Every moment of inspiration is a visitation—an annunciation of a new state. It comes as a whisper within, a revelation from the Lord, calling man to rise to a higher conception of himself. But as soon as this inner stirring occurs, there often follows a quiet and familiar voice: the questioning voice, the subtle whisper of doubt. In the language of Scripture, this is the appearance of the serpent.
Just as the woman in Eden stood before the tree already aware of its appeal, so too does man become aware of his desire as soon as he is quickened with a new state. The tree represents the awareness of something beyond the current assumption—a knowledge of good and evil, a knowing beyond innocence.
But what causes man to waver? Why, after receiving the word, does he fall into uncertainty? To understand this, we must see the serpent not as an external being, but as the outpicturing of man’s former assumptions—the remnant of the old man.
1. The Subtlety of the Serpent
The serpent is described in Genesis as "more subtil than any beast of the field." Neville teaches that all of Scripture is psychological drama. The field is the world, and the beasts are the myriad states available to man. The serpent, then, is the most cunning of the old states—able to reason, to twist the word, and to make one question the inner revelation.
The woman does not create desire. She is the aspect of man that receives the seed of an idea. The serpent speaks to her because she represents receptivity—imagination, the womb of manifestation. The voice of the serpent introduces the seed of question: “Hath God said…?” The Word (new assumption) has been received, but the former state (the serpent) now seeks to corrupt the seed before it takes root.
2. Eating the Fruit: Entering the State
When the woman eats, she takes the idea within herself. This is not sin in the modern sense, but the acceptance of an assumption. Neville states, “You become what you contemplate.” To eat of a thing is to digest it, accept it, embody it.
But what does she eat? A state offered through the suggestion that she will be “as God, knowing good and evil.” This is the birth of self-awareness—the beginning of man directing his own assumptions. The fall is not a punishment; it is the descent into a new level of consciousness. The drama shifts from innocent being to self-directing man.
3. The Voice of Doubt is the Old Man Resisting Death
Every new state is a death to the old. Neville says, “Man must die to one state before he can live to another.” Doubt is not an enemy but the final cry of a dying identity. The serpent’s voice is the inner echo of your past assumptions—pleading for survival.
The serpent speaks after the Word has been planted. It cannot stop the desire, but it can tempt you to abandon the assumption. When you entertain doubt, you resurrect the old man. When you persist in the new state, you crucify the old.
4. The Woman, the Tree, and the Serpent are All Within
This drama plays out not in history but within the individual. The woman is your imagination—receptive and fertile. The tree is your awareness of possibility. The serpent is the whisper of former beliefs. The man, Adam, is your current assumption of self.
Neville says that the Bible is your biography. You are both tempted and tempted. You receive the word, question it, and ultimately must choose whether to embody the new assumption or return to the old.
5. The Expulsion from Eden: The Birth of Responsibility
To eat of the tree is to know both the potential and the danger of imagination. You become responsible for your assumptions. Eden is the state of unknowing innocence. The expulsion is symbolic of awakening to the creative power within. Man is now conscious of the fact that imagining creates reality—and that every inner act bears fruit.
Conclusion: The Serpent as Initiator
The serpent does not end the story—it begins it. Without the serpent, there is no fall; without the fall, there is no unfolding drama of redemption and return. In Neville’s framework, redemption is awakening: remembering that you are the operant power.
Doubt, then, is not failure. It is the moment before decision. It is the serpent inviting you to eat—to test whether you believe the Word implanted within.
Will you persist in the assumption until it hardens into fact? Or will you bow to the whisper of the old man?
Your imagination is the woman, and the serpent’s voice only tempts that which has already been conceived. The choice remains: will you remain in the old state, or will you rise and walk in the newness of life?
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