Now
the serpent was the most cunning of all the animals that the Lord God had made. (Genesis 3:1)
The serpent approaches the woman, deeply
envious of the relationship she shares with her husband. It is the unique
nature of human sexuality that arouses the serpent’s envy, making it the prime
target of attack. Let’s contemplate the serpent’s envy to gain a better understanding
and appreciation of human sexuality.
God created the animals (including
serpents) before he created the woman. Animals were the man’s first companions.
Animals were created male and female--they had sexual partners before the man. God
gave the man the task of naming the animals as a sign that man shares in the
work of creation, and has dominion over the animals, as stated earlier in the
first Biblical creation story (Genesis 1:28).
“But none [of the animals, including the
serpent] proved to be a suitable partner for the man.” (Genesis 2:20).
This alone was not enough to stoke the
serpent’s envy, though it may seem so at first glance. Yes, the man has the
breath of divine life and the serpent does not, giving man special status above
the animals, making the serpent and his fellow animals unworthy companions for
him. Yes, the man has dominion over the animals with the authority to name
them.
But there is no cause here for the
serpent to envy the man--in fact, quite the contrary. Man at this point is a
solitary creature without an equal, while the serpent enjoys the company of
many equals. Furthermore, the serpent has sexual partners while the man does
not. (In fact, to take this literally, male serpents have two sex organs to the
man’s one, and has multiple sex partners. According to worldly values, the man
has every reason to envy male serpents!)
But there is no cause for the serpent’s
envy until the woman arrives on the scene. Why?
In the woman the man has an equal
partner--but the serpent has equals as well. The man now has a sexual partner,
but so does the serpent.
The cause of envy is this: the man and the
woman can do something no animal can--they can love with their spirit-infused bodies
as God loves, joining their bodies in relational covenant as one, in a
participation in the very life of the Holy Trinity. (Indeed, of all species on
earth who reproduce sexually, humans are the only ones who face each other in
the act of intercourse. Only their union is personal, a true relationship, a
sharing in the life of God.)
This is the reason for the serpent’s
envy. The serpent does not accept its own place in God’s creation, is not
content to live according to the plan God has for it. No, it is envious of
human sexuality and its unique participation in divine life, and thus makes it
the prime target of attack. Human sexuality remains the primary target of the
devil to this day.
