The Serpent and the Serpent Slayer (Short Studies in Biblical Theology)

I love this series of short studies in theology, and this latest addition by Dr. Naselli nails it. I had never quite seen the Bible as the epic drama that it is. Dr. Naselli is thorough and biblical, yet easy to understand. I highly recommend this book, along with another in the series, "the City of God and the Goal of Creation." They are eye-opening to the beautiful and powerful narrative of God's redemption, from the Garden to the New Jerusalem.

This book is underrated. It is well research, contains compelling arguments, and is short and readable. The author also does a good job of answering the “so what” question and helps apply it to life. This is an excellent addition to the Short Studies in Biblical Theology series and would be a great addition to your library.

I was hoping for a treatise on how the Bible provides the framework for understanding serpent myths and stories throughout the ages, with deeper insight on serpent symbolism. Received loosely connected theological thoughts that get lost in the weeds and see ‘snakes’ everywhere. Very disappointed.

Not my style.

treats the early themes of the Bible well and compares them to the salvation themes, they all are related and this is a great analysis of that

In The Serpent and The Serpent Slayer, Naselli traces the theme of serpents and dragons throughout the Bible in order to provide a descriptive analysis of their characteristics. In terms of technicality, Naselli demonstrates a proper biblical theology methodology. He begins with the serpent in the garden and proceeds to trace the various occurrences of serpents and dragons throughout the Bible, offering commentary on distinctive characteristics of serpents and dragons. Naselli also relates the occurrences of serpents and dragons to the overarching story of the Bible, showing how God continuously defeats the serpents and dragons throughout the Bible, culminating in Jesus' defeat of Satan. In terms of information, Naselli doesn't necessarily say anything novel, nor does he have to, but this work serves as a helpful compilation of all the relevant Bible passages relating to serpents and dragons. Especially helpful is Naselli's descriptions of the characteristics of serpents and dragons as well as those who are influenced by Satan or follow after the pattern of dragons. For instance, Naselli notes that a key characteristic of serpents and dragons is that they seek to kill babies, informing that the serpent in the garden was to hate the woman's offspring, the Pharaoh in Egypt who was a type of dragon murdered the Israelite babies, Herod who was a type of dragon murdered babies, and the dragon of Revelation seeks to kill the offspring of the woman. Such helpful descriptors help readers identify those who are following after the patterns of serpents and dragons. The major weakness of the book is the lack of practicality. Readers will no doubt notice the lack of application and practicality early on. A reader will find himself thinking, "Ok, this is informative, but why does it matter?" Thankfully, Naselli does add a chapter devoted to application at the end of the book. However, the chapter still lacks practicality and seems to have been added as a perfunctory measure rather than out of the author's desire to apply the information to the lives of the readers. This is seen in the fact that the application is fairly surface-level, lacking real depth. Overall, The Serpent and The Serpent Slayer is a good book that is far more informative than practical. Readers will be able to follow Naselli's writing easily, learn to identify traits of serpents and dragons, and gain a better understanding of the overall biblical story. Crossway provided me with a free copy of this book as part of their blog review program.

Who doesn’t love a tale of dragon-slaying? This book traces the theme of serpent/dragon-slaying through the Bible from the first promise of a Savior who would “crush the head” of the serpent (Genesis 3:14-15) to the final defeat of “the dragon, that ancient serpent who is the devil” in the book of Revelation. Along the way, the author also draws comparisons to other serpent/dragon-slaying stories, both mythical and popular fantasy. I love the idea of this book, and the theme is definitely there in Scripture and in popular stories. Naselli does a decent job of tracing the thread, quoting extended passages from the Bible throughout the book. However, I do think that some of his examples are a bit of stretch, particularly in the passages pulled from the eras of judges and kings (and points made from The Lord of the Rings which does not in fact feature any dragons or serpents even though it has a strong biblical good overcoming evil vibe). In areas related to the fulfillment of prophecy and the role of national Israel, the author’s theology is quite a bit different from my own. While these aren’t issues over which we should call each other “heretic,” they do significantly affect how we understand some of the passages he highlights. Someone who is a bit more amillennialist, preterist, and/or supersessionist than I am will probably have a greater appreciation for certain parts of the book than I do. Overall, this is a pretty cool little biblical theology book. It speaks to me as a theology nerd, fantasy geek, and follower of Jesus Christ who is the ultimate dragon-slayer.

