IF ORDERED TO PICK UP A DEADLY SNAKE, SHOULD ONE COMPLY WITH THIS COMMAND?

  • Christian Chat is a moderated online Christian community allowing Christians around the world to fellowship with each other in real time chat via webcam, voice, and text, with the Christian Chat app. You can also start or participate in a Bible-based discussion here in the Christian Chat Forums, where members can also share with each other their own videos, pictures, or favorite Christian music.

    If you are a Christian and need encouragement and fellowship, we're here for you! If you are not a Christian but interested in knowing more about Jesus our Lord, you're also welcome! Want to know what the Bible says, and how you can apply it to your life? Join us!

    To make new Christian friends now around the world, click here to join Christian Chat.
MyrtleTrees

MyrtleTrees

Junior Member
#1
Sep 5, 2014
804
317
63
#1
IF ORDERED TO PICK UP A DEADLY SNAKE, SHOULD ONE COMPLY WITH THIS COMMAND?
Mark 16:18
18.They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
KJV
My comment: No, I don't believe so, judging by Jesus' reply to the devil, when the devil told Him to jump off a dangerously tall building;
Matt 4:6-7
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
KJV
 
Roughsoul1991

Roughsoul1991

Senior Member
#2
Sep 17, 2016
8,855
4,507
113
#2
MyrtleTrees said:
IF ORDERED TO PICK UP A DEADLY SNAKE, SHOULD ONE COMPLY WITH THIS COMMAND?
Mark 16:18
18.They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
KJV
My comment: No, I don't believe so, judging by Jesus' reply to the devil, when the devil told Him to jump off a dangerously tall building;
Matt 4:6-7
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
KJV
Click to expand...
Only if you want to die. The end of Mark is controversial as the last verses are not found in older versions.
 
p_rehbein

p_rehbein

Senior Member
#3
Sep 4, 2013
30,693
6,884
113
#3
If ordered to pick up a dangerous snake, tell the person issuing the order.......

"you first guy"

and, by all means, IGNORE THAT ORDER............
 
laughingheart

laughingheart

Senior Member
#4
Sep 21, 2016
1,709
1,669
113
#4
We are told to be wise. God will give you good judgement if you ask. We are ultimately responsible for our own actions. Someone can suggest whatever they want, but it is up to you if you decide to accept.
 
G

Guojing

Banned
#5
Jan 12, 2019
7,497
1,399
113
#5
MyrtleTrees said:
IF ORDERED TO PICK UP A DEADLY SNAKE, SHOULD ONE COMPLY WITH THIS COMMAND?
Mark 16:18
18.They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
KJV
My comment: No, I don't believe so, judging by Jesus' reply to the devil, when the devil told Him to jump off a dangerously tall building;
Matt 4:6-7
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
KJV
Click to expand...
Exodus 4:4 And the LORD said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand:
 
MyrtleTrees

MyrtleTrees

Junior Member
#6
Sep 5, 2014
804
317
63
#6
Guojing said:
Exodus 4:4 And the LORD said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand:
Click to expand...
True and interesting incident in which it was God's will to comply in the command! However, the command came from God, and not from man. So i believe that in cases in which persecutors or others command someone to pick up a poisonous snake, should not be obeyed, unless one has the skill (as a zookeeper) to know how to safely do so.

Another thought: To pick up a snake by the tail, is usually the most dangerous way to pick up a snake, I've heard. So the fact that Moses didn't get hurt was a miracle in this way, too, I think.
Acts 5:29

29 Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.
KJV
 
Corban

Corban

Banned
#7
Jun 11, 2020
1,370
424
83
73
#7
MyrtleTrees said:
IF ORDERED TO PICK UP A DEADLY SNAKE, SHOULD ONE COMPLY WITH THIS COMMAND?
Mark 16:18
18.They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
KJV
My comment: No, I don't believe so, judging by Jesus' reply to the devil, when the devil told Him to jump off a dangerously tall building;
Matt 4:6-7
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
KJV
Click to expand...
You are correct. There is NO COMMAND to do this. Rather, it is a SIGN of a Christian. Paul, in 2nd Corinthians, seems to go to length to brag of his Apostleship. But it is not bragging. It is the defense of his OFFICE. WHY? Because if Paul is discredited, the major part of the New Testament is gone. And who was the only one in the Bible who is recorded as doing these two things above? Why, but Paul!

