Fiery Serpents
The epistle reading in the Episcopal church lectionary today is from 1 Corinthians. In the midst of a recital of the sins of the Israelites during the wilderness period after leaving Egypt, it contains a reference to the fiery serpents of Numbers 21:4-9. I learned a theory about the fiery serpents a few years ago that I thought I would share.
I wanted to preface what I am saying here by noting that this is a only theory. I am not one of those people who try to find naturalistic explanations for everything that happens in the Bible. That was a very common approach in the mid-20th century, with Werner Keller’s The Bible as History being the best known example of this. But Numbers 21 seems to be a case when an identifiable phenomenon seems to lie behind the story, although this in no means detracts from the theological interpretation of this event as punishment from God.
In short, Numbers 21 presents us with a story of fiery serpents that attack the people of Israel. Moses sets up a bronze serpent on a pole, and everyone who looked at was cured. This, of course, is the origin of the caduceus as a sign for the medical profession.
It has been suggested that a worm known as dracunculis lies behind this story. Dracunculis, more commonly known as the guinea worm, is still common, especially in Africa. The Center for Disease Control describes the guinea worm as follows:
Adult female Dracunculus worms emerge from the skin of Infected persons annually. Persons with worms protruding through the skin may enter sources of drinking water and unwittingly allow the worm to release larvae into the water. These larvae are ingested by fresh water copepods (”water fleas”) where these develop into the infective stage in 10-14 days. Persons become infected by drinking water containing the water fleas harboring the infective stage larvae of Dracunculus medinensis.
Once inside the body, the stomach acid digests the water flea, but not the Guinea worm. These larvae find their way to the small intestine, where they penetrate the wall of the intestine and pass into the body cavity. During the next 10-14 months, the female Guinea worm grows to a full size adult 60-100 centimeters (2-3 feet) long and as wide as a cooked spaghetti noodle, and migrates to the site where she will emerge, usually the lower limbs.
A blister develops on the skin at the site where the worm will emerge. This blister causes a very painful burning sensation and it will eventually (within 24-72 hours) rupture. For relief, persons will immerse the affected limb into water, or may just walk in to fetch water. When someone with a Guinea worm ulcer enters the water, the adult female releases a milky white liquid containing millions of immature larvae into the water, thus contaminating the water supply. For several days after it has emerged from the ulcer, the female Guinea worm is capable of releasing more larvae whenever it comes in contact with water.
The Israelite camp in the wilderness south of the Dead Sea could have contained water sources infected with these worms. The burning of the blister could have lead to the designation of the worms as fiery serpents. In addition, a common way of dealing with guinea worms is for the patient to wrap the emerging worm on a stick, winding it up as the worm emerges over several days. This would be the origin of the serpent on a stick that Moses set up.
Fortunately, guinea worms are no longer found in Israel, although they are still found in African countries that are not too far away, including Sudan and Ethiopia. Attempts to eradicate dracunculus continue today, with the United Nations, the World Health Organization, and many other groups working to wipe out these infestations. One thing that slows the process is that some African groups consider their water sources to be sacred, so they will not allow any pesticides to be placed in the water.
On March 11th, 2007 at 2:32 pm
Kevin,
I don’t think you can say “This, of course, is the origin of the caduceus as a sign for the medical profession.” I was taught that symbol included the sacred snakes of Asclepius but having done a little research under “Asclepius” on the net I find it is a bit more complicated than that. The caduceus is connected with Mercury (hence the wings)and in many other countries also symbolizes “commerce.” The healing rod of Asclepius probably originally had one snake but has come to have two, but no wings, and is, according to some, the more proper symbol of the healing professions.
On March 11th, 2007 at 3:59 pm
You are right that the symbolism has been combined with that of Asclepius. There are some traditions, however, that say the fiery serpents in Numbers could fly, which is another possible place of origin for the wings.
To further complicate matters, is seems clear that the serpent on the pole was worshipped during some periods in ancient Israel, probably in connection with the idea of healing. There is the account in 2 Kings 18:4 of Hezekiah removing the bronze serpent (the Hebrew words for bronze and serpent are very similar) from the temple. The story that is given there says that this is the same serpent Moses made in Numbers 21.
I looked up Asclepius, and some sources suggested that the guinea worm was the origin of his symbol as well.
As is always the case, biblical imagery and Greek imagery have been combined to give us a modern symbol. Thanks for the reminder.