall, culturally, universally, worldwide snakes are dread. Culturally, as a whole, snakes are either revered or cursed. In some ways, worshipped. Hebrew idolatry resulted in the worship of the babylonian myth Tiamat, which transformed into satan. The myth is worshipped in the form of both a snake and a dragon, one of which we know is a completely mythological creature like unicorns. And this concept of snake worship was mentioned as well in the Old Testament when Moses set a snake on a pole and the Hebrews worshiped it. It was then commanded to be destroyed as the Hebrews (like modern Theists) began worshipping a relic, like many Christians sadly still do.
(http://bibleq.net/answer/2111/)
Why did God save the Israelites with a bronze snake when idolatry was forbidden?
God specifically required the people to “look” at it, not to worship it.
700 years later, when the Jews later did start to worship it, king Hezekiah had to destroy it.
I never thought of it before, but perhaps somewhere in Hebrew history... this serpent worship was from where the Hebrews originally made their first connection with the idolatrous "Satan" (aka snake) worship. In which begins making its first introduction into Jewish literature, late O.T. to New Testament.
2 Kings 18:4
He removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan).[1]
[1]Nehushtan sounds like the Hebrew for both bronze and serpent.
These idol worshipers are "God's Chosen People"? Chosen for what? Obviously, they were only chosen to make a example of.
An Agnostic Respondee: There's also amphibians that lost their legs, and who move on the bellies, not just reptiles. The amphibians probably lost their legs earlier than the reptiles because amphibians as a class preceded reptiles, and even earlier still were the worms who were cursed to never have legs at all, starting back in the pre-Cambrian. Long curse I'd say.
So how exactly are animals cursed when they go on their bellies? The species we know about seem to get by as well as many other species. And snakes are predators so it gives them an edge to lay low while hunting prey.
National Geographic said he did "what he felt he had to do." Killing it.
There's "the curse" if there is one.
genesis/science: A brief note: All the more reason people fear these creatures and will run for their hoe to chop a snake's head off. If it were any other creature, chances are they would allow it to escape.
Maybe you have to take all the verses that speak of the snake and consequences of "the curse" in context, to form the whole picture of what the Hebrew author was attempting to relate in meaning.
"Cursed" above cattle tends to lead me to conclude that perhaps, "cattle" refers to livestock.. creatures which are raised for dairy and meat-consumption, namely, SLAUGHTERED for food. Therefore, "cursed" above all cattle.
One or two additional notes, without intending to be a shitpick.
One: I grew up on a farm. Had there been a * four limb reptilian predator * on the farm, that posed a danger, it would have likely escaped, whether on its own, or humans preferring not to engage it and allowing it to escape on all fours. If it did not, I don't recall any attempts to kill any such creatures, ever. There were never any lizard kills. There were never gator captures. There were never any creatures that posed a real issue except: SNAKES. But in any instance, if a snake were found, we always called for an adult and my dad would come running with a rifle or hoe, and always aimed for the head. My brother too, he had it in for snakes. They were and still are, loathed and despised.
Also, if we were driving down the road, and a snake was crawling across the road my parents usually tried to swerve, drive over the snake in hope to kill it. Had it been any other animal they'd swerved to miss it. Truly "cursed" if there ever were a "cursed" animal. I'm not saying this is right to do to wild animals but it happens a lot. And I suppose I would much rather see a dead snake laying on the highway than a snake free to crawl up in my yard and bite one of my dogs or a child. My family treated the cattle well, fed them a lot of good hay, clean water... but snakes were "cursed above the cattle" that is: Slaughtered without discretion. My family sent a well-fed cow or two to the slaughterhouse, but slaughtered far more snakes.
I should add this too: The Atheist who was posting, has very little knowledge about cattle obviously. I say this because while growing up on a farm, I learned that cows are by far more picky about the hay they will eat than given credit by those not familiar with the diet of livestock. If their hay is not clean, dirt-free, cows will avoid eating it.
So, I'm afraid the Atheist critic was oversimplifying the reality about cow diets, and how readily they're willing to eat "dirt":
"...Like many ranchers that have found themselves squeezed in recent years by outside forces—from drought and a weak economy to rising oil and grain prices—Davis who owns 75 head of mixed-breed cattle, wanted better control of his input costs, especially the hay his cows wasted eating from traditional hay rings each winter.
The problem with a hay ring is that cattle stand outside the feeder, tear the hay out, and let the excess fall from their mouths. When cattle bite off too much, as they are inclined to do, the waste falls to the ground, gets trampled and otherwise damaged – and will not be eaten."
http://www.cattlenetwork.com/cattle-news/186378111.html
Two: I hate to stoop to the level of an atheist and shitpicking desperately to prove a point whether or not its a rational one just for sole sake of disagreeing with the Bible (somebody needs a life), but just for sake of semantics and to further emphasize the meaning of the Hebrew term for dust. "Lice" itself is "Dust" by the ancient Hebrew definition. Snakes eat lice all the time because wild mice and other small creatures are crawling with lice and disease. Now, whether or not ingesting any of these filthy pests harms the snakes or cause them any irritable bowel issues, is unknown to me. But none the less, snakes eat dust = lice.