The Viper
In Acts Chapter 28 Paul picked up a viper and was bitten. He lived.

The Deadly Drink
Some translators, thinking to help Christians, wrote "poisonous thing" in Mark 16:18. They did us a disfavor. The meaning of the Greek is "Deadly". That is, it would cause death. Who drank something that should have killed him? Why, Paul the Apostle! Paul had murdered, and agreed to, and assisted in the murder, of Christians. Our Lord told him that he had persecuted HIM (Christ) in this. So what should have happened to Paul when he took the Lord's Table? He himself wrote, under inspiration, that one unworthy will get sick and die (1st Cor.11:30). Should not have Paul, shedder of Christian blood and persecuter of Jesus Personally, die if he took the cup? YES ... except in ONE CASE. He would survive if his sins were forgiven.

The two things of Mark 16, the viper and the deadly drink, were to defend the MAJORITY of the New Testament by showing that Paul was a CHRISTIAN.
 
G

Guojing

Banned
#8
Jan 12, 2019
7,497
1,399
113
#8
MyrtleTrees said:
True and interesting incident in which it was God's will to comply in the command! However, the command came from God, and not from man. So i believe that in cases in which persecutors or others command someone to pick up a poisonous snake, should not be obeyed, unless one has the skill (as a zookeeper) to know how to safely do so.

Another thought: To pick up a snake by the tail, is usually the most dangerous way to pick up a snake, I've heard. So the fact that Moses didn't get hurt was a miracle in this way, too, I think.
Acts 5:29

29 Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.
KJV
Click to expand...
It was meant as a sign to the Jews that Moses was indeed God's sent messenger.

Likewise, Mark 16:17-18 are also meant as a sign to the Jews that the 12 are God's sent messengers to them.
 
Duskey

Duskey

Banned
#9
May 31, 2020
1,706
1,559
113
#9
Who’s giving the orders?
 
MyrtleTrees

MyrtleTrees

Junior Member
#10
Sep 5, 2014
804
317
63
#10
Corban said:
You are correct. There is NO COMMAND to do this. Rather, it is a SIGN of a Christian. Paul, in 2nd Corinthians, seems to go to length to brag of his Apostleship. But it is not bragging. It is the defense of his OFFICE. WHY? Because if Paul is discredited, the major part of the New Testament is gone. And who was the only one in the Bible who is recorded as doing these two things above? Why, but Paul!

The Viper
In Acts Chapter 28 Paul picked up a viper and was bitten. He lived.

The Deadly Drink
Some translators, thinking to help Christians, wrote "poisonous thing" in Mark 16:18. They did us a disfavor. The meaning of the Greek is "Deadly". That is, it would cause death. Who drank something that should have killed him? Why, Paul the Apostle! Paul had murdered, and agreed to, and assisted in the murder, of Christians. Our Lord told him that he had persecuted HIM (Christ) in this. So what should have happened to Paul when he took the Lord's Table? He himself wrote, under inspiration, that one unworthy will get sick and die (1st Cor.11:30). Should not have Paul, shedder of Christian blood and persecuter of Jesus Personally, die if he took the cup? YES ... except in ONE CASE. He would survive if his sins were forgiven.

The two things of Mark 16, the viper and the deadly drink, were to defend the MAJORITY of the New Testament by showing that Paul was a CHRISTIAN.
Click to expand...
I haven't heard that view before, which claims that it was just a validation that Paul and other Christians were true people of God. True, surviving such things would reveal that the person to whom it happened must be a true Christian, as that is miraculous! I don't think the passage could just be referring to these things as just a sign that a person is a true Christian. I think it's also referring to the fact, that whether we live or die, we are Christ's, and so are safe eternally.

Matt 10:28

28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
KJV
Or also, maybe during the apostles' times, God miraculously delivered ones of them from death a number of times, before the time finally came in which God allowed them to die for their faith.
 
Corban

Corban

Banned
#11
Jun 11, 2020
1,370
424
83
73
#11
MyrtleTrees said:
I haven't heard that view before, which claims that it was just a validation that Paul and other Christians were true people of God. True, surviving such things would reveal that the person to whom it happened must be a true Christian, as that is miraculous! I don't think the passage could just be referring to these things as just a sign that a person is a true Christian. I think it's also referring to the fact, that whether we live or die, we are Christ's, and so are safe eternally.

