John 8:37-45
37 I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you. [Esau, Edom was Abraham's seed.]
38 I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father.
39 They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham.
40 But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.
41 Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.
42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.
43 Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.
44
Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
45 And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not.
Matthew 3:7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O
generation [gennema] of
vipers [echidna], who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
Matthew 12:24, 34
24 But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.
34 O
generation [gennema] of
vipers [echidna], how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
Matthew 23:29-33
29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,
30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.
31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.
32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
33 Ye serpents, ye
generation [gennema] of
vipers [echidna], how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
Luke 3:7-8
7 Then said he to the multitude that came forth to be baptized of him, O
generation [gennema] of
vipers [echidna], who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
8 Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.
gennema, n. - fruit, product, yield, harvest, offspring, brood:- translated in the New Testament as generation [4x], fruit [3x], fruits [2x] Strong's Concordance Greek Dictionary reference #1081
echidna, n. - viper, snake:-translated in the New Testament as vipers [4x], viper [1x]
I'll post for you all the other verses which contain these Greek words, just to show that gennema echidna is only used in this context in the aforementioned verses.
Matthew 26:29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this
fruit [gennema] of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.
Mark 14:25 Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of the
fruit [gennema] of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God.
Luke 12:18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my
fruits [gennema] and my goods.
Luke 22:18 For I say unto you, I will not drink of the
fruit [gennema] of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come.
2 Corinthians 9:10 Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the
fruits [gennema] of your righteousness.
Acts 28:3 And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a
viper [echidna] out of the heat, and fastened on his hand.
And now take a look at this:
"In the most ancient layers of Greek mythology, Echidna (Greek: Ἔχιδνα, ekhis, ἔχις, meaning "she viper") was called the "Mother of All Monsters" because most of the monsters in Greek myth were the offspring of Echidna and her husband Typhon...Echidna was a drakaina [female dragon], with the face and torso of a beautiful woman (depicted as winged in archaic vase-paintings) and the body of a serpent, sometimes having two serpent's tails." from
Echidna (mythology) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Is it not likely that Yahshua Christ was aware of this other meaning for the word echidna?
Matthew 23:15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the
child of hell than yourselves.
Seems pretty clear that Yahshua is talking to and about people that cannot be saved. They cannot even hear the truth. So, you tell me. Who are these people, and where did they come from?