Human louse-transmitted infectious diseases
( ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/ )
in Microbiol Infect. 2012 Apr;18(4):332-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-0691.2012.03778.x. Epub 2012 Feb 23.
Human louse-transmitted infectious diseases.
CDC - Lice - Head Lice - Disease
( cdc.gov/parasites/lice/head/disease.html )
Nov 2, 2010 - Education and information about head lice, head lice disease, and pediculosis.
( fancymice.info/ailments.htm )
Lice:
Lice may also live in the coats of pet mice and rats. They are flattened, wingless insects that suck tissue fluids and blood from the skin of the host. Lice are larger than mites and can usually be seen without a magnifying glass. Lice are most often transmitted by direct contact with infested bedding and between infested and unaffected individuals.
The lice of mice and rats are found most often on the neck and body. They suck blood and can therefore cause anaemia (and sometimes death) and transmit blood-borne diseases to rodents. Louse infestations may also cause scratching, hair loss and skin wounds. A veterinarian should be consulted if louse infestation is suspected.
Diseases and Disorders of Mice
Infestations of blood-sucking lice are common in wild mice, but are rarely seen in pet mice. Human beings will not be affected if their pet mice have these lice, because the lice do not cross over from one animal or species to another. Heavily infested mice show intense itching, restlessness, weakness, and anemia (lack of red blood cells). Infestation is diagnosed by identification of adult lice or eggs on the fur. Lice are treated similarly to mites (see Mice: Skin and Fur Mites).
The point here is: Snakes DO eat dust. Quite a lot in fact. By ratio the numbers of lice infestations snakes consume by far outnumber, the number of rats snakes caught which the lice were crawling on.
Further Elaborating on What "Curse" Probably Refers To
An Agnostic Respondee: "But I'm still pondering what kind of a "curse" is it for an animal to be cursed millions of years before any humans it could "tempt" ever lived? Or to be "cursed" to do the same things many animals already do that crawl on their bellies on land? There's also amphibians that lost their legs, and who move on the bellies, not just reptiles...."
genesis/science: I looked up the scripture because I think you and I were still not reading the scripture quite right, to put it into the same context the author of Genesis was intending to write it.
Genesis 3:14
"And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:"
- King James Bible "Authorized Version", Cambridge Edition
This, "CURSED ABOVE ALL" is restricted to a comparison with
- Cattle.
- Beasts of the Field.
Now, since we both know Biblical authors were not zoologists, YOU tell me "what defines "cattle" and what defines "beasts of the field" in Hebrew"? The word, "Field" is still used today, either with a battleground or an area sectioned off to plant corn, wheat, barley, oats, etc. Its obvious to some degree what types of animals the serpent will fair more miserably than; cattle and beasts of the field. The author is speaking of creatures that relate directly to agriculture; Livestock and creatures that may be in a farmer's gardens / field, for whatever reason. Could he mean for instance, wolves? Or foxes? Or other animals that may be considered pests, or beasts of burden? What does he mean by "beasts of the field"? Cattle we both would agree, are livestock in the general sense, and if you wish, you can narrow it down to cows and oxen.
I remember many days gathering corn and never ran on any "beasts" though we were always on the lookout for snakes because mice run rampant in corn fields, and where there are mice, you always find snakes... only more well-hidden. The poison, fang-bearing kind too.
The author of Genesis goes on to better elaborate on what he means by "cursed," in the next verse. The result of this "curse".
Genesis 3:15
"And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."
- King James Bible "Authorized Version", Cambridge Edition
God is taking direct credit for why when people find a wild snake in their garage they go into hysterics. A man comes out with protective gear and if he can't disperse with it, he kills the invasive snake. When a snake is found in a garden patch or field, the children run and scream for their daddy to get his gun or their mother to "bring a hoe. Quick!!!" I will never forget the horror when I was young and impressionable, the traumatic shock, when in a field picking beans, I brushed back a lot of weeds that were knee-to-waist deep and it took a second while my eyes focused, and seeing a stoney shaped, beady eyed, drawn into scanning mode, what appeared to be a diamond-headed copper-colored snake... I stared at it. It stared right back, not moving... it was looking at me, calculating its threat level, I stayed only long enough to pick up my bucket and ran. I was OUT of that field as quick as I could go. That butterbean field could pick itself for all I cared and the snake could have it.
However, I simply dont recall any other "beasts" or "beasts of the field" that struck fear and loathing (aka, "enmity between") into any who farmed, such as a snake does.
So, I believe that is what the author of Genesis may be eluding to. He knew snakes were in an exclusive class by themselves in regard to farming/agriculture. Farmers will kill them if they run on a snake. I think my parents tried to differentiate between rat and king snakes vs. rattlesnakes and copperheads, on the basis of whether or not a snake was poisonous, yet my parents' reasoning behind killing the ratsnake was always it would probably go near the chicken house and steal the eggs. So rat snakes had to die too. I never saw a King snake near our farm. Only heard conversations about them, more out toward the wooded area. My parents claimed that King snakes would kill other types of snakes, esp. dangerous ones. So the green Grass snake (due to its tiny size) and the King Snake were the only two I remember my parents allowing to live.