This is one in a series published by Crossway entitled "Short Studies in Bible Theology." Each volume traces a theme through the entire Bible. This particular one studies snake and dragon symbolism. The author starts with the following premises: The Bible is entirely true and our final authority Any part of the Bible must be read in light of the whole Bible Biblical theology studies how the whole Bible progresses, integrated, and climaxes in Christ All of this lines up with my training as a conservative Lutheran. Naselli begins by listing some of the famous dragon-slaying stories which are familiar to many of us . They echo the Greatest Story of the Bible and include the following characters: The serpent, or villain (in the Bible --Satan) A damsel in distress (in the Bible--the people of God) The serpent slayer, our hero (in the Bible--Jesus) Although snakes occasionally symbolize good, in the Bible they are overwhelmingly negative. The enemies of God are portrayed as serpents or dragons who deceive and devour. We are led through a number of important references from Genesis to Revelation that support this view. The book ends with some conclusions about how we should live in light of the story of this story. There is an appendix at the end which traces all the mentions of the serpent, listing relevant Bible verses. The Lutheran Ladies Connection blog received a free e-copy in return for a fair and honest review.

The Serpent and the Serpent Slayer is the most recent offering in Crossway’s Short Studies in Biblical Theology series. Andy Naselli takes readers on a short and illuminating tour of Scripture and reveals the main features of God’s plan in redemptive history. In one sentence, Naselli skillfully summarizes the main theme of the book: The serpent defeated Adam under a tree (“the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” – Gen. 2.17), and the new and greater Adam defeats the serpent on a tree – a cross for executing criminals.” Like each of the other books in this tour of biblical theology, The Serpent and the Serpent Slayer offers a short and readable treatment in a key theological area. The theological message of the book is clear and precise: “The Lamb will consummate his kingdom for God’s glory by slaying the dragon and saving his bride.” Or in the words of Joe Rigney, “Kill the dragon, get the girl.” Naselli demonstrates how the central theme of the book relates to the everyday lives of God’s people. He offers six practical ways to live in light of the biblical plot line: Don’t imitate the poisonous serpent Beware of the serpent as the deceiving snake and devouring dragon Fight the serpent as the deceiving snake and devouring dragon Exult in the serpent slayer Enjoy good serpent-stories as echoes of the greatest story Trust the serpent slayer In the end, The Serpent and the Serpent Slayer is an uplifting book that will help and encourage the people of God. It, along with the other works in the Short Studies in Biblical Theology is highly recommended. I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

As Christians, we often have to defend our belief that the Bible should be taken literally. The writers of the Bible present much of the information as historical fact, and Christians need to accept certain claims of the Bible as historical fact to be true Christ-followers. For example, the apostle Paul wrote that if Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, then our faith is false (1 Cor. 15:14–19). Often, orthodox Christians find themselves battling against ideas that the claims of the Bible are purely symbolic of spiritual truths. One must believe in the literal resurrection of Jesus from the dead to be a Christian. Yet, we also have to accept that the Bible is a work of literature and sometimes the writers of the Bible do, in fact, use symbolic language and metaphor. By identifying the genre of the book of the Bible, this becomes clearer. For instance, the Psalms are poetic songs. The Book of Revelation is a highly symbolic style of ancient writing called apocalyptic literature. Thus, both the Psalms and Revelation use figurative language, so often we often have to ask about any given verse in them: Are we to take this literally or figuratively? On the other hand, works like 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, the four Gospels, and Acts are historical narratives, so we take them as factual history. Yet, even these historical narratives have non-literal elements. For instance, Jesus often teaches in parables. We all know parables are short fictional tales to teach a lesson. Jesus also uses metaphors when he teaches. He calls himself a door and bread and a shepherd, but even the most uninformed reader understands that he’s speaking metaphorically. As a former high school English teacher, I enjoy learning about the often-overlooked literary elements of the Bible, including symbolic themes—elements that may not be so obvious to modern readers but repeat through God’s Word. The Serpent and the Serpent Slayer by Andrew David Naselli is part of a series called Short Studies in Biblical Theology. It’s a quick read exploring the symbolism in Scripture of the serpent and dragon. Naselli writes of the love of dragon-slaying stories throughout history, which he sums up with a pithy explanation of their shared theme: “Kill the dragon, get the girl.” He claims this is the theme of the Bible as well: Satan is the villainous serpent/dragon; the damsel in distress is God’s people; and the serpent slayer is Jesus. This may seem like a stretch, but once we consider the symbolism of the snake and dragon in Scripture (as well as the Church as the Bride of Christ—Rev. 19:7–9, 21:1–2; Eph. 5:25–32), it might not be so far fetched. Some of the same passages that equate Satan with the serpent also equate him with the dragon of the Book of Revelation: And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. (Revelation 12:8–9) Naselli explains that the snake and the dragon express the two strategies of Satan. The snake is the deceiver. The dragon is the destroyer. He writes, “Snakes deceive; dragons devour. Snakes tempt and lie; dragons attack and murder. Snakes backstab; dragons assault.” Though there are always sections that I wish were more fleshed-out in short books like Naselli’s, The Serpent and the Serpent Slayer is definitely worth the quick read if you want an introduction to these ideas. *Crossway Books provided me with a free copy to review this book.

