The Bible in Genesis chapter three speaks about a snake in a tree that gave the first humans a seemingly harmless fruit that when eaten would cause their eyes to be opened, so that now they would supposedly be like God and live forever. To the average person, what the serpent offered sounds like a good deal. Who doesn’t want to be like God and live forever? But beneath this ostensibly harmless and quaint Bible story, that when uncovered reveals a sinister side which is the root of all the evil that has occurred in the world from then until now. This seemingly harmless event is, in reality, the nascence of the epic and perennial struggle between good and evil that has plagued this earth from the beginning.
To comprehend fully the nature of this struggle, it is essential first to understand who the key figures are in this story, that is, who is the Protagonist and the antagonist. On the side of good is YHVH Elohim, who is a loving Father and the Creator of all there is including man, whom he created in his own image eventually be part of his spiritual family. He is the source of all goodness, beauty, righteousness, justice and truth. The Bible from beginning to end is revelation of this Supreme and Eternal Being whose name is Yehovah (or YHVH) Elohim. He his a grand and glorious plan to elevate man little-by-little from the physical level to the spiritual level, eternal level, in a similar way that a loving parent trains his or her child to become a mature, fully functioning adult.
On the other side was a serpent-like being who makes his first appearance on the earth’s stage in Genesis chapter three. To the first humans, the serpent presents alternative route to godhood. It was a way that circumvented YHVH Elohim. It was as if the serpent was attempting to kidnap the first humans to deceptively subvert them so they would turn away from their parents and go in a completely antithetical direction to the ways of their parents.
When can learn much about the nature of the pernicious serpent by examining the meaning of his biblical Hebrew name nachash—a word which is found 31 times in the Tanakh or Old Testament (OT). In the King James Bible, for example, nachash is translated as “serpent” in all cases. The Hebrew root of this word means “to practice divination, divine, observe signs, learn by experience, diligently observe, practice fortune-telling, take as an omen.” Nachash is almost identical to the Hebrew word for copper or bronze, and some scholars think that the two words are related because of the color, since some snakes are copper in color (i.e., America’s copperhead snakes). A cognate of these two words is n’hushtan, which is the bronze serpent that Moses made (Num 21:9–9). The LXX (the Greek translation of the OT translated nachash as ophis, the Greek word for snake, in all instances (see The TWOT). Although this passage doesn’t relate the serpent to Satan, the adversary, John makes this connection twice in Revelation (Rev 12:9; 20:2).
But there is even more to the word nachash as biblical scholar Michael Heiser points out. The meaning of nachash is both plain and elastic. The most literal meaning is “serpent.” When the Hebrew root letters n-ch-sh are a noun, the meaning is “serpent.” But n-ch-sh can also be a verb when different vowels are added (i.e., nochesh). It then means “diviner.” “Divination refers to communication with the supernatural world. A diviner in the ancient world was one who foretold omens or gave out divine information (or oracles)” (The Unseen Realm, p. 87). The consonants n-ch-sh can also form an alternate noun referring to copper or bronze smiths. Nechosheth is the Hebrew word for bronze and copper, which are shiny when polished, and which can be used to describe divine beings (Dan 10:6; ibid.). In the case of n-ch-sh in Genesis 3:1, Heiser believes that the writer wants the reader to think of all the possible meanings and nuances of the word. As such, he suggests that there are immediate clues in the story that the serpent is more than a mere snake, that he may be a divine adversary, and that the term nachash may be a triple entendre. Elsewhere, Scripture refers to the serpent as a cherub, a divine being who was a guardian of Elohim’s throne (Ezek 28:16 cp. Exod 15:18–22).