A Pair of Kings
"Kingsnake" is a term familiar to many people who associate it with those snakes that, due to their immunity to snake venom and their powers of constriction, can kill and eat venomous snakes. The species most often associated with this name, and status, is a beautiful shinny black animal with narrow bright yellow or whitish cross bands. This is the Eastern kingsnake. These snakes do not purposefully hunt venomous snakes, indeed they eat many other kinds of snakes, rodents, and other items. But their earned reputation with venomous snakes provides them a welcome by many landowners who might otherwise be unfriendly to snakes. An adult Eastern kingsnake may grow to over 4 feet in length, is a handsome sight, and is correctly perceived as one of the jewels of our upstate fauna.
In addition to the Eastern kingsnake, the mole kingsnake dwells in open areas and forest edges of our upstate. Living up to its name, this species spends considerable time under ground, and seeing one in the open is a rather rare sight. Most specimens are found as they crawl across roads. The mole kingsnake grows to 3 feet and is light glossy brown with darker brown blotches. This may sound copperhead-like, but this kingsnake has a very narrow head and body quiet different from a copperhead. They feed mostly on rodents.
Both of these kingsnakes are secretive, spending much time out of sight, and therefore may live around people for years without being discovered. Then one day, there one of them is in your driveway, or on your back porch. After you get over the surprise, enjoy the visit.
http://www.dnr.sc.gov/wildlife/snakes/snakes5.html
An adult Sierra Mountain Kingsnake eating a juvenile Northern Pacific Rattlesnake in Fresno County.
© Patrick Briggs
http://www.californiaherps.com/snakes/
So, your Agnostic mind has got to be reeling, asking, "Well then, didn't the King Snake evade the curse in Genesis?" The problem is, the King Snake never ventures much near fields/farming plots that I ever saw. At least not that I ever recall. There were corn snakes, there were even rattlesnakes that came up through the fields and settled in near buildings around the farm, copperheads too. Rat snakes were abundant. As I said, I recall my parents telling about a kingsnake that killed a poisonous snake. They found the King Snake, back of our property, deeper in the wooded swampy forested area. They just didn't harm King Snakes. My parents welcomed that variety on their land.
The verse in Genesis, regarding "the curse" seems to point directly to farming and agriculture exclusively. The author specifies the snake will be cursed "above cattle and beasts of the field". He doesn't say anything about "beasts of the earth" or "beasts of the sea". Not even "beasts of the forest" or "beasts of the desert and prairies." It's very agricultural-specific.
I don't recall seeing the tiny green snake in the field either. They sometimes would come up into our yard. They might be found hanging on a tree limb. Cute as they were. I saw them at times in wooded areas around the area where the fields were planted, but never in the fields.
So, I never saw King Snakes killed. Nor did I see green snakes killed. I did see aggressive varieties of poisonous snakes killed, or any snake which posed a threat to steal eggs like rat snakes and red-belly moccasins, or any variety which could otherwise cause harm to our livestock and poultry. Though "rat" snakes probably kill rats which is good, rat snakes also kill baby chickens and ducks which is bad for a farmer. So rat snakes were killed if they were found anywhere around the hen-house.
The author of Genesis is referring to a "curse" which is agriculture-related. That is the only thing I can conclude when I've taken all the verses into their context.
A Summary
Genesis 3:14
"And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:"
Genesis 3:15
"And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."
- King James Bible "Authorized Version", Cambridge Edition
These verses state, the snake is cursed above all cows, oxen, sheep, goats, et cetera. Why these? Because these varieties are specifically bred and raised for SLAUGHTER. Cows and oxen are treated quite well; fed well and given good treatment until they are sent to the slaughterhouse! Poor cursed livestock. Beasts of the field may refer to "other animals" that wander into farm territory such as wolves, or lions. Recall David's reaction to a "beast" which preyed on sheep. However, snakes are SLAUGHTERED typically with no discrimination, especially if they're on a farm. Snakes are normally slaughtered without a second thought. "Enmity" would be a good choice of words. The verses are excluding all types of areas outside of farmland, specifically. These verses do not apply to ocean-dwellers, or rain forests, or deserts, or any territory where agriculture is not practiced, such as forests and open prairies. The verses state the snake is "cursed" to forever move on its belly, and consume dust (rubble of sorts); perhaps a better way of saying it in English is, the snake will be a bottom-dweller on farmland. The verses state, God would put "enmity" (a loathing thereof) between humans and snakes when they cross each other on farmland. Man will kill snakes by aiming to cut their heads off, and snakes will strike at the human's feet.
