Gen 3:4-5

4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."


Die?! You're not going to die! What does God know? He's just jealous of His wisdom and knowledge. He doesn't want you to open your eyes and know good and evil. He wants you to be His little puppets and just do as He says. The serpent appeals to Eve's desire for knowledge and wisdom. The serpent tempts Eve through subtlety. Much like Teelah tempted Tanis.

the serpent said: There are many who have problems with this statement and with the story of Balaam's donkey in Numbers 22. Animals can't talk! Anybody who would believe that such things happened is gullible, or worse, deliberately ignorant of scientific facts. Therefore, the Bible cannot be trusted as a source of truth. It must be full of ... of... well, you know what.

One common response: It was a miracle. The serpent talking and Balaam's donkey talking were miracles. Another response: God can do anything. He can make the waters part, He can make the sun stand still, He can rain down manna from heaven, He can make a pillar of cloud and a pillar of fire go before the Israelites on their journeys through the wilderness. He can make the dead rise, the blind to see, the deaf to hear, the mute to speak. He can make an akarah a joyful mother. [HEHEHEHEHEHEHEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!] Surely, it is no great feat for Him to make animals talk.

Objection: The word 'miracle' is not in the Bible. The stories mentioned are presented as fact, as actually happening. We know from observation of animals and people that animals do not talk. Apart from the two stories in the Bible, there's no evidence that animals ever talked to humans. And there's no evidence that such things happen now. Similarly, there's no evidence of the Reed Sea splitting or of manna raining down from heaven. And if the sun ever did stand still there would be catastrophic results on the earth. Since we're all still here, and the earth continues on its revolutions around its axis, same as it ever did, clearly, such a thing never happened. You silly little believers. You follow a book that tells you that animals talked, that a great fish swallowed a man and that he was in the fish's belly for three days and came out unharmed, that the waters parted, that the sun stood still, that manna (whatever that is) came down from heaven for forty years, that there was a worldwide flood for forty days, etc. etc.

Answer: And? This makes me what? Stupid? Gullible? Ignorant of scientific evidence? My belief that the stories as recorded in the Bible actually happened hampers my ability to use reason and logic and understand science? How? The study of Scriptures is a fantastic exercise in logic and reason. The harmonization of seemingly contradictory passages is one such example. The attempt to understand why God commanded certain rules, the attempt to live my life as God commands, demands my understanding of the text. I am required to read the words and interpret and apply that understanding to my life. Wrestling with difficult passages such as the command to kill men, women and children of other peoples brings to bear feelings of empathy, compassion and outrage. The nitpicking of certain details as being completely contrary to scientific evidence evidences more about the motives of the nitpicker than the one who believes.

I look at the Bible as more about faith and teaching and loving one another than it is about how wrong it is in terms of science. It matters little to me if people want to disprove the Bible scientifically. What effect does that have on how I live my life? Does my adherence to the mitzvot change because the earth is billions of years old rather than thousands of years old? Am I to love my neighbor and the stranger any less because the earth would not survive if the sun stood still? Should I hate my brother in my heart because bats aren't birds and rabbits don't chew the cud? Shall I commit murder, incest, idolatry, child sacrifice, and blasphemy [heaven forbid!] because there's no way a worldwide flood happened?

To conclude that the Bible is morally corrupt or "full of it" or self-contradictory or not trustworthy because of contradictions or unscientific evidence or abscene of historical evidence to back up its claims is what the skeptic would have you believe. Skeptics care not for the Bible as a guide for living righteously. Those looking for evil in the Bible will find it. Those who hold the Bible up as immoral will find proof texts to support their claims. "Text out of context is a pretext." Are we willing to accept the Bible on its terms? Are we willing to study the Bible and understand it in terms of when it was written and what the surrounding cultures were like at the time? And, can we also look at it from our own 21st century perspective and try to understand how these laws can apply to us today? What relevace does a conversation between a serpent and a woman have for us today?

Some will say none since animals don't talk. I say, look at the story closely. What was said? What was done? How was Eve tricked? What did Adam do? What was God's response? Why did God respond that way?

Let's return to the text.... :)