Here Be Dragons

My imagination was sparked recently by reading essays by J.R.R. Tolkien and G.K. Chesterton about fairytales and reading Genesis 3 with a friend. When I hear the story of Genesis 3, I usually envision a snake talking to Eve, perhaps an exotic snake, big and bright, but just a snake. However, a passage toward the end of Scripture sheds a different light on this story. Revelation 20:2 states, “he will defeat the dragon, that ancient serpent…” Why did John not simply continue with the image of the serpent? Why introduce a new, mythical symbol at the end of the story? What did his audience picture in their minds’ eye when they heard the word ‘dragon’?

Then it struck me, perhaps this creature wasn’t a new addition to the story. Perhaps it wasn’t mythical. In Genesis 3, the serpent is cursed and told that he will crawl on his belly and eat the dust of the earth. Does this mean that the serpent originally had legs? Perhaps wings? Maybe the serpent looked like a lizard before the curse or something centipede-like. This time, I saw a totally different visual of the serpent. It had legs and wings, beautiful shining scales, huge and majestic in size. In fact, I pictured a dragon which said to Eve, “Did God really say….?” (Gen. 3:1) This was not a lowly beast, but a persuasive and wise being. It would not be surprising if Satan, who had once been full of light and beauty, would choose this creature as his mouthpiece.

If I continue this possible scenario in my mind, after the curse is laid on the earthly dragon, its legs (and perhaps wings) are taken and its majesty reduced to a beast that crawls on its belly, as Satan is also reduced to roam the earth. The only two human beings to have seen the serpent’s original form were Adam and Eve, but they passed their stories on to their children and children’s children. It would be no surprise then that so many cultures have dragon legends, stretching from China to Scandinavia, England to Africa. Though the interpretation of dragons is different in different cultures (not surprising since the story goes back to the beginning of human existence) many of them have the central idea of a long, serpent like creature, often with legs, sometimes with wings or fins. I find it interesting that dragons often talk in stories, even when other animals are dumb. Perhaps this is because the dragon’s words to Eve shaped the story so strongly.

In Revelation, John tells us about when Satan will take on the form of the dragon again, but Christ will defeat him. Christ is the dragon slayer, not only figuratively, but literally. This isn’t a projection from fairy tales we’ve read of knights slaying the dragon. It is the opposite, the knights slaying dragons in stories are a reflection of the reality of Christ defeating a real dragon, the dragon who deceived Eve. This dragon will receive its just consequences and the children of Adam and Eve will be delivered totally and forever.

Photo by Akshaye Sikand on Unsplash