One further elaboration, on the term "dust" itself in the English language! In English, when we say "dirt," we mean dirt. But when a housewife speaks of "dust" she seldom refers to "dirt". She would be referring to those fine particles that accumulate on tops of television sets, bookshelves, windows, and elsewhere. "Dust" in English, is very different in what composes it compared to dirt. Dust can sometimes contain particles of decomposing insect remains, i.e., a fly wing might be part of the dust.
Google Definitions describes the modern English definition of dust as, "(1) fine, dry powder consisting of tiny particles of earth or waste matter lying on the ground or on surfaces or carried in the air. Synonyms; dirt, grime, filth, smut, soot. (2) cover lightly with a powdered substance.
So, when even the English still distinguishes a difference between "dust" and "dirt" we know the translators of the King James and et cetera translations, book of Genesis, were probably trying to make a distinguishing between "dust" and actual "dirt". The Hebrew did not intend to imply "snakes eat dirt," although incidentally, actually, due to their hunting methods, since they are close to the surface of the ground (on their bellies) they do consume a regular supply of "dirt." Which, since dirt itself may be part of what "dust" consists of, there is no contradiction there either. Just ties in to further the point I'm making. The term "dust" itself has a quite different meaning than simply "dirt".
"And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed..."
This too is an interesting find.
Snake-Fang Evolution Mystery Solved -- "Major Surprise"
I ask myself, exactly "when" in the fossil record did fangs evolve in snakes, toward the front of the jaw, such as with cobras? I can't find any definitive answer to that. I don't know which cobra fossils they might have, and at what age the rock they were discovered in was dated. But even the most primitive snakes had fangs located toward the rear regions of their jaws.
"...The discovery suggests venomous fangs—the lethal evolutionary invention that led to snakes becoming so successful—arose only once about 60 million years ago." (See the N.G. link)
But that is only addressing the back jaw. Not necessarily the type of snake that is so dreaded by humans. When did the viper and similar species, evolve?
Soooo....my question is, "What is this "ENMITY" the author in Genesis refers to that was placed between man and snake?"
They studied embryos, noticing how the fangs migrate toward the front of the jaw.
"...a study of the embryos of eight front- and rear-fanged species has found that fangs always first appear at the back of the upper jaw before migrating forward in vipers and cobras.This previously unidentified transformation in the unborn young occurs due to "rapid growth of some parts of the upper jaw relative to the others," Vonk explained.
"It's a major, major surprise," the zoologist said of the findings, which will appear tomorrow in the journal Nature...."
Another article of interest is (see this link):
"The remaining species in this family in Georgia are rear-fanged snakes with weak venon. These snakes have an enlarged pair of teeth in the rear of the upper jaw. However, these teeth are not like the true hollow fangs of the dangerously venomous Pit Vipers and Coral Snakes."
So there's a bit on fang evolution.
Still, no matter.
I'm almost certain, what the author of Genesis is implying when he uses that term "to put Enmity between man and snake" (implying that at one point in human history there was no such "Enmity" between man and snake), has much to do with the threat of fangs. At least, that is my suspicion. But that's only for starters, there must be more to it still, because that in itself doesn't address snakes which are non-poisonous. Farmers today distinguish between good and bad snakes. Such as ratsnakes. They aren't fang-bearing (even in the rear-fanged snake species) but farmers still kill them.
Where the curse on Adam and his "seed" (children) begins with what you said already I believe,
"...At least the snake wasn't cursed with... having to farm the land and clear weeds to get its food.... *smile*"
Where there is agriculture, there are weeds. And where there are weeds, there will be snakes. Snakes bite. Snakes steal the farmer's eggs.
Those first chapters in Genesis has everything to do with farming, and the first farmer on Earth.
NOT "the first human". We both know Cro-Magnon roamed those regions up to 40,000 years ago and were preceded by Neanderthals. So any holy book that would claim Adam or any other were the "first man" is a book of myths. The author of Genesis does not make such a claim. The author of Genesis states, "There was not a man to till the ground." That implies, there were no farmers.
And, according to the story of Eden, God himself created a "Garden" and put a man there to tend to it. The entire Earth was not a "Garden," nor does the author of Genesis claim the world was weed free. Nor does the author of Genesis ever imply there was "no death before the fall of man or original sin". The author of Genesis implies the "garden of Eden" was a small microcosm in Mesopotamia (taken in context) and evidently that tiny garden was weed free. Where we find weeds, we find snakes.
A snake wandered into Eden.
The whole chapter is speaking of the first human agriculture.
It was all the pseudo-scientific and biblically-illiterate theologians, preachers, et cetera who have confused and mislead people on what the author of Genesis was ever implying when he wrote of the curse on the serpent. Those ignorant "experts" in their wretched and hate-filled attacks on Charles Darwin wanted people to believe the book was saying Adam was the "first human" on earth and that Darwin was a blasphemous Atheist for ever suggesting man evolved. Therefore theologians have spent decades evading the true and necessary emphasis on the scripture that simply states, "There was no man to till the ground" (as in modern agriculture). No such claim by the author of Genesis was ever made, that humans did not already exist in the region, nor did it imply Adam was the first man.