So how does this serpent-like, divine being who is advertorial in nature relate to our Genesis chapter three story and his tempting of the first humans to rebel against YHVH Elohim? It is this serpent-cherub who dispenses divine information used to lure Eve into sin, when he gave her the omen that if she ate of the fruit of the forbidden tree of knowledge that she wouldn’t really die, that her eyes would be opened and that she could be like Elohim without having to obey his instructions. Moreover, the serpent-cherub’s shiny appearance conveyed a divine nature, making the serpent more credible and believable. All of these meanings of n-ch-sh are consistent with what Genesis 3, Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 reveal to us about the serpent (ibid, pp. 87–88).
Why is this background information so important in understanding the religion of secular humanism? This is because the first few verses of Genesis chapter three reveal that Satan, as YHVH’s arch-adversary is the originator of all the counterfeit religious systems of the world which are direct opposition to the truth of Elohim as revealed in the Bible. How is this? Let’s first review this passage of Scripture and then explain what we mean and how this is so. From the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the following drama played out:
Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the YHVH Elohim had made. And he said to the woman, “Has Elohim indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, Elohim has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ “Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For Elohim knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like Elohim, knowing good and evil.” (Gen 3:1–5)
As we are about to discover, all of the world’s religious systems and man-made philosophies fall under the power and influence of the serpent’s lies that originated in the Garden of Eden at the tree of knowledge. These false system can broadly be defined as secular humanism.
What is secular humanism and how does the devil use it to further his rebellious opposition to Elohim? At its core, secular humanism (as defined by Francis Schaeffer in his book The Great Evangelical Disaster, p. 32) is freedom from all restraint and especially rebellion against Elohim’s biblical truth.
When Satan originally rebelled against Elohim, he attempted to dethrone the Creator and lift himself up in Elohim’s place (Isa 14:12–14). Here in the Garden of Eden, Satan the serpent employed the same subversive tactics as in his original, earlier rebellion. He attempted to subvert the will of the Creator by calling into question the character of Elohim to Adam and Eve. This was an attack against the character of the Creator. In modern terms, we refer to this as an ad hominem attack, where you attack a person’s character rather than addressing the facts of the issue at hand. In this way, the serpent successfully lowered man’s esteem for Elohim, and at the same time elevated man’s esteem for himself at Elohim’s expense. The biblical record reveals that this is a standard attack technique of Satan. He continually pits the forces of his kingdom behind anything that will compromise the authority of Elohim by attacking the character of the Creator. Once the Creator is diminished if not eliminated from the scene in man’s thinking, it is upon this false foundation of evil lies, that the devil can then construct his own counterfeit kingdom that is in opposition to that of YHVH Elohim. The most notable example of this false (antichrist) kingdom is found in Revelation 13 where an end times worldwide system is described called Mystery Babylon the Great. There in a vision, John sees this false system likened a series of monster-like creatures, empowered by Satan, which stand in defiant opposition to Elohim. Similarly, in the end times, Satanic forces will infiltrate the Christian church and plant doctrines of demons and seeds of rebellion against the Word and will of Elohim (1 Tim 4:1).
Secular humanism at its most fundamental level seeks to dethrone Elohim as the Creator, Ruler, Lawgiver and Judge if not to eliminate him all together from having any influence in the affairs of men, and if possible, to relegate his memory to the trash of history as ancient fables contrived by primitive humans.
Humanism promotes the notion that now that Elohim has been dethroned, and man can now place himself on the throne of his life, thus usurping Elohim’s authority. This is all under the power and influence of Satan, of course, whether man is aware of this or not. Satan cares little if man sees him as the driving force behind this subversive movement, just as long Satan ultimately remains in charge.
At the core of humanistic philosophy is the assumption that man is innately good and sinless, instead of sinful and morally depraved as the Bible teaches. If man is the paragon of goodness and not evil, then he is now qualified to be the sole determiner of what is good and evil. Now, who needs an Elohim telling him what to do? Each person for himself is now the determiner of what is good and evil, hence the name the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. With Elohim out of the picture, man can now choose for himself what is good and evil. Schaeffer describes secular humanism this way.
