Talking Snakes, Donkeys, and Believing the Bible [Excerpts]
Skeptics of Christianity many times throw out statements like this in an attempt to dismiss both the Bible and the Christian faith: “Well, if I could believe in a talking snake, maybe then I’d take the Bible seriously.”
I firmly believe that the correct way to interpret the Bible is to adhere to what is called the Literal-Historical-Grammatical method of interpretation, which aims to discover the meaning of a particular passage as the original author would have intended and what the original hearers would have understood. As the first part of the name implies, this means a literal reading of the text.
Once a Christian affirms a literal interpretation of Scripture, immediately skeptics pounce and ask questions such as, “If that’s true, then Jesus must be a literal door, because he says in John:10:9I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
See All... [1]: ‘I am the door’.” Unfortunately for the doubter, their argument is flawed in a couple of ways. First, it commits the logical fallacy of ‘reductio ad absurdum’, which seeks to establish an argument based on the supposed absurdity of its opponents claims.
But more importantly, the skeptic fails to understand that the Bible utilizes many different genres (e.g. poetry, narrative, didactic teaching, etc.) and literary techniques in the same way that other literature does. These methods do not take away from a literal reading of the Bible at all, but instead add much depth to the text as they’re designed to do. Some of the most common practices found in Scripture include the following:
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Phenomenological language, which is used to describe everyday things in common speak. Example: “It came about at sunset that Joshua gave a command…” (Joshua:10:27And it came to pass at the time of the going down of the sun, that Joshua commanded, and they took them down off the trees, and cast them into the cave wherein they had been hid, and laid great stones in the cave's mouth, which remain until this very day.
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Hyperbole, which is an obvious and intentional exaggeration. Example: “look, the world has gone after Him"(John:12:19The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? behold, the world is gone after him.
See All... [3]) - Metaphors, which are a figure of speech used to suggest a resemblance. Example: “For I proclaim the name of the Lord; ascribe greatness to our God! The Rock!” (Deut. 32:3-4)
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Anthropomorphisms, which are attempts to represent God under a particular form, or with some type of living attributes and affections. Example: "Let me dwell in Your tent forever; let me take refuge in the shelter of Your wings." (Psalm:61:4I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.
See All... [4]) - Personification, which is the attribution of a personal nature or character to inanimate objects or abstract notion. Example: “The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands." (Is. 55:12)
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Symbolism, which represents some reality by depicting it in a figurative fashion that is descriptive of that reality. Example: “Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands” (Rev:1:12And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;
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Talking snakes, donkeys that speak in a human language, a dead Jewish carpenter that comes back from the dead… These things, skeptics point out, aren’t things we routinely see and experience, and so we must reject them as being false and see them possessing no more real substance than a tale in Aesop’s fables.
But, what’s the real issue here? Is it truly a talking snake or something else?
In truth, a talking snake or donkey is much less miraculous than the odds of life coming about on our planet given the universe as we know it and the number of cosmological constants that must be in place for us to actually exist. Or DNA arising on its own accord. Or…take your pick of a variety of astonishing things that are incredible to believe, but true.
