Snakes are a controversial subject. It is not at all uncommon to find people who believe with all their hearts that snakes are truly creatures from the devil and something that has deep and lasting impacts on one's spiritual life and well being.
I've been thinking a lot about this and decided that maybe doing a bit of research would be a good thing, so I started looking into what Scripture has to say about snakes. What I found might surprise you, since what I found was that the Bible doesn't say anything at all about snakes. It does, however, talk a fair bit about serpents, and to many people that is the same thing. The problem is that in Scripture it's not always the same thing, and seeing it as such skews the view that one may have of snakes drastically!
The biggest argument for the deep hatred and superstition that many Christians hold toward snakes is that it seems to have been a snake that tempted Eve in the garden of Eden. This would mean that it was a snake that God condemned to crawl on its belly, a snake that Satan used as the embodiment of himself, and a snake that is forever doomed to be an evil reminder of the terrible fall that mankind took. All the Bible story books show us pictures of a snake, sometimes wrapped around a tree branch and sometimes wrapped around a pitchfork but always filled with evil intentions. The problem with this is that in Revelation chapter 12 we see a word picture painted of the evil serpent that tempted Eve, and that picture is not of a snake but of a "great dragon." This is the only place in scripture where the serpent from Genesis chapter three is described, which means that if we are honest, and if we take the Scripture literally, we have to admit that snakes might not deserve the bad rap they've gotten as the devil's tool.
Another argument that is often used in reference to the inherent evilness of snakes is the strong and often negative language that is used throughout the Bible about them. Evil people are often referred to as snakes and the danger and venom that are a part of snakiness is used as an illustration in many different passages. To some, this is enough to make snakes an obvious impersonation of evil, but according to this reasoning, we also have to condemn dogs, because they are used as examples only seven fewer times than serpents are. Psalm 22:16 says: "For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet."
Now let's look at the flip side of this coin; what are some positives we see in Scripture regarding the serpent? In Numbers chapter 21 God was very upset with the children of Isreal and sent poisonous serpents to punish them. If they were bitten they would die UNLESS they looked upon the bronze serpent that God had Moses construct and hang on a pole in the camp. That bronze serpent was a type of Christ. John 3:14 says, "Just as Moses lifted up the bronze serpent in the desert on a pole, so must the Son of Man be lifted up on the cross." If the serpent did indeed symbolize Satan and evil, why would God choose to use it as a symbol of Christ, His Son, Our Saviour?
Another place that we find a serpent in Scripture is in Matthew chapter ten where Jesus commands us as Christians to be "wise as serpents and harmless as doves." Many people who see a snake as a symbol of Satan also see doves as a symbol of Christ or the Holy Spirit. If this is true, then why would Jesus ask us to be like both in one verse?
There is yet another issue that must be addressed; God continues to make snakes. He makes them in all shapes and sizes with all kinds of gifts, talents, venoms, uses, and practicality. There are many people who despise them, and many who find them charming and fascinating, and from what I find in Scripture neither view matters because snakes are just animals. They do not hold mystical powers, and they certainly do not all belong to the devil. If they did would God really keep creating them and allowing them to do the world of good that they do on earth in terms of keeping rodents and insects in check?
There is no denying that many people do deal with a very real terror of snakes. As a bonified arachnophobic I understand this completely! Snakes, spiders, insects, horses, mice, bats, dogs, and even cats; any creature that is unpredictable and quick moving has the potential to be life threatening and therefore a source of great fear. This is a natural reaction and most likely the reason that God uses serpents as examples so often throughout Scripture. Fearing something and feeling that it is inherently evil are two very different things.
So my friends, before you jump on the snake hating bandwagon, take a closer look at Scripture, at the nature of Christ, and at the creative genius of our Father God. He is no fool who does not cling to groundless superstitions, but he is also no fool who feels deeply his convictions and knows why he feels them. Make sure that your feelings about the inherent good or evil of an object has to do with real facts and not centuries of conditioned feelings and beliefs. Snakes, and doves, and dogs- they are animals created by God for the good of mankind and the proper running of the earth. May I gently suggest that perhaps to see them as anything borders on, superstition?
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