[It is] a consensus that stands in total antithesis to the Christian truth at every point—including the denial of the supernatural; belief in the all-sufficiency of human reason; the rejection of the fall [of man into sin]; denial of the deity of Christ and his resurrection; belief in the perfectibility of Man; and the destruction of the Bible and with this has come a total moral breakdown” (Evangelical Disaster, pp. 35–36).
Schaeffer calls humanism “a fundamental conflict between ‘the wisdom of this world’ and the ‘wisdom of Elohim.” As previously noted, Satan is the originator and prime instigator behind the anti-Elohim religious philosophy of secular humanism. Satan’s rebellion against his Creator is characterized by the five “I will” statements of Isaiah 14:13–14, and which are summarized by his final assertion: “I will be like the Most High.” At the tree of knowledge, Satan disguised as a serpent successfully conned man into buying into this same idea that man can be like Elohim by rebelliously disregarding the Word of his Creator (Gen 3:4). To this day, the proponents of the secular humanist philosophy adhere to the idea that man is his own god, and that Elohim is either non-existent or, if he does exist, is irrelevant. Either way, man is his own god, is at the center of the universe, is the sole determiner of what is right and wrong, and in no way needs Elohim for anything, nor is man answerable to any Supreme Being for his actions.
Broadly speaking, humanism emphasizes preeminence of man over Elohim thus, in effect, deifying man. This is the rebellion of man against his Creator, and the dethroning (at most or the diminishing at least) of Elohim’s influence in man’s life. The will and mind of man take precedence over that of Elohim. This facilitates the rise of a mind or soul-centered religious systems where the mind, will and the emotions (or feelings) of man reign supreme. Man charts his own course without the influence of his Creator. This is the direct antithesis to the Holy Spirit-led religious system of the Bible where the Spirit and Word of Elohim directs the soul of man in what to do, say and think. Humanism, therefore, places man on the throne of his life and replaces the worship of Elohim with the worship of self. Humanism is a self-deifying philosophy where the created is worshiped instead of the Creator. This path sets man on the downward moral and spiritual spiral described in Romans 1:18–32 resulting in a morally debased and spiritually bankrupt (or sinful) civilization resulting in the Creator’s judgment on man which is the death penalty because of man’s sin.
Humanism places a heavy emphasis on insuring that physical matter supersedes or excludes the spirit, which is the realm of Elohim. Humanism is the deification of self or matter (i.e., that which exists in the physical realm), and encourages the worship of matter. This gives rise to the religious philosophy of evolution, earth worship, radical environmentalism, totalitarian and fascist forms of government, socialistic government entitlement programs, narcissism, homosexuality, abortion and a society’s preoccupation with hedonistic pleasures, instant gratification (which leads to public and private indebtedness), the over-emphasis on entertainment, sports and other diversionary pleasures. All these can be summed up in one word: materialism with its emphasis on the here and now, instant gratification, pleasure, feelings and the exaltation of self.
With materialism dominating man’s personal spirit, materialistic pleasures, instant gratification becomes paramount. As Paul states, if the promises and realities of Elohim are a lie, then let us eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die (1 Cor 15:32)! This statement sums up the basic mindset of the secular humanist. In the humanist’s psyche, it makes sense that since there is no Creator, there is no life after death, and thus there is no future accountability to a Higher Power for one’s sinful actions on earth. This paves the way for the humanist’s basic philosophy of life that “if it feels good, do it.” Similarly, the Satanist’s mantra is, “do what thou wilt,” which is a different way of saying the same thing. With such a philosophy as one’s modus operandi, then moral absolutes of any kind (especially the absolute truths of the Bible) are out, and moral relativism (or situation ethics) are the rule of the day. After all, it follows, in the humanist’s mind at least, that since their is no sovereign Creator-Lawgiver, it is impossible, therefore, for there to be any such thing as immutable or unchanging values or laws, and hence man’s doing what is right in his own eyes and whatever pleases him is justified.
