Could Adam and Eve talk to Animals like we can talk to each other?

[JackRT]

God didn't create Satan, man did. Satan (ha'shaitan) occurs by name in the Old Testament in the parable we call the Book of Job, and here it's clear that the angel Satan is not the Devil! The Devil is supposedly banished from the presence of God, yet in Job, Satan is allowed to talk with and to come and go from God's presence and on a mission for God yet! What's going on? Satan here is not "the Devil" but sort of God's prosecuting attorney, an unwelcome character but not an evil one.

There is a very common perception that the 'Lucifer' in Isaiah 14:12ff refers to Satan, the supernatural personification of evil. This misconception comes from two sources. The first is wishful thinking in the sense that it is nice to think that 'the Enemy' will get his come-uppance eventually. The second has to do with the old caution that scripture is to be read only 'in context'. This requires going back and reading all of Isaiah 13 and the earlier verses in Isaiah 14. When this is done we suddenly realize that scripture is not speaking of a supernatural Satan at all but of a Babylonian king with an immense ego. Read Isaiah 14:4 "you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon:" What follows is a long rant against this oppressive king filled with numerous references to his human nature like Isaiah 14:16 "Those who see you stare at you, they ponder your fate: Is this the man who shook the earth and made kingdoms tremble, 17 the man who made the world a desert, who overthrew its cities and would not let his captives go home?" This passage is in no way a reference to Satan or the devil.

The Jews did not originally believe in devils but they picked up this concept during the Babylonian Exile from the Persians who followed Zoroastrianism. The Zoroastrians believed in both a god of good (Ahura-Mazda) and a god of evil (Ahrulman) engaged in a cosmic struggle. The Jews picked up and ran with this idea. It was easy to cast YHWH in the role of the God of good. They took also the angel ha'shaitan (Satan) in the book of Job and recast that character as Satan the near divine force of evil. Up to that time, their concept of God was of a being responsible for everything, both good and evil. Isaiah 45:”7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things.” is just one quote that demonstrates this.

The Jews never connected Satan to the serpent in the Garden of Eden. It was the second-century Christian martyr, Justin of Samaria, who was first to argue that Satan appeared as a serpent to tempt Adam and Eve to disobey God. It was also the third-century Christian philosopher Origen of Alexandria who was the first to suggest that Lucifer actually was Satan or the devil.

 

[Dkh587]

A talking animal is a powerful clue that what you are reading is not to be understood in a literal way.

They weren’t talking to an animal.

 

[JackRT]

They weren’t talking to an animal.

A serpent is an animal.

 

[Kenny'sID]

Gen 3.1 says that the serpent was more cunning, subtle, crafty, or shrewd, etc, depending on your translation, than any other animal in the Garden.

I too think the OP has an interesting point.

 

[Kenny'sID]

A talking animal is a powerful clue that what you are reading is not to be understood in a literal way.

That or a very powerful clue we could talk to animals.

 

[DamianWarS]

It wasn't a literal snake. It was just Satan and Satan looks like a human being as all angels do.

Metaphorical snake and then what? Metaphorical punishment given to the snake? It's amazing the contradictory lengths to maintain this account as literal.

 

[DamianWarS]

Snake is probably a mistake btw should be translated "Shinning One" since Lucifer was covered in light seen like you would see as if you put light through precious stones and they would split the light everywhere ( colorful) .

So the "shinning one" was given a punishment that he should crawl on his belly?

 

[DamianWarS]

God didn't create Satan, man did. Satan (ha'shaitan) occurs by name in the Old Testament in the parable we call the Book of Job, and here it's clear that the angel Satan is not the Devil! The Devil is supposedly banished from the presence of God, yet in Job, Satan is allowed to talk with and to come and go from God's presence and on a mission for God yet! What's going on? Satan here is not "the Devil" but sort of God's prosecuting attorney, an unwelcome character but not an evil one.

There is a very common perception that the 'Lucifer' in Isaiah 14:12ff refers to Satan, the supernatural personification of evil. This misconception comes from two sources. The first is wishful thinking in the sense that it is nice to think that 'the Enemy' will get his come-uppance eventually. The second has to do with the old caution that scripture is to be read only 'in context'. This requires going back and reading all of Isaiah 13 and the earlier verses in Isaiah 14. When this is done we suddenly realize that scripture is not speaking of a supernatural Satan at all but of a Babylonian king with an immense ego. Read Isaiah 14:4 "you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon:" What follows is a long rant against this oppressive king filled with numerous references to his human nature like Isaiah 14:16 "Those who see you stare at you, they ponder your fate: Is this the man who shook the earth and made kingdoms tremble, 17 the man who made the world a desert, who overthrew its cities and would not let his captives go home?" This passage is in no way a reference to Satan or the devil.