The author of Genesis goes one further, to claim that the man "Cain" left from among his family and went out and took a wife... and these false, lying interpretations by Anti-Darwinists, have wildly asserted Cain married his sister (incest). Desperate lies, in hopes of reaffirming their Anti-Darwinist rhetoric that "Adam" was the first man to live on Earth and "how dare Charles Darwin claim there were man, before Adam."
The author of Genesis asserts no more and no less, than there was "no man to till the ground." So God placed this agricultural minded "adam" in this little garden to tend it. When Adam transgressed, he was driven from the garden and weeds were promised to him as a curse. Snakes, from that day forward would be one of his major adversaries. And, tis true. There is nothing so annoying while trying to tend to a farm and garden than the (1) weeds and (2) snakes that pop up in the weeds, and most especially when they're the fang bearing kind.
So there it is. You can blame the theologians, scholars, preachers, Darwin-haters, science-haters, anti-evolutionists, and all the other ilk who have diligently tried to skew and obscure the most simplest of biblical text to suit their pitiful Anti-Charles Darwin campaigns. I don't see what is so difficult about reading it for what the verses are saying in such plain English, especially if you're not filtering these verses through the interpretations of 10,000 biblically and scientifically-illiterate fundamentalist preachers.
What spoke through the mouth of the Snake?
Forensic investigators would find no traces of any "satan" in Genesis, but "the Lord" was present at the scene of the crime.
The author of Genesis does not say "satan" spoke. In fact, the author of Genesis was emphatic it was merely a beast of the field.
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made.
To know what heavenly power deceives, and opens animal mouths to speak, we find that answer in Numbers 22.
21 And Balaam rose up in the morning, and saddled his ass, and went with the princes of Moab.
22 And God's anger was kindled because he went: and the angel of the Lord stood in the way for an adversary against him. Now he was riding upon his ass, and his two servants were with him.
23 And the ass saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, and his sword drawn in his hand: and the ass turned aside out of the way, and went into the field: and Balaam smote the ass, to turn her into the way.
24 But the angel of the Lord stood in a path of the vineyards, a wall being on this side, and a wall on that side.
25 And when the ass saw the angel of the Lord, she thrust herself unto the wall, and crushed Balaam's foot against the wall: and he smote her again.
26 And the angel of the Lord went further, and stood in a narrow place, where was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left.
27 And when the ass saw the angel of the Lord, she fell down under Balaam: and Balaam's anger was kindled, and he smote the ass with a staff.
28 And the Lord opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?
29 And Balaam said unto the ass, Because thou hast mocked me: I would there were a sword in mine hand, for now would I kill thee.
30 And the ass said unto Balaam, Am not I thine ass, upon which thou hast ridden ever since I was thine unto this day? was I ever wont to do so unto thee? and he said, Nay.
31 Then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, and his sword drawn in his hand: and he bowed down his head, and fell flat on his face.
32 And the angel of the Lord said unto him, Wherefore hast thou smitten thine ass these three times? behold, I went out to withstand thee, because thy way is perverse before me:
33 And the ass saw me, and turned from me these three times: unless she had turned from me, surely now also I had slain thee, and saved her alive.
34 And Balaam said unto the angel of the Lord, I have sinned; for I knew not that thou stoodest in the way against me: now therefore, if it displease thee, I will get me back again.
These verses do not imply speaking donkeys are "divine gods" or "fallen angels," but that God sends delusions and hallucinations.
Another example in the chapter of Exodus 4,
The LORD said to him, "What is that in your hand?" And he said, "A staff."
3 Then He said, "Throw it on the ground." So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from it.
4 But the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand and grasp it by its tail "-- so he stretched out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand--…
Just as God commanded Adam to not partake of the forbidden fruit, Moses delivered God's commands to Pharaoh to let his people go. But Pharaoh refused to hearken to God's command, and why?
Exodus 9:12
And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had spoken unto Moses.
There is no mention of "satan" tempting Eve, or any other human in all the first books of the Bible. It is God who spoke through the mouth of the serpent to tempt Adam into transgression, just as God deliberately lead Pharaoh into temptation against his own commands.
God tempted Adam with the hallucination of a talking snake. God used the mouth of a snake to speak through. As demonstrated in Pharaoh's court, the Lord caused the hallucination of a snake to appear before Pharaoh, so perhaps the snake Eve witnessed was God himself, in the form of an apparition, a hallucination, an illusion. But none the less, God was the power behind the verbal temptation spoken through the snake, to know whether or not they would obey his commandments.
I (feel I) have answered your questions adequately concerning the author's reasoning for singling out the snake as "cursed above cattle" and since the snake itself was a "beast of the field," it was cursed above all other "beasts of the field."
There are no whales, no rain forest tree frogs, no legless amphibians which are even in the equation... unless they live wild on farming property.
