Page 35 - The Mark of the Beast

Nehushtan

e have seen that the serpent is the fullest representation of the beast nature, being
Wcursed above all beasts while also being more cunning. When God proclaimed the
curse that would fall upon man and the serpent for their transgression, the following was
declared.

Genesis 3:15
And I will put enmity between you (the serpent) and the woman, and between your
seed and her seed; he shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the
heel.

There is both a physical and a spiritual fulfillment of many of the things recorded in
Scripture, and this is true of this curse. Mankind in general loathes and detests snakes.
There is enmity between serpents and mankind. Where I live in the state of Georgia there
are a number of poisonous snakes. Among the more prevalent are the rattlesnake and the
water moccasin. There is no love lost between most Georgians and these serpents.
It is very common to see these snakes dead in the road during the warm months when
they are out crawling about. It is a passion of many drivers to intentionally run over these
serpents, and even to slam on the brakes and skid across them to make sure they are dead.
Some drivers will even back up and perform this action repeatedly to leave no doubt that
the snake has been killed.
This enmity toward serpents is unique among the animal kingdom. There is much
wildlife in Georgia and it often crosses roadways. There are signs warning drivers that
turtles are present in certain areas, and I have witnessed drivers perform all sorts of
maneuvers to avoid striking a dog, a deer, a rabbit, a beaver, a raccoon, or an armadillo. I
have seen people stopped in the road to aid a hawk that had been injured, and my own
daughter came to a screeching halt recently with a large hawk only a foot or two away from
the front of our car. I would have been very saddened had the car struck the hawk, for they
are magnificent, beautiful birds. If it had been a rattlesnake in the road, however, I would
not have felt the same distress over hitting it.
It is interesting that even those who know nothing of Christ, or of God’s desire for man
to bear the image of the divine, have such an enmity against serpents. They intuitively know
that this beast is an enemy of man. The way in which a serpent injures man is very
significant. Serpents do not tear men to pieces like a lion or a bear would do. They do not
trample men like an elephant or rhinoceros might. Instead, they do their harm by injecting
poison into man’s blood stream. This poison begins to effect man’s vital organs and in many
cases can cause death. With their poisons, serpents kill men from the inside.
This speaks of the way that Satan kills men and women. He poisons their souls and
does his destruction by filling mankind with things that result in spiritual death. All men
who have been born of Adam have experienced the venom of the serpent and death is
working in their members. There is but one way to be saved from this fatal injury and this
salvation is found in Yahshua, the Son of God.
There is a very symbolic story that is recorded for the saints in the book of Numbers.
It presents a parable lived out by actual people, and there is a message in it for the saints
today.