Genesis 3:4

It is clear that the Bible presents us with allegories, analogies, and visions that we can interpret from our finite and limited language. This is why Kabbalah reminds us that the serpent (נָּחָּ שׁ , nachash) is not simply a physical animal, but a representation of deeper spiritual forces.

The Nachash represents the Sitra Achra ("the other side"), that is, the dark side or the system of impurity that opposes divine light. It is also identified with the Yetzer Hara (the evil inclination) that arises after contact with the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. In some Kabbalistic sources, the serpent is associated with Samael, a fallen angel or entity who acts as the heavenly prosecutor (Satan).

נחש (Nachash) = 358. This number is identical to the gematria of משיח (Mashiach), the Messiah. This indicates a paradoxical relationship between evil and good: the same power that can destroy, once redeemed, can liberate.

From this reading, the Midrash (Bereishit Rabbah 19:1) addresses the topic of Eve's dialogue with the serpent, affirming that before the Fall, animals possessed heightened consciousness, even the ability to speak. The serpent, in particular, was considered a high, upright, and intelligent creature.

The term "crafty" (arum) implies a special intelligence, which suggests that this serpent possessed a spiritual entity, being a channel for a higher spiritual force (like Samael or Satan), who used the serpent's mouth to tempt Eve.

Similar to how in the Torah, God makes Balaam's donkey speak (Numbers 22), in this case, a spiritual power made the serpent speak. According to the Zohar, this conversation represents an inner spiritual battle within Eve: the serpent's external voice is actually a manifestation of her own internal struggle between her spiritual desire and her material desires.

The dialogue between Eve and the serpent is an allegory of the awakening of dual consciousness: the awareness of good and evil, which previously lacked humankind. The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (עץ הדעת טוב ורע) represents the entrance to the world of duality, which includes speech, choice, judgment, and illusion. The ability to speak is intimately linked to divine creative power (God's speech creates the world). By allowing the serpent to speak, the story indicates that evil can also create, seduce, and convince.

In the pre-Fall state, Eve and Adam were at a very high spiritual level, where communication with other spiritual entities (including higher animals) could be natural. The Midrash also says that the serpent was originally a creature with legs, similar to man, and was only "cursed" and degraded after sin.

The serpent was not simply a talking animal: it was the symbolic manifestation of a spiritual force that represents ego, separation, and illusion. Its ability to speak reflects that evil can disguise itself as wisdom and that language can be both a tool of creation and of deception.

But among the various concerns that arise in the face of divine revelations, perhaps one of the most complex to explain is why, according to the conventional interpretation we give to the Genesis account, the serpent, as a created creature, directly contradicts the Creator's warning by insinuating to Eve that divine punishment will not be fulfilled.

Among the various concerns that arise in us regarding divine revelations, perhaps one of the most complex to explain is why, according to the conventional interpretation we give to the Genesis story, the serpent, as a created creature, directly contradicts the Creator's warning by insinuating to Eve that the divine punishment would not be fulfilled.

However, it is clear that within the vision of universal harmony, the duality in which we are currently trapped plays a predominant role, and within it, seemingly dark, evil, deceitful beings must be the generators of temptations so that we can decide whether to obey or not, and at the same time understand the effects of breaking the order and not embracing the divine will.

The context in which the serpent said, "וַיֹּאמֶ ר הַ נָּחָּ שׁ " (Va'yomer ha'nachash), leads us to understand that the forces of evil, which are part of the coexisting duality, contain within themselves a series of elements that, in the case of human free will, lead to sensations like selfishness and therefore our negative inclination (Yetzer Hara), which sometimes drives us to act against even ourselves.

By eating from the fruits of the forbidden tree, those seeds were sown in us, and therefore those impulses dwell within us, which implies that these forces co-govern our unconscious being and, at times, induce us to want to separate even further, both from ourselves and from the Creator, disconnecting us from His wisdom, which fills our minds with noises, voices, images, and dark thoughts.

But all this was already foreseen in the Divine Plan, as we needed to develop our free will. That is why the act of the serpent speaking must be read with great care, as it is clear that the only created being with verbal capacity is man. Therefore, that talking serpent symbolizes the verbal and psychological influence these dark forces have and how their emotional impulses affect not only our perceptions but also our nervous system, leading us to act against divine recommendations, disobeying His laws without considering the consequences.

The most important of these consequences is our physical death, "לֹּא מוֹת תְ מֻתוּן" (Lo mot temutun - "You will not die"). The serpent promises something contrary to God's warning, suggesting that the transgression will not bring death but rather a kind of empowerment. This deception is related to the illusion that often accompanies our bad decisions, making us believe there will be no negative repercussions, when in reality we are entering a path of separation and darkness.

It is important to note that death is not considered a definitive end but rather a transition or transformation since the soul does not die; this is why the serpent insisted on it. However, that passage from one state of existence to another within our life cycle does offer the possibility of evolution and elevation to higher planes of existence, or on the contrary, a greater fall than the one we face on earth.

The body is the physical shell of the soul during its time in the material world; it comes to an end, and the soul separates to return to its divine source, in a spiritual journey towards greater closeness with the Creator. Therefore, death itself should be interpreted as an opportunity for the soul to complete its process of correction or "Tikun."

Those who believe in regression speak of several lives in which the soul works to correct its defects and achieve a state of spiritual perfection, disregarding death as punishment. However, those of us who heed the words of our Lord Jesus Christ know that it marks the end of time and the resurrection for those who were nourished by the Tree of Life.

Redemption will come with His return as the Messiah, fulfilling the Creator's ultimate purpose for humanity. However, gematria warns us that "death" "מָּ וֶת" (Mavet), with a value of 446, contrasts with "life" "חַ יִים " (Chaim), with a numerical value of 68, drawing our attention to the fact that the changes in our cycles have to do with definitive distancing or eternal closeness, so if we do not heed this transformation, we cannot even imagine the end that awaits us.

If our soul does not purify, evolve, or increasingly draw closer to unity with the divine, that transit, which should prepare the soul for new stages of spiritual growth and redemption, must logically lead us to scenarios that we cannot even describe. For this reason, the concept of the serpent "נָּחָּ שׁ" (nachash) and its numerical value of 358 speak to us of the importance of the "משיח " (Mashiach – Messiah) to rescue us from that abyss.

It is better to focus on the redemptive power that arises even from confronting our own temptations and mistakes, which means that in temptation and sin, we can find opportunities for redemption and a return to original purity. However, we must learn to discern the inner voices that guide our decisions so that those unconscious nervous impulses do not affect our thoughts and lead us to question or minimize their consequences.

Continuing to justify our bad decisions and convincing ourselves that they will not have consequences is perhaps the worst decision. Therefore, we must be alert to the influences that distance us from our true spiritual essence and the divine mandates, which, like the serpent, make us promises that are only traps, illusions that seduce us into acting against what we know is not right, under the false belief that we can avoid the repercussions.

The recognition of our mistakes and the struggle against our negative inclinations can lead us to a deeper level of connection with the divine, as suggested by the shared numerical value between "serpent" and "Messiah." This parallel teaches us that even our falls can be a path to growth and redemption if we learn from them and strive to align our lives with the divine purposes.

Our Savior conquers death, descends to the very confines of the underworld, to call the living and the dead, to redeem us, to speak to us now of our redemption for which we only need faith.