As for myself, I withhold any claim that I am giving any personal endorsements to any particular writing in the Bible (due to books like Job which are completely man-made fiction composed of ancient common Jewish folklore and mythical in its origins). I am suspicious however, the first initial opening chapters of Genesis came from a very different source than the rest of the Bible. That is, the rest of the Bible is filled with extensive examples of mythology and man-made religiosity and each book, chapter, verse to be carefully scrutinized at what is truth and what is the production of man.
Yet, I set apart these opening chapters, as having strange incidental truths with the opening of recorded human history and beginning of agriculture (how could the author of Genesis possibly know about the significance of "tilling of the ground"? How could he know that at one time in history, "there was no man to till the ground"? Only learned experts in anthropology and archaeology should know such things, i.e., about 10,000 years ago farming (agriculture) did begin in Mesopotamia when man began to "till the ground"... I am absolutely perplexed by this.
My views DO NOT AT ALL correlate with fundamentalist religion as established religions are froth with ignorant ideas about the teachings of science and human history and desperate seething angst they press forward in any shape, form or manner skewing scriptures in a flawed attempt to deny evolution or Darwin's theory, and blissfully teach mythology in lieu of anything that remotely resembles "Biblical scholarship".
Nor do I believe Moses wrote the "Five books of Moses" because many writings which were attributed to Moses, were composed postmortem. If Moses did write the first few opening chapters of Genesis, from where did he get his information? Perhaps from Egyptian teachers? Learned Egyptian scholars who would have a written record and recollection about the evolution of Agriculture, how it began, perhaps. The Egyptians did, indeed, have mathematicians and other such men of learning, who had deep respect for knowledge and education.
The opening chapters of Genesis simply do not fit with the rest of the Bible. The opening chapters do not even quite fit with the remaining chapters of Genesis itself. I have read the book and they simply feel as though are from different sources.
Those who do have a problem with the interpretation of the opening chapters of Genesis, perhaps because they filter the interpretations of each verse through the lies, myths, misinterpretations and falsehoods espoused through the modern xtian mythology instead of objectively reading the plain text as it is written.
A Matter of Perception
An Agnostic Respondee: People put labels on animals, calling some "beneficial" and some "harmful" to humans and/or their crops, and then humans go after the ones they label "harmful" (including using chemical warfare in the case of certain insects), while we feed and care for the animals we consider "beneficial." If any animal is cursed it seems to be the fly, mosquito and spider, since we swat first in each case. The Bible also mentions scorpions as being harmful, as in Luke 10, "Behold, I have given you the power to tread upon serpents and scorpions and upon the full force of the enemy and nothing will harm you." Of course humans also go after wolves, since they steal our sheep, which we sheer, cook and eat.
It's a very human-centered designation as to which animal WE consider "beneficial."
As Robert Anton Wilson pointed out, "I recall one day in Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago around 1968, I came upon a Great Horned Owl. He or she was in a cage with a sign saying among other things that he or she was a "desirable" bird. The desirability of the Great Horned Owl was explained by the fact that he or she eats various critters that annoy farmers. This seems to me one of the silliest things I ever saw outside a Creationist journal. My own hunch is that the Great Horned Owl would consider itself desirable no matter what humans thought about the matter; and I also suspect that the critters eaten by the G.H.O. do not consider it a desirable bird at all, but probably regard it as actively nefarious."
genesis/science: I can not disagree with a thing you've stated.
Whomever the author of Genesis was seemed to be conveying just that.
The snake is an unwelcomed, unwanted, undesirable (a.k.a. "cursed" from a human point of view) pest or, "beast of the field" as Genesis calls it, snakes are killed wherever agriculture occurs and there are human settlements.
Even in city limits, people go to all lengths to keep their lawns mowed and trash clear (due to city ordinances) for fear of snakes moving in and becoming a threat to people.
Namely... snakes. Other creatures are farther down the threat list.
Otherwise, for many cultures, snakes hold a great fascination for people. Whether scientific curiosity about snakes... horror films such as Anaconda, and included in some cultural practices, aka "snake charmers" or religious rituals such as the Old Testament when Moses placed a bronze serpent on a pole, and some religious sects in Xtianity seems enraptured with the desire to "handle" snakes, and soforth, so on... etc.
I wonder just how much Ancient Egyptian Snake Mythology influenced latter Jewish "satan" mythology. I find this interesting. "Apep" was the snake-demon of the underworld. The snake in xtian mythology, also rules over hell (the underworld). The mythological xtian snake-satan transforms through three forms, as it comes in the form of a
- dragon (mythological)
- Apep (Egyptian snake myth) or
- satan portrayed in the description attributed to Nehebkaw which is part human.
"...The snake had mixed popularity in Egypt because snakes caused the danger and the cure to the venom. Apep was a snake-demon of the underworld, who tried to stop Ra on his nightly journey through the land of the west. The four primeval goddesses of the Ogdoad - Naunet (water), Amaunet (invisibility), Hauhet (infinity) and Kauket (darkness) - were also snake goddesses. There was a snake god called Nehebkaw who was depicted as a man with the head and tail of a snake."
( touregypt.net/featurestories/animalgods.htm )
P.S. the "curse" on the worm (?)