Since common sense, a careful and objective study of history, and the Bible show that man innately is depraved, lustful, greedy, hedonistic, selfish, proud and rebellious, it follows that when the philosophy of secular humanism dominates a society, then these human (sinful) traits will inevitably characterize that society. If such a society is left to its own devices, what’s to stop a society from eventually devolving into a state of anarchy and ultimately destroying itself? Before this happens, however, typically a strong man will arise, impose some form of authoritarian rule up that society—usually in the form of some autocratic or despotic form of government such as communism or fascism. Classical examples of this include the outcomes of the French Revolution, the Bolshevik Revolution, the Chinese Communist revolution and many more. Think Hitler, Stalin, Moa, Castro Pol Pot and too many other names of godless, secular humanist dictators that have arisen on the scene in just the last 100 years!
Most more moderate societies have enough common sense to realize that anarchy is a recipe for diaster, so they devise governmental systems to enforce laws along with a humanistic form of twisted morality. Examples of the latter include the legalization of abortion while at the same time the killing of spotted owls and whales is made illegal. Paul describes such a society in 2 Timothy 3:1–4.
But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: for men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of Elohim.
What is the bottom line in this discussion? Elohim has given man two choices to make or two paths to follow in his life: one that leads upward to eternal life involving a spiritual relationship with his Creator, and one that leads downward and to death and separation from his Creator. The two trees in the Garden of Eden characterized these two paths: the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2:17) and the tree of life (Gen 2:9; 3:22, 24).
The tree of life represents the way of the cross of Yeshua the Messiah and eternal life that is available to those who will submit to and obey the Word of Elohim, and who will trust and believe in him. Such people don’t rely on or idolize their own minds to figure life out, for they realize that they are sinful, can’t deliver themselves from their own sinful condition, which ultimately will result in death without divine guidance from above. Wise humans realize that their lives are totally dependent upon Elohim. They realize that the Bible is the Creator’s instruction manual on how to live in a way that leads to love, peace, joy and ultimately eternal life. This is feeding from the tree of life as opposed to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil with the lying serpent hiding in its branches.
The tree of the knowledge of good and evil symbolizes the basic humanist philosophy we have already discussed. It is the path of self-exaltation, pride and rebellion against Elohim. It represents the mind and will of man pitted in opposition against Elohim. It is the path of rebellion, which leads to witchcraft and Satan (1 Sam 15:23).
Man is a tripartite being: spirit, soul and body (1 Thess 5:23). The soul is the mind, will and emotions of an individual, while the spirit is the part of man that is “the candle of YHVH” (Prov 20:27) deep within him that has the capability to connect to YHVH spiritually—spirit to Spirit. To enter into a life-giving relationship with Elohim, man is instructed to worship his Creator in spirit and in truth (John 4:24). How can man walk with his Creator in a spirit and truth-based relationship? Deep within every person is his personal spirit that remains latent or inactive until it is activated by the Holy Spirit of Elohim. This occurs at the time of man’s spiritual regeneration (called being born again in John 3:3), at which time man’s spirit becomes a spiritual channel for Elohim’s truth (1 Cor 2:9–16; 1 John 4:2; Eph 3:16; Rom 8:16; Prov 20:27; Job 32:8). Man can choose to gain spiritual wisdom, knowledge and understanding through his spirit as it is connected to the Spirit of Elohim (pictured by the tree of life), or he can bypass the spirit route and gain spiritual insight (which will be a mixture of both good and evil) through his soul (based on intellectual reasonings, emotions, desires and feelings, and his own will), which is symbolized by the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
The path of the soul is the pathway that the Scriptures reveals is of great interest to Satan, which he uses to draw men away from the spirit path that leads to Elohim. Satan does everything possible to diminish the power and influence of the kingdom of Elohim, to promote rebellion against Elohim, and to usurp the throne of Elohim for himself. How does the devil accomplish this? The Bible reveals that Satan is the god of this world (2 Cor 4:4), and that “all that is in the world, the lusts of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world” (1 John 2:16). In other words, what is in the world comprises of three domains, which coincidentally corresponds with the three-part division of man” spirit, soul and body. “The lusts of the flesh” refers to the body of man with its carnal appetites and weaknesses toward evil. “The “lust of the eyes” refers to that which appeals to the soul of man (i.e., his mind, will and emotions). Finally, “the pride of life” attempts to subvert the spirit within man.
