But here again we find brought forward the Jewish cavil concerning the serpent. They say if by the seed of the woman is to be understood here her natural seed, which is born from her womb, as we have interpreted the important passage, it would seem to be a natural consequence that the seed of the serpent mentioned in this same passage should also be that seed which proceeds from the belly of the serpent. Otherwise, they say that opposition which Moses sets forth cannot consist when he says, "I will put enmity between thy seed and her seed," verse 15.
Out of this cavil many consequences will follow. In the first place it will follow that God is here speaking with the natural serpent only and determining his punishment; and in the next place it will inevitably follow that Christ has nothing at all to do with this passage, nor this passage with him; and it will equally follow that this text furnishes no proof whatever concerning Christ! Wherefore this cavilling objection of the Jews has the appearance of containing something in it; but in fact it contains nothing at all.
First, then, my reply to this cavil is "He that is ignorant, let him be ignorant still; and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still," Rev. 22:11. For he that will not believe the openly revealed and manifest Gospel is worthy of being left in ignorance of these more hidden passages of the Scripture and in disbelief of them altogether. Neither is our present object to confirm or illustrate the Gospel by the passage now in question, but to hold up the brighter light of the Gospel before it in order to illuminate its obscurities. And if any will not believe the shining light of the Gospel, what marvel is it if they are left to disbelieve these more obscure words of the prophets and to produce their new and absurd opinions in opposition to them? The promise of the Gospel is revealed from heaven; and moreover it is preserved in safety amidst the greatest tyrants and the most horrible punishments of our sins from God. If the Jews pertinaciously fight against this promise and will not believe it, they must be left alone. We meanwhile will deal with those who believe, and who submit to the Gospel.
Christ says, John 8:44, that Satan is the "father of lies, and a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth." This is that light of the Gospel by which the dark places of the Old Testament are illumined. Now if Satan was "a murderer from the beginning" tell me, whom or what persons did he murder? Were they not Adam and Eve, whom he murdered by sin? Where did he murder them? Was it not in paradise? When did he murder them? Was it not when he made nothing of the commandment of God and promised Adam and Eve that they would be like gods if they would eat of the forbidden tree? Both propositions therefore are true. The natural serpent was in paradise; and by the natural serpent, the old serpent, the devil, deceived man and murdered him.
The principal meaning of this passage therefore is to cause us to understand that the devil was the author of all this calamity; just as when any one commits murder, it may rightly be said of the sword of the murdered, "This sword killed the man." Whereas in truth, it was not the sword alone nor of itself that killed the man, but the murderer who used the sword. Indeed it is quite a common use of the figure synecdoche, the conveyance of two ideas by one expression, to understand the author of the act under the mention of the instrument made use of. Wherefore we explode this Jewish cavil utterly.
Secondly, it is also true that contraries are not necessarily consistent contrarieties in every respect. For the form of contrarieties is multiplex, as logicians teach. Some things are opposed to others relatively, others privatively, and others by contradiction. Thus the natural father by whom we are begotten and the father of lies are opposed to each other. Although we should grant the Jews their interpretation of this passage that Moses is here speaking of the natural serpent, yet the text itself evidently contains a synecdoche when we compare it with the words of Christ. The words of Moses are, "And Jehovah God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle." What then did the serpent do? He deceived Eve and thus murdered her.
So the words of Moses therefore only hold up the light of the Gospel, "The devil was a murderer from the beginning," John 8:44. Is it not by this light at once manifest that God so speaks with the natural serpent as recorded by Moses, that his words are intended to apply to the devil, concealed under the form of the natural serpent, who having assumed that form under it hurled man into sin and death, and laid him under the wrath of God? Wherefore by the seed of the serpent in this passage is not to be understood the natural seed of the natural serpent, but the seed of the devil; as Christ also represents the same in the Gospel, using the same appellation of "seed," where he says, "An enemy came and sowed among the wheat evil seed," Math. 13:25. This evil seed is contrary to the spiritual seed, even as flesh and spirit are wholly contrary to each other.
But it is not necessary as we have said, that contraries should contain that contrariety to each other throughout in all respects; just in the same manner as similarities do not respond to each other in every particular. Thus for instance, Adam is a figure of Christ; which similarity consists in the great truth that as sin hath abounded towards all men by Adam, so the righteousness of Christ also abounds towards all those who believe in him. These particulars of Adam and of Christ agree with each other. In all other respects Adam and Christ do not agree. Wherefore let this their error be left to the Jews, to content themselves with it. We believers in Christ know that the serpent, to whom God speaks in this text, is the devil. And this we know from the interpretation of Christ himself.