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Brood of Vipers Luke 3 Matthew 3
Brood of Vipers Luke 3 Matthew 3
Viper: This refers to a species of poisonous snakes—‘asp, cobra, viper.’ The Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible says:
Serpents are among the most widespread reptiles and are found on all continents except Antarctica; they decrease in numbers and species toward the poles but increase as one approaches the equator.
Thirty-three species of snakes are known in Palestine and neighboring countries, 20 of which are poisonous. Two dangerous characteristics of the serpent noted by biblical writers are its inconspicuous way of moving and the ease with which it hides itself. (Logos edition under Serpents)
Interesting to me, this snake was used as a description of the character of some of the Jewish people on three occasions in the gospels!
First, by John the Baptist as the crowds [Pharisees and Sadducees] were going out to be baptized by him:
7 So he began saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 "Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our father,' for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham. (Luke 3:7-8) Matthew recorded that this was spoken to the Pharisees and Sadducees (Matt. 3:7)
Secondly by Jesus when the Pharisees accused him of being in league with Satan:
"You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak what is good? For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. Matthew 12:34
The third time it is also used by Jesus as he upbraids the scribes and Pharisees for their hypocrisy in religion:
"You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell? Matthew 23:33
At the root of this attitude is ego: they desired to appear to be what they weren’t willing to be! They wanted to appear obedient and submissive to John’s teaching while refusing to repent. They wanted to appear to be logical and righteous judges as they condemned Jesus for casting out demons. They wanted to appear righteous before men, while their hearts were far from God.
We are to love God with all of our hearts, soul, and mind. Such desires and seeks HIS righteousness above all else, even self. Such recognizes the error of our ways and seeks to turn back to God. Such produces submissive from the heart obedience to God’s commands. Does this describe US – or do we deserve to also be called a brood of vipers? Examine yourselves
Hugh DeLong