These three areas through which Satan attempts to subvert man seem to promise man so much including meaning and purposes in one’s life as well as spiritual enlightenment, yet in the end this way brings emptiness and despair, or leanness of soul or scanty fulfillment as the psalmist proclaims (Ps 106:15). All of the non-biblical religious and philosophical systems of the world fall into this category and are tools of the devil to lead man away from Elohim.
It is the deep hunger in man’s heart to understand the meaning and purpose of life, to know the future, and to discover if there is a future hope for him. Satan attempts to satiate this thirst for understanding through soulish means—again, by bypassing the spirit, which is man’s link to Elohim and to true spiritual enlightenment. This attempt by Satan to deceive man to gain spiritual enlightenment through his soul without having to resist and to conquer sin (Gen 4:7) actually makes man a slave to sin and to the devil resulting in the damnation of man because of sin and rebellion against Elohim (Rom 6:23). By appealing to man’s soul, Satan cunningly diverts man away from the only spiritual path by which he can be redeemed from sin and be reconciled to Elohim and thus receive eternal life. By this sleight of hand, Satan short changes man and heads him down the path of rebellion and eternal death and separation from Elohim. Man gets what he wants (the lust of the eyes and flesh, and the pride of life), yet in the long run ends up with death having been shortchanged of true spiritual enlightenment and eternal life. And Satan gets what he want: the destruction of man with him left as the god of a destroyed world.
In Genesis 3, it is all laid out for us to see. The serpent (Satan) is called “more subtle [cunning or crafty] than any other beast of the field which YHVH Elohim had made” (verse 1). In verse six, we see that the devil sets the scene so that all three parts of man’s tripartite makeup (body, soul and spirit) are tempted to sin. First, when “the woman saw that the tree was good for food,” her physical senses, or the lust of the flesh or the body was put to the test. Second, when Eve saw that the fruit “was pleasant [desirable] to the eyes,” the soul was tempted. Finally, she saw that the eating of the fruit could make one wise or mentally enlightened. This was Satan’s attack on the spirit that is within man, which is the candle of YHVH. But in reality, this temptation which appealed to the pride of life and was designed to entice the soul of man to usurp authority over man’s spirit.
At the point when Eve ate the fruit from the forbidden tree of knowledge, she yielded dominion of her spirit to her soul, and unregenerate, sinful men have been under the control of their souls (their natural mind or understanding, will and emotions, that is, “every man doing what is right in his own eyes”) ever since. As already stated, all of the philosophical, religious, political, economic, social, cultural and educational systems that men have devised since our first parents ate from the tree of knowledge derive their impetus from the soul (the tree of knowledge), and not the spirit (the tree of life) realm.
Satan had such an overwhelming success in subverting the first Adam, that he tried the same tactic with Yeshua, the Second Adam (Rom 5:12–21). This occurred when the devil tempted Yeshua in his body, soul and spirit in the wilderness (Matt 4:1–11). Also, in the Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13, we see the devil using the same battle tactics when he wages war against the body and soul (through tribulation and persecution, verse 21) and in the pride of life realm (the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches, verse 22). With the devil, there is nothing new under the sun; his subversive tactics to entice man into rebellion against YHVH Elohim have never changed.
Once the cloak of darkness is pulled back and Satan’s tactics are revealed, one now has better understanding of history. The epic struggle between the forces of good and evil going back to the Garden of Eden become evident. The enlightened possessor of this understanding is now armed with the ability to discern between good and evil. One can now make choices that will lead to life instead of death by following the Creator’s original, glorious plan and destiny for mankind,which is an upward path leading to eternal life and inclusion in the kingdom of heaven.
