563:27 The serpentine form stands for subtlety, winding its
way amidst all evil, but doing this in the name of good.
Its sting is spoken of by Paul, when he refers
563:30 to "spiritual wickedness in high places." It
is the animal instinct in mortals, which would impel
564:1 them to devour each other and cast out devils through
Beelzebub.
564:3 As of old, evil still charges the spiritual idea with error's
own nature and methods. This malicious animal in-
stinct, of which the dragon is the type, incites mortals to
564:6 kill morally and physically even their fellow-mortals, and
worse still, to charge the innocent with the crime. This
last infirmity of sin will sink its perpetrator into a night
564:9 without a star.
Malicious barbarity
The author is convinced that the accusations against
Jesus of Nazareth and even his crucifixion were instigated
564:12 by the criminal instinct here described. The
Revelator speaks of Jesus as the Lamb of God
and of the dragon as warring against innocence. Since Jesus
564:15 must have been tempted in all points, he, the immaculate,
met and conquered sin in every form. The brutal bar-
barity of his foes could emanate from no source except the
564:18 highest degree of human depravity. Jesus "/opened not
his mouth/." Until the majesty of Truth should be demon-
strated in divine Science, the spiritual idea was arraigned
564:21 before the tribunal of so-called mortal mind, which was
unloosed in order that the false claim of mind in matter
might uncover its own crime of defying immortal Mind.
Doom of the dragon
564:24 From Genesis to the Apocalypse, sin, sickness, and
death, envy, hatred, and revenge, - all evil, - are typi-
fied by a serpent, or animal subtlety. Jesus
564:27 said, quoting a line from the Psalms, "They
hated me without a cause." The serpent is perpetually
close upon the heel of harmony. From the beginning
564:30 to the end, the serpent pursues with hatred the spiritual
idea. In Genesis, this allegorical, talking serpent typi-
fies mortal mind, "more subtle than any beast of the
565:1 field." In the Apocalypse, when nearing its doom, this
evil increases and becomes the great red dragon, swollen
565:3 with sin, inflamed with war against spirituality, and ripe
for destruction. It is full of lust and hate, loathing the
brightness of divine glory.
565:6 /Revelation/ xii. 5. And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to His throne.
The conflict with purity
565:9 Led on by the grossest element of mortal mind, Herod
decreed the death of every male child in order that the
man Jesus, the masculine representative of the
565:12 spiritual idea might never hold sway and de-
prive Herod of his crown. The impersonation of the
spiritual idea had a brief history in the earthly life of our
565:15 Master; but "of his kingdom there shall be no end,"
for Christ, God's idea, will eventually rule all nations
and peoples - imperatively, absolutely, finally - with di-
565:18 vine Science. This immaculate idea, represented first
by man and, according to the Revelator, last by woman,
will baptize with fire; and the fiery baptism will burn up
565:21 the chaff of error with the fervent heat of Truth and Love,
melting and purifying even the gold of human character.
After the stars sang together and all was primeval har-
565:24 mony, the material lie made war upon the spiritual idea;
but this only impelled the idea to rise to the zenith of
demonstration, destroying sin, sickness, and death, and
565:27 to be caught up unto God, - to be found in its divine
Principle.
/Revelation/ xii. 6. And the woman fled into the wilder-
565:30 ness, where she hath a place prepared of God.