Who Made the Serpent?
Upvote:0
Short form:
The error being made in using Genesis 3:1 to say God did not make the serpent is one of incorrectly parsing the genitive phrase. In order to make the case (and thereby introduce inconsistency with other scripture, you would need to prove that:
- "of the field" is less important than "which the Lord God had made" and only random in order
- that "which the Lord God had made" modifies beasts but not Serpent.
Absent these proofs, the claim implicit in the question (that the Serpent is not a beast which God made) is simply not supportable.
Longer form:
The verse, of course, says:
Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made
Case 1
To make your case, you need to emphasize the which the Lord God had made:
Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast
of the field(thing) which the Lord God had made
Or, put another way
Serpent > Any (thing) God made.
This would be a valid interpretation if this were to be treated as a singular genitive phrase.
Case 2
By contrast, the more mainstream reading would be
Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.
In this reading, the emphasis is on the phrase 'any beast of the field'. The idiomatic expression 'which the Lord God had made' is a subordinate detail to beast of the field - it is simply a modifier. Put another way,
Serpent > Any beast of the field. Incidentally, God made the beasts, and we are scoping this as all beasts that God made, which is all of them.
Analysis
In order for Case 1 to be valid, other references (especially John 1:3 - All things were made by Him, without Him was nothing made that was made) would be in conflict. This alone would be enough for a coherent reading of all Scripture to make the point - but, I can, for sake of argument, not take this tack.
Instead, one would need to look at emphasis and word order, which in Hebrew and English is significant. The mere fact that beasts is modified by two prepositional phrases should already hint at where the emphasis would lie.
Furthermore, it is equally valid, that as a genitive phrase, which the Lord God made could be modifying both serpent and beast. It would be syntactically ridiculous to say:
Now the serpent which the Lord God has made was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made
but it would be expressing the equally logical thought. In order to prove Case 1, you would need a compelling reason to discount this reading, which of our course cannot really made.
Upvote:6
Indeed, the Lord God created everything, as is well attested to by the Scriptures.
All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. John 1:3 NASB
For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. Colossians 1:16 NASB
Thus, the meaning of Genesis 3:1 cannot be that the Lord God did not make the serpent. What is likely meant is that the serpent was more subtle than any other beast of the field the Lord God had made.
More post
- 📝 Does the garden of Eden still exist?
- 📝 What is the basis for the Roman Catholic teaching regarding the Sin of Presumption?
- 📝 Age of Isaac When Abraham Offered Him as a Sacrifice?
- 📝 What are the main theological differences between Reformed Baptists and other Baptists?
- 📝 Jesus speaks about actors/acting?
- 📝 True Doctrines Or Heresies?
- 📝 Did any actual Puritan congregations impose scarlet letters on adulterers?
- 📝 Did J. Gresham Machen consider joining an existing presbyterian body before founding the OPC?
- 📝 Where does Augustine say that the rapture of the saved soul will "flow over" into the glorified body?
- 📝 Did Crimen sollicitationis threaten excommunication for victims reporting crimes to the civil authorities?
- 📝 No matter how badly a person sins, are they always forgiven?
- 📝 Why is the Feast of the Visitation held on May 31st, during the Easter/Pentecost season?
- 📝 Can Patron Saints be "dethroned"?
- 📝 What major views are there on the question of whether God shares moral responsibility for our deeds, good and bad?
- 📝 Are there biblical passages supporting a "quasi-incarnation" attributed to the mystical union of the Holy Spirit and Mary?
- 📝 What is the Protestant view of John 20:23 and the disciples ability to forgive sins?
- 📝 How do the 3 Protestant traditions deal with the two types of sin mentioned in 1 John 5:16-17?
- 📝 What is the Orthodox canon?
- 📝 When did the use of formal, seminary-type education begin and why?
- 📝 Is the Marvel Cinematic Universe an expression of "The Modern Attack"?
- 📝 How do the Personal Ordinariates differ from Anglicanism?
- 📝 What does the Bible say about gender segregation and free mixing of sexes in public places?
- 📝 Why does Christianity have Satan as well as God?
- 📝 Why was the devil given power over death?
- 📝 What is meant by the Jehovah's Witness statement "Jesus was dead, forever dead."?
- 📝 A confusion about the fullfilment of the law
- 📝 Particular judgment, general judgment, God's foreknowledge and free will
- 📝 Are there any Protestant beliefs which have their roots in Mormon doctrines?
- 📝 How would it be Just to have Jesus blaspheme against his own Law?
- 📝 Have there been any attempt in Christianity to draw a set of rules or principles on how the Bible must be interpreted?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 What is the Biblical basis for testing the truthfulness of every statement made by Prophets or Apostles who have been confirmed as 'real'?
- 📝 Are there any groups of Christians who believe that all loans made with their money should be made without the expectation of repayment?
- 📝 Was the KJV "too highly colored in many places with the party ideas and opinions of those who made it"?
- 📝 Who thinks women are not made in the image of God?
- 📝 How do Biblical Unitarians, who deny the Son's pre-existence, understand Hebrews 1:2's "through whom He made the universe"?
- 📝 Who [else] has made the claim that the Beloved Disciple is a new Benjamin?
- 📝 Who Made the Serpent?
- 📝 Who made the distinction between heaven vs. sky explicitly
- 📝 Who were the "giants" mentioned in the Bible?
- 📝 Who wrote the Book of Revelation?
- 📝 For Catholics who object to Vatican II, what are the key issues?
- 📝 Who is a Christian according to the Russian Orthodox Church
- 📝 According to Evangelicals, before the Reformation, who were Christians if “Catholics are not Christians”?
- 📝 What is the significance of Noah, after the flood, getting drunk and cursing his son who saw him Naked?
- 📝 Who was St. Joseph's Father? The New Testament seems to give two answers
- 📝 Who bought the Field of Blood, Judas or the Priests?
- 📝 What is the Biblical basis for withholding communion from believers who are unbaptized?
- 📝 Who is the prophet Moses mentioned in Deuteronomy 18:15?
- 📝 What does the Roman Catholic church teach about those who die having never heard of Christ?
- 📝 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego - who is understood as the fourth person in the fire?
- 📝 Who never died in the Bible?
- 📝 According to LDS (Mormon) teaching, who was the first God who began the eternal progression?
- 📝 What do Protestants who deny transubstantiation do with the remainders of wine and bread after the Eucharist?
- 📝 Among modern critics who believe in the attributed authorship of the Gospels, what are their arguments?
- 📝 Who first distinguished between the inerrancy of the Bible and the inerrancy of the original autographs?
- 📝 Who resurrected Jesus - the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit?
- 📝 Who wrote the book of Genesis? (Overview)
- 📝 Did God create the serpent in the Garden of Eden?
- 📝 According to the Mormon doctrines, who created the universe?
- 📝 God created male and female.... What about those who do not fit in the box?