SERPENT {80is).— Apart from the Gospels, the only occurrences of the word ' serpent ' in the NT are in the Epistles to the Corinthians (1 Co 10", 2 Co IP) and in the Apocalypse (Rev 9'' igs- ". i6 20-). In 1 Co 10' the writer exhorts his readers not to tempt Christ sorely as the Israelites did, with the result that they were allowed to perish from time to time (diruXXwro) by the inflammatory bites of serpents. In the second passage (2 Co 1 1^) he expressed the fear lest, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so the minds of the Corinthian converts should be corrupted from the simplicity and singlemindedness of Christ. In both cases the tempter is Satan, and in both cases his nefarious work is accomplished by subtlety and deception, but in Genesis his agent is the serpent, while here the 'ministers' of Satan (v.'") are the Judaizers (v.'*). In Rev 12' the Devil appears in his time-honoured r61e as a serpent, and he is identified both with the great Dragon and with the person called ' Satan ' in the later books of the OT and in Jewish literature. The name ' Satan ' was familiar to the later Jews, and occurs fourteen times (6 crarai'Ss) in the Gospels, twice in the Acts of the Apostles, ten times in the Pauline Epistles, and eight times in the Apocalypse. The earth was no new sphere for the exercise of his devilish activi- ties, but henceforth his scope was to be confined thereto, and this limitation of his powers seems only to have intensified his animosity and desire for revenge. A torrent of water issued from his mouth (v.") which was designed to sweep away the Woman, but this malicious attempt recoiled on the Devil's own head, and the destructive flood was swallowed up by the earth which was his own domain. The purpose to which the Roman Emperors set themselves was to eradicate and stamp out the very name of Christianity as well as the memory of the Founder of that religion. The futility and complete failure of the attempt are too obWous to admit of comment. In Rev 20- the Devil is again identified with the great Dragon and Satan. The Dragon has from the outset (13=-'') been the real instigator and author of the revolt led by the Beast and the False Prophet, but hitherto he has escaped justice. Now, however, he is seized and bound for a. period of a thousand years. The period of his imprisonment is indeed linnted, but its length forms a striking contrast to the short duration of heathen- ism— a thousand two hundred and threescore days (Revll^if-).
In Rev 9" the tails of the horses in the vision are likened to serpents, just as the tails of the locusts in 9' are compared to scorpions. The power of
these horses resides in their mouth and in their tails. The tails are incongruously said to have heads, but the incongruity is perhaps atoned for by the additional horror thereby imparted to these superhuman animals.
Seriients are very common in Palestine and in the wihh^rness of Sinai ; over thirty species are known, the majority of which are, however, harm- less. Most of the innocuous serpents belong to the genera .nl6i((6e« and Za7)ir(j«« of the Colubrine family. Many of these are brilliantly coloured ; they are well proportioned and .slender, with a gradually tapering tail, and they live exclusively on land. The majority are of ratlier small size, but some are very large. A species very frequently found in the marshes and lakes is the Tropidonotus kydrus. A few species of harmless sand-snakes have also been found, of which the Eryx jaculus is the most common.
The poisonous snakes of the country are the following : the cobra {Naja haje), and four viperine snakes, two true vipers, the Vijjcra eu- phratica and the Vipera ammodytes, the Daboia xanthina, and the Echis arenicola, a dangerous reptile which is very frequently encountered in the hotter and drier parts of the country. With the exception of the Dnboia xanthina, they all belong to the Mediterranean and North African fauna, or are closely allied thereto. The Daboia xanthina is a beautifully marked yellow serpent and the largest of the vipers in Palestine, as well as one of the most dangerous. The Naja haje, or Egyptian cobra, is of rare occurrence. It is the species especially popular with snake-charmers. Another very deadly serpent is the Cerastes hassdquistii, or ' horned serpent.' It lies in ambush in depressions in the way (cf. Gn 49") and attacks the wayfarer. It is 12 or 18 ins. long, and of a sandy colour with brown or blackish spots. See, further, AsP, Viper.
LiTERATURB. — H. B. Tristram, Survey of Western Palestine, LoiKioii, 1884, p. 140 f., riie Xatural Hisl.orii of the Bible'o, do., 1911, pp. 209-277 ; W. M. Thomson, Tlie Land and the Book, 3 vols., do., 18S1-86, vol. i. 'South Palestine and Jerusalem,' pp. 188-lSB ; J. C. Geikie, The Holy Land and the Bible, do., 1903, pp. 88-90 ; SDB, p. 837 ; HDB iv. 459-460 ; EBi iv. 4391- 4397 ; H. B. Swete, The Apocalj/pse nf St. John', London, 1007, pp. 134, 154, 159, 260 ; The Speaker's Commentary, do., 1881, vol. iii. pp. 310-311, 457-458.
P. S. P. Handcock. SERVANT.— See Ministry, Slave.