Why Didn't Adam And Eve Find It Strange That A Serpent Was Talking To Them?

Why Didn’t Adam And Eve Find It Strange That A Serpent Was Talking To Them? Many people have a hard time believing that the serpent in Genesis 3 spoke because they claim animals don’t speak. For such people, “the problem is the talking snake.” Probably accounts like this lead some people to think that being a Christian almost requires you to stop thinking when you step into Church. Likewise, they say, “In the real world you are governed by reason and science. In here we talk about fairy tales as if they really happened.” Truthfully speaking, when it comes to the talking snake in Genesis 3, Balaam’s talking donkey in Numbers 22, raising the dead, healing the sick, divine encounters, and other miracles in the Bible, many people have a hard time believing because they haven’t experienced such or seen a miracle themselves.

Brethren, notice that it’s not because you haven’t seen something or experienced it that cancels its existence or makes it impossible. Some people may even go to the extent of saying something like, “Doesn’t science disproof this stuff?” Likewise, others may ask, “Can this be proven by science?” While we may not want to be on the wrong side of science, it’s important to know what science can and cannot do. As Christians, let’s think of science as a lane on a road. In the lane of science is the natural world; all the things that can be observed, studied, tested, and proven through experimentation. But the scientific method has no way to deal with the supernatural or miraculous. By definition, miracles or supernatural happenings are outside of what is natural and so they are outside the lane of science.

Why Didn’t Adam And Eve Find It Strange That A Serpent Was Talking To Them?

Knowing and acknowledging the strengths and limits of science will help us to better understand and answer this question. Behold, science doesn’t have the answer to all the questions. Science has its limits especially when it comes to the supernatural or miraculous. Notice that you can’t create an experiment to test something that is outside of its lane; like talking snakes, donkeys, or dead people rising. This doesn’t mean that science is deficient but that those things that are outside the natural order of things cannot be proven or disproved by it. Science can only conclude that in nature, snakes don’t talk. But this doesn’t mean that if God, or in this case, the devil, intervened in nature it could not happen. When the Lord God Almighty is involved, everything is possible.

As to whether or not animals have ever had the power of speech, there are powerful beings (God, Angels, Satan, Demons) who can manipulate the physical world, including enabling animals to speak. For example, we know of Balaam’s donkey that spoke to him and tried to keep him from going down a road where an angel stood and could be seen only by the donkey (Numbers 22:21–35). In the case of Balaam, the donkey spoke the truth with the intention of preventing him from being killed whereas, in the case of Adam and Eve, the serpent’s speech was intended for deception. Note that Satan is often referred to as a serpent or a dragon. And it is widely held that Satan was possessing the serpent in order to speak to Eve without raising suspicion.

The reason why we Believe in the Supernatural or Miraculous

Why should we even believe in the supernatural? Does the supernatural actually exist? How can we believe it? As humans, we are more likely to believe in the supernatural by experiencing it, observing it, and/or hearing about it from a trustworthy source. So, if we have not seen snakes talking ourselves, and there are no YouTube videos in which snakes have been recorded talking, how can we believe Genesis 3? And this leads to questions like, “Is the Bible a reliable source? Is it a trustworthy witness?” The answer is “yes” because Jesus Christ Himself affirmed the book of Genesis as history and He showed that He is trustworthy by His own resurrection from the dead which was recorded in history by reliable witnesses. Therefore, it’s only logical to believe that what Jesus Christ said and affirmed is true, even if such goes against the natural order of things.

As a matter of fact, even people who don’t believe a word in the Bible have to admit that there is death and that good and evil exist in this world. Although they may not be able to explain why they can’t deny evil and death exist. The Bible tells us that the snake is the problem; not a problem for our intellect but a problem for our morality and mortality. In Genesis 3, the Devil who came to Eve in the form of a serpent did question and contradict God’s Word. Remember that God is the Maker and Supreme Ruler of Heaven and Earth. He is the Beginning and the End. Words cannot fully explain His Wisdom and Sovereignty. He is All-Knowing, All-Powerful, and Present Everywhere. Knowing these, Adam and Eve still chose to disobey Him by yielding to the Devil’s lies. Today, many are making the same mistake.

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Sin and Redemption

Behold, it was not unreasonable for Eve to answer the snake. After all, the snake was evidently speaking in a language that she clearly understood and could speak. It is also likely that Adam was nearby and could verify that she was not imagining things. It is not the serpent speaking that should have alarmed them. Rather, it should have been the fact that the serpent was causing them to doubt God’s instructions (Genesis 3:1), contradicting God (Genesis 3:4), and calling God’s motives into question (Genesis 3:5). Behold, that should have been enough to cause both Eve and Adam to stop talking to the serpent. Listening to the Devil and yielding to his deceptive plan made Adam and Eve disobey God by eating from the forbidden tree. This very act brought Judgment and sin to humanity.

The disobedience of Adam and Eve to God’s instructions opened the pathway for sin to come on mankind. And as the Bible tells us, sin brought death to humanity. All of us being Adam’s descendants are born in Adam’s sinful nature. Nevertheless, the Lord God in His loving-kindness promised to send a Savior/Redeemer, Jesus Christ. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Jesus Christ, the beloved Son of God, came in human form, made known the Will of His Father, overcame temptation from the Devil, suffered, died, and resurrected thereby conquering sin and the Devil. Today, anyone who believes in Him and follows His ways benefits from God’s special gift of Eternal Life. Sin entered the world through Adam and is conquered through Jesus Christ.