I love this series of short studies in theology, and this latest addition by Dr. Naselli nails it. I had never quite seen the Bible as the epic drama that it is. Dr. Naselli is thorough and biblical, yet easy to understand. I highly recommend this book, along with another in the series, "the City of God and the Goal of Creation." They are eye-opening to the beautiful and powerful narrative of God's redemption, from the Garden to the New Jerusalem.

This book is underrated. It is well research, contains compelling arguments, and is short and readable. The author also does a good job of answering the “so what” question and helps apply it to life. This is an excellent addition to the Short Studies in Biblical Theology series and would be a great addition to your library.

I was hoping for a treatise on how the Bible provides the framework for understanding serpent myths and stories throughout the ages, with deeper insight on serpent symbolism. Received loosely connected theological thoughts that get lost in the weeds and see ‘snakes’ everywhere. Very disappointed.

Not my style.

treats the early themes of the Bible well and compares them to the salvation themes, they all are related and this is a great analysis of that

In The Serpent and The Serpent Slayer, Naselli traces the theme of serpents and dragons throughout the Bible in order to provide a descriptive analysis of their characteristics. In terms of technicality, Naselli demonstrates a proper biblical theology methodology. He begins with the serpent in the garden and proceeds to trace the various occurrences of serpents and dragons throughout the Bible, offering commentary on distinctive characteristics of serpents and dragons. Naselli also relates the occurrences of serpents and dragons to the overarching story of the Bible, showing how God continuously defeats the serpents and dragons throughout the Bible, culminating in Jesus' defeat of Satan. In terms of information, Naselli doesn't necessarily say anything novel, nor does he have to, but this work serves as a helpful compilation of all the relevant Bible passages relating to serpents and dragons. Especially helpful is Naselli's descriptions of the characteristics of serpents and dragons as well as those who are influenced by Satan or follow after the pattern of dragons. For instance, Naselli notes that a key characteristic of serpents and dragons is that they seek to kill babies, informing that the serpent in the garden was to hate the woman's offspring, the Pharaoh in Egypt who was a type of dragon murdered the Israelite babies, Herod who was a type of dragon murdered babies, and the dragon of Revelation seeks to kill the offspring of the woman. Such helpful descriptors help readers identify those who are following after the patterns of serpents and dragons. The major weakness of the book is the lack of practicality. Readers will no doubt notice the lack of application and practicality early on. A reader will find himself thinking, "Ok, this is informative, but why does it matter?" Thankfully, Naselli does add a chapter devoted to application at the end of the book. However, the chapter still lacks practicality and seems to have been added as a perfunctory measure rather than out of the author's desire to apply the information to the lives of the readers. This is seen in the fact that the application is fairly surface-level, lacking real depth. Overall, The Serpent and The Serpent Slayer is a good book that is far more informative than practical. Readers will be able to follow Naselli's writing easily, learn to identify traits of serpents and dragons, and gain a better understanding of the overall biblical story. Crossway provided me with a free copy of this book as part of their blog review program.

Who doesn’t love a tale of dragon-slaying? This book traces the theme of serpent/dragon-slaying through the Bible from the first promise of a Savior who would “crush the head” of the serpent (Genesis 3:14-15) to the final defeat of “the dragon, that ancient serpent who is the devil” in the book of Revelation. Along the way, the author also draws comparisons to other serpent/dragon-slaying stories, both mythical and popular fantasy. I love the idea of this book, and the theme is definitely there in Scripture and in popular stories. Naselli does a decent job of tracing the thread, quoting extended passages from the Bible throughout the book. However, I do think that some of his examples are a bit of stretch, particularly in the passages pulled from the eras of judges and kings (and points made from The Lord of the Rings which does not in fact feature any dragons or serpents even though it has a strong biblical good overcoming evil vibe). In areas related to the fulfillment of prophecy and the role of national Israel, the author’s theology is quite a bit different from my own. While these aren’t issues over which we should call each other “heretic,” they do significantly affect how we understand some of the passages he highlights. Someone who is a bit more amillennialist, preterist, and/or supersessionist than I am will probably have a greater appreciation for certain parts of the book than I do. Overall, this is a pretty cool little biblical theology book. It speaks to me as a theology nerd, fantasy geek, and follower of Jesus Christ who is the ultimate dragon-slayer.