Matt 10:28

28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
KJV
Or also, maybe during the apostles' times, God miraculously delivered ones of them from death a number of times, before the time finally came in which God allowed them to die for their faith.
Click to expand...
You are right. Who knows the depth of scripture? There could very well be more than one meaning of these verses. May the Lord give us light.
 
Lanolin

Lanolin

Well-known member
#12
Dec 15, 2018
23,460
7,188
113
#12
was it just talking about the apostles as a prophecy of what they would do as a sign?
or did it mean ALL christians would be able to pick up snakes and drink methalayted spirits or something. Cos I dont see that happening in churches.
 
Mattathias

Mattathias

Banned
#13
Jun 6, 2020
399
41
28
#13
MyrtleTrees said:
IF ORDERED TO PICK UP A DEADLY SNAKE, SHOULD ONE COMPLY WITH THIS COMMAND?
Mark 16:18
18.They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
KJV
My comment: No, I don't believe so, judging by Jesus' reply to the devil, when the devil told Him to jump off a dangerously tall building;
Matt 4:6-7
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
KJV
Click to expand...
It’s against the law in the state I reside in to pick up a deadly snake as part of a religious service. I would point out to whoever is commanding me that it’s illegal and that Christians are to obey civil government authority when possible.

If I were traveling outside the state, and not in a state or country which has made the act illegal, I would simply decline to obey the command. There’s no law I’m aware of anywhere on God’s good earth that requires Christians and/or non-Christians to pick up deadly snakes.
 
Mattathias

Mattathias

Banned
#14
Jun 6, 2020
399
41
28
#14
Lanolin said:
...I dont see that happening in churches.
Click to expand...
I’ve seen it happen in some churches located in Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia, but I‘ve not seen it happening in person. I’d like to some time.
 
Nehemiah6

Nehemiah6

Senior Member
#15
Jul 18, 2017
26,074
13,774
113
#15
MyrtleTrees said:
IF ORDERED TO PICK UP A DEADLY SNAKE, SHOULD ONE COMPLY WITH THIS COMMAND?
Click to expand...
Depends on who is doing the *ordering*. If a *deadly snake* is ordering others to pick up deadly snakes, then you do have a problem.

What is more relevant today is the deadly snakes in the Swamp in Washington DC who are poisoning America and getting away with it.

Getting back to Mark 16:18, we see where Paul handled a deadly snake and it could not hurt him. But the crazy snake handlers of today are simply asking for trouble.
 
Blik

Blik

Senior Member
#18
Dec 6, 2016
7,312
2,428
113
#18
MyrtleTrees said:
IF ORDERED TO PICK UP A DEADLY SNAKE, SHOULD ONE COMPLY WITH THIS COMMAND?
Mark 16:18
18.They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
KJV
My comment: No, I don't believe so, judging by Jesus' reply to the devil, when the devil told Him to jump off a dangerously tall building;
Matt 4:6-7
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
KJV
Click to expand...
That is not a command, it is speaking of the protection God offers us.

We speak of "look before you leap" or "don't burn your bridges". Everyone know it is not speaking of leaping about or burning bridges any more than scripture is commanding us to test the Lord.

Christ told Satan when he was asked to do foolish things that we weren't to put our Lord to the test.
 
MyrtleTrees

MyrtleTrees

Junior Member
#19
Sep 5, 2014
804
317
63
#19
Blik said:
That is not a command, it is speaking of the protection God offers us.

We speak of "look before you leap" or "don't burn your bridges". Everyone know it is not speaking of leaping about or burning bridges any more than scripture is commanding us to test the Lord.

Christ told Satan when he was asked to do foolish things that we weren't to put our Lord to the test.
Click to expand...
Yes, you're right! You explained it well!
 
MyrtleTrees

MyrtleTrees

Junior Member
#20
Sep 5, 2014
804
317
63
#20
Nehemiah6 said:
Depends on who is doing the *ordering*. If a *deadly snake* is ordering others to pick up deadly snakes, then you do have a problem.

What is more relevant today is the deadly snakes in the Swamp in Washington DC who are poisoning America and getting away with it.

Getting back to Mark 16:18, we see where Paul handled a deadly snake and it could not hurt him. But the crazy snake handlers of today are simply asking for trouble.
Click to expand...
Right! You explained it well!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.