The Jews did not originally believe in devils but they picked up this concept during the Babylonian Exile from the Persians who followed Zoroastrianism. The Zoroastrians believed in both a god of good (Ahura-Mazda) and a god of evil (Ahrulman) engaged in a cosmic struggle. The Jews picked up and ran with this idea. It was easy to cast YHWH in the role of the God of good. They took also the angel ha'shaitan (Satan) in the book of Job and recast that character as Satan the near divine force of evil. Up to that time, their concept of God was of a being responsible for everything, both good and evil. Isaiah 45:”7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things.” is just one quote that demonstrates this.

The Jews never connected Satan to the serpent in the Garden of Eden. It was the second-century Christian martyr, Justin of Samaria, who was first to argue that Satan appeared as a serpent to tempt Adam and Eve to disobey God. It was also the third-century Christian philosopher Origen of Alexandria who was the first to suggest that Lucifer actually was Satan or the devil.

We are in agreement with the Isaiah text but Revelation 20:2 seems to conflate these terms

"He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.

So according to this text the dragon of revelation is also the ancient serpent, the devil and Satan.

 

[Kenny'sID]

So the "shinning one" was given a punishment that he should crawl on his belly?

Good point...So what was a serpent then? One thing is for certain it was something easily mistaken for a, well, serpent.

 

[renniks]

It was the part of the earth where people are immortal and it has a tree of knowledge and a tree of life. God walks around in this place and it doesn't rain. Does this sound familiar? Africa? Texas?

It was on Earth. God didn't die for some other worlds sin.

 

[DamianWarS]

Good point...So what was a serpent then? One thing is for certain it was is something easily mistaken for a, well, serpent.

The text tells us it was a serpent and not something else. Why are you looking for the something else?

 

[DamianWarS]

Eden was the Paradise where Adam and Eve could've to talk to God himself aka earlier version of Jesus Christ.

Who told you that it was Christ walking in the garden?

 

[Kenny'sID]

The text tells us it was a serpent and not something else. Why are you looking for the something else?

Because, as you pointed out, it evidently was not a serpent as we know them, if it did not crawl it's belly before the incident, and it did not. It was something that was upright. So unless we are to think it bounced around on it's tail in an upright position, it had to be at least somewhat different than what we know today as a serpent/snake

New International Version
So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.

IOW, yes, the text says one thing but common sense tells us even more about how to deal with the text.

 

[Paulus59]

The reason for this question. It kinda puzzled me that Adam and Eve that they didn't seem strange for a snake talking to them.

No, a literal snake did not talk to them. The snake in the Garden of Eden is representative of Satan! Everyone has this snake in their mind, but those that live in Christ don't listen to it. The two trees in the Garden of Eden represent the spiritual state (The Father) and the carnal state (The Flesh), the snake is ONLY in the tree which represents the carnal state because the father (the spirit) cannot be tempted.

 

[Paulus59]

Eden still exists. Perhaps the garden in Eden no longer exists but Eden certainly still does.

In spiritual form yes. The Garden of Eden and the Kingdom of God are one of the same thing.

 

[visionary]

The reason for this question. It kinda puzzled me that Adam and Eve that they didn't seem strange for a snake talking to them.

I do think that the animals talked and that Adam and Eve could understand. We know that in the animal kingdom they communicate with each other. We know that if we get really close to our pets they can sense what we want and we can sense what they want. We know that we can imitate almost any animal sound, so we have the advantage of "talking" in any language including the animal language, but we have lost the ability to understand what we are saying when we make those sounds.

 

[Dave L]

I had a dog that you could spell WALK, and she would go to the door and wait fro her leash.

 

[Kenny'sID]

Concerning what the OP has drifted into, Id say the only problem here is what was a serpent in those days? Could have been a lizard then reduced to no legs at all so it crawled on it's belly, or a human or even Satan himself for that matter who was reduced to lose the functions that kept them upright and turned into a snake.

And we likely know a snake as a serpent because of what the bible says there, however the bible deoen't say they were the same thing.

Sounds like a job for Strong's Concordance, or whatevr suits this the best.

 

[Kenny'sID]

I had a dog that you could spell WALK, and she would go to the door and wait fro her leash.

How did she spell it? And yeah, I know WALK, but how, as in with what method?

 

[Archivist]

Only Doctor Dolittle could take with the animals!