Do Christians Believe That Animals Used to Talk

[Skeptical]

Doing some research for The Logic of Satan's Temptation to Eve thread, I came across this article:

https://www.gotquestions.org/talking-snake.html

which says:

Still, why didn’t Adam and Eve find it strange that an animal was speaking to them? It is unlikely that Adam and Eve had the same perspective we do on animals. In our era, we know from experience that animals are incapable of speech on the same level as humans. Adam and Eve did not have a childhood, nor did they have other humans to learn from. Given that Adam and Eve had probably only been alive a matter of days, it is not unreasonable for them to believe that animals were capable of speech. It is also possible that this was not the first talking animal Adam and Eve had encountered. Perhaps Satan or even God Himself had used animals to communicate with Adam and Eve before. There are so few details given in the account that much is left to speculation and presumption.

Huh?

Therefore, I would like to know if there are any other Christians besides the one's from Got Questions who think that it's a possibility that animals used to talk a long time ago back in the Garden of Eden.

[Skeptical]

If you use a telephone to communicate does that mean telephones can talk?



JW

Ohhhh. I get it.

[JehovahsWitness]

COULD A SPIRIT CONTROL A SNAKE?

Well, just for the sake of debate, wouldn't ventriloquism skills have required Satan to have moved the snake's mouth in synch correctly with the words that were actually coming out of Satan's mouth?

Yes; do you not believe a powerful demon spirit can control a snakes mouth? Please read the account of the demon possessed man of Gerasenes.

MARK 5:3-9

When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. 3 This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. 4 For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. 5 Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones. 6 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. 7 He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me!” 8 For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you impure spirit!” 9 Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” “My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.”

Who was Jesus conversing with? The poor tortured soul who was possessed or the demons that controlled him? Although the man's mouth no doubt was moving the words that came out of it were not his own. Spirits are incredibly powerful creatures so yes, controlling the movements of a human or a snake (or a donkey for that matter) so they appear to be speaking when are not, would be child's play for them.


JW

[JehovahsWitness]

Also, I was wondering if after God had showed Adam all the animals on the earth before Eve was ... created, if Eve ever had the opportunity to be shown all the animals too. ...

Don't you think Adam would have show Eve the animals?




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[JehovahsWitness]

DID EVE BELIEVE IT WAS THE SNAKE TALKING TO HER?

Who knows!? She certainly would have understood that animals had not been gifted with the power of speech. It seems Adam (and possibly Eve) were accustomed to communicating with God, so they were aware of the existence of a spirit world; it could be that Eve had figured out she was speaking to an unseen spirit.



But then again she proved to be supremely gullible so maybe believed she had stumbled on an anomaly. I've heard it speculated that perhaps, since this concerned the forbidden tree, she might have thought the snake had eaten from it and it had subsequently gained the power to speak... quite frankly who knows what went through that woman's head !



JW


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[William]

DP

[William]

What bible version has it that a ventriloquist was involved?

[Replying to JehovahsWitness in post #6]

The one read with critical thinking skills. (Demonstarted in the above post #4)

There is no version of any bible given in post #4.

For that matter, there are no identifiable critical thinking skills re that post either.
Which version are you using which identifies a SNAKE as being the critter which tempted Eve?

[Skeptical]

Yes; do you not believe a powerful demon spirit can control a snakes mouth? Please read the account of the demon possessed man of Gerasenes.




JW

Well, if powerful demon spirits exists, of course it could control a snake's mouth. However, what I'm wondering about is: Why would God allow such a horrible thing to happen in his Garden of Eden? Wasn't he paying attention? Because that sounds very subversive and very disastrous for an Almighty God to not know that something like that was going on within one of his domains.

[Skeptical]

Don't you think Adam would have show Eve the animals?

Well, according to this narrative, I would have thought that he would have, therefore, you just made one of my points.

[Skeptical]

DID EVE BELIEVE IT WAS THE SNAKE TALKING TO HER?

Who knows!? She certainly would have understood that animals had not been gifted with the power of speech. It seems Adam (and possibly Eve) were accustomed to communicating with God, so they were aware of the existence of a spirit world; it could be that Eve had figured out she was speaking to an unseen spirit.



But then again she proved to be supremely gullible so maybe believed she had stumbled on an anomaly. I've heard it speculated that perhaps, since this concerned the forbidden tree, she might have thought the snake had eaten from it and it had subsequently gained the power to speak... quite frankly who knows what went through that woman's head !



JW

That woman? But we're talking about the best of the best by God. Therefore, it's kind of strange that she was so easily taken in. And all the while God was sitting back and not noticing. Also, see my other thread:

viewtopic.php?t=40672

[JehovahsWitness]

WAS EVE TEMPTED BY A SNAKE OR A SERPENT?

Which version are you using which identifies a SNAKE as being the critter which tempted Eve?

In English snake and serpent are synonymous. The Encyclopaedia Britanica notes

SNAKE, (suborder Serpentes), also called serpent, any of more than 3,400 species of reptiles distinguished by their limbless condition and greatly elongated body and tail.

The Hebrew word used in the Genesis account is "nachash" (נָחָשׁ); language experts understand this to be a generic, or general, term which applys to all snakes or serpentlike creatures, and it is often used along with other Hebrew words that denote a particular kind of snake (Ps 58:4; 140:3; Pr 23:32) . This Hebrew term corresponds to the Greek ophis (ὄφις) as confirmed by 2 Corinthians 11:3.