An Agnostic Respondee:...also amphibians that lost their legs, and who move on the bellies...amphibians probably lost their legs earlier than the reptiles because amphibians as a class preceded reptiles, and even earlier still were the worms who were cursed to never have legs at all...
genesis/science: As you've so eloquently pointed out, "cursed" is all a matter of perception. The "curse" in (its whole) context was in no way related to creatures... even SNAKES, in tropical forests where man and snake seldom cross paths, oceans where sea SNAKES skim along the surface for catching the "dust" of the ocean, deserts where man seldom inhabits, et cetera. The "curse" is all from a farmer's perspective and besides, I doubt too the worm ever felt in any way it was "cursed" as enjoys every tasty mouthful of a moist cow pie. Another fact I learned while growing up on a farm, Earthworms are invaluable in the production of compost piles. No farmer would want to harm the earthworms that aide in the breakdown of organic materials in the soil.
"IF YOU ARE AMONG the millions of Americans who keep a garden, you already know that earthworms deserve more affection and gratitude than their lowly reputations might indicate. Worms mix and aerate soil, making it a more appealing place for seeds to germinate and for plants to grow. Their tunnels create pathways for roots to follow. And in ways that are still becoming clear to scientists, worms increase the population of beneficial microbes in the soil. These microbes in turn make the nutrients in organic matter more accessible to plants.
“What comes out of the back end of an earthworm is hundreds—probably thousands—of times more microbially active than what goes in,” says Clive Edwards, a soil ecologist at Ohio State University."
Nature’s Gardener or Forest Invader?
...earthworms are dramatically changing the world beneath our feet—for better and for worse
Dust
Genesis 3:19 "...till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.:.."
Merely "clay" or "dirt"? Oversimplified atheist and creationist answers. Of course they don't like real study of the Bible as it might bring them to a place they don't like the conclusion. But they certainly will trivialize when its expedient to their own agenda. What Jesus meant by straining at a gnat but swallowing a camel.
Think about what is in clay/the ground... just dirt? No, worms and other crap. The ground is littered with decaying organic matter, etc.
What becomes of a dead rotting corpse? Most will take weeks, months, years, an eternity to decompose. Rotting.
It does not turn to "dirt". It turns to rotting organic material crawling with maggots or other larvae and all manner of oozing crud.
Also, that's more of what "dust" means in Hebrew.
They wrote of a sacrificial animal's remains of scorched flesh and bone as "dust" which further emphasizes the meaning of "dust" in the Hebrew of Genesis.
More Dust
genesis/science: I am to suppose, you don't have any further arguments to offer in regard to what "dust" means in the ancient Hebrew context (actually, the definition of the English term "dust" which is confirmed in an english dictionary to include decaying organic matter like fly wings, etc., and translators chose to use for *however* Hebrew pronounced???? word, aka ha ha "dust").
...what the meaning of that hebrew word means... you dont argue.
...and you dont argue what "cursed above all cattle" means ???
An Agnostic Respondee: I think the Hebrews were patriarchal, anthropocentric and also ethnocentric thinkers. They thought the world revolved around "man," "humanity," and the nation of Israel. So they are the ones who came up with the idea that some species were "cursed."
genesis/science: Yeah, pretty much and God came up with the idea that he would establish a covenant with these people and make an example of them. Seems an example is also made of everyone who blindly believes "Solomon was the wisest man of all" when Jesus should've been deemed wiser by Xtians, and blindly defend the folly of Israel when they stoned women to death who did not bleed on their wedding night, and the Xtians and Jews who blindly defend the mythology that turns up in their own Bible about Satan. They haven't came any further than the idol-worshipers who wrote many sections of the original patriarchal, anthropocentric and also ethnocentric Hebrew scrolls.
But do I believe "God" was involved with their foolishness? Yes indeed. Why not? I do believe it. It makes perfect sense that the living God is right there in it chastizing humans for their foolishness. These Xtians would say, God is too holy and righteous to go where there is Evil, Stupidity, Sin... but of course, the Xtians LIE and DENY the scriptures which contradict their cherished idolatry of Satan, Isaiah 45:7, (KJV) - "I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things."
They ignore that when considering "who or what" caused a snake to speak. They do not want to believe their God is capable of crafting evil, mischief... the ultimate master of a Machiavellian world. In other words, they do not want to know God (though it is written in their own Bible)! Oh, and I should add, they _don't know_ God. They REALLY DON'T KNOW God... and I don't acknowledge the existence of their foolish idols and false religions.
By the way, just to point out about the xtian idolatry of Satan, the scriptures in Genesis are silent about any "Michael the archangel and lucifer falling from heaven" or the author of Genesis elaborating on "satan cast down from Heaven". Scriptures in Genesis are silent whereby the influence of Greek mythology might otherwise explain "why" the snake was cursed. It only states that after the snake's mouth was opened and lead man into temptation ... and man succumbed that the snake became cursed. Needless to add, according to some theories of Genesis, the claim Satan was cursed because he rose up in rebellion against God and cast out of heaven, that mythology does not mesh with the curse in Genesis, because the "curse" placed on the snake in an agricultural settings, would have taken place supposedly MILLIONS of years after the fact. Therefore, according to that particular interpretation (theologians call "The Gap View,") satan and the snake can not be the same entity. Two separate "rebellions" that in no way relate. Needless to add, the one myth is no where mentioned by the author of Genesis!
Then again, "satan the snake god" makes a lot of sense only if you don't think about it.
But, from an agricultural perspective, the snake is pretty much "cursed". Farmers will go on killing snakes, as long as there are farmers.
However, it is not the author of Genesis your grievance primarily lies with. The Hebrews, just like Mayans, Sumerians, Babylonians, Hittites, Egyptians, et cetera, were what they were. It is these people, in the modern day who are self-declared "authorities of scripture" who superimpose THEIR erroneous interpretations, THEIR doctrines, THEIR falsehoods, THEIR LIES AT ALL COST on the masses (including yourself) about how to "properly interpret" these ancient Hebrew verses into English. Also, they will help you "see the light" at a cost... just like any gypsy or common fortune teller... to give of your tithes and offerings. You know they are wrong about the Bible, and that's why you are perturbed with their religious dogma and, noticeably as well, they always bring the anti-Darwin rhetoric into their exegeses, too. They should learn in silence themselves...
There were wars fought over this very thing. The Protestants felt that the common person could read (and understand) scripture just fine by themselves, guided by God's spirit to understand the divine nature of the scriptures... by themselves with aide of God's guidance to teach them. The latter apostles declared the same thing, that the common people would take scripture to themselves and "be taught by God" as to the proper meaning in scripture.
Sadly, times are no different than when the Catholic church forbid the common people to study the Bible. The common people have a brain, but do not use it. In the Dark Ages if the people were to have an opinion, it was because the Pope gave it to them. Today, even still, the people mindlessly look to ordained men to read the scripture for them and to lead them astray.
That is why, nobody ever made that much mention of the "curse" being limited to the bean patch or corn field, or places in which agriculture occurs. A very limited curse indeed, if you ask me.
The curse results in 2 things:
- The farmer lopping off the head of a snake.
- The snake striking at the lower extremities.
An Agnostic Respondee: Just like their other idea that some nations were "cursed."
genesis/science:Further, just a few decades there was much ado about the "'Curse' on Canaan" and a lot of racist mythology spun off from that, claiming the black race itself spawned from Canaan.
As if God, would give supernatural endorsements for what a man sputters during a drunken hangover induced rage. These scriptures merely state what is written in black and white for those who dare to exercise the reasoning center of their cerebral cortex.
Noah was drunk and had passed out. (A Holy Man, Indeed!!!) His son Ham enters, sees his father naked. Exits. Tells his brothers, and when Noah learns of it, he "curses" ... not his son, but his grandson. But Noah did not possess any supernatural powers of cursing or blessing. Would God be foolish enough to give supernatural endorsement to the sputtering of a an old drunk? But the Hebrews obviously believed these men possessed the power.
The author or authors of Genesis, do not even state that millions of people, a whole race of people, would be affected by this drunken "curse" against Ham and his son. It was directed solely at Ham and Canaan. Noah was so drunken, he began cursing the child that was not even listed as present during the incident. But this is how Xtians twist scripture, and if those people who blindly follow the false interpretations of preachers and theologians, instead of simple prayer and faith (learning in silence themselves!!) will be lead astray by the many false teachers.
Genesis 9:20-27
[New International Version (NIV)]
20 Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard.
21 When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent.
22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father naked and told his two brothers outside.
23 But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s naked body. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father naked.
24 When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him,
25 he said,“Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.”
26 He also said,“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem.
27 May God extend Japheth’s[b] territory; may Japheth live in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be the slave of Japheth.”
An Agnostic Respondee: "Dust" in houses today is mostly human skin cells. But in the ancient world it probably meant any matter beneath one's feet, as in "dust of the earth."
genesis/science: Also, the English-speaking still recognize the definition for "dust" provided by the original English translators, such being, the word "gold dust" is often applied to fine grains of dust, and it very well includes the larger chunks that are found amidst the finer particles. I'm certain with your extensive grasp on language studies and gift of verbiage, you can think of many, many more examples than I!
An Agnostic Respondee: And things beneath the foot of "man" were "cursed." They were "beneath man."
And "man" could not imagine moving on his belly and being that near the dust of the earth as anything other than a curse.
That's because the human imagination was so filled with the idea that humans were the species "God liked most."
genesis/science: It's how ancient man explained the natural world as it is.
The "Olive Tree" also was supposedly God's chosen tree.
However, its worth noting that other cultures had their "sacred tree worship" (idolatry of sorts), and the Hebrews could not bear it to do without integrating pagan culture into their own. So when the pagans were worshiping trees, the Hebrews chose the Olive Tree as their cultural icon, blessed and packaged it, as "God's (TM) Tree".
