The most read post on this blog is about Arnold Murray’s doctrine of the serpent seed. Since it gets so much traffic and venom (no pun intended), I thought it would be good to update it. Some of the links are no longer working, the youtube video mentioned in the comments has been removed, and Shepherd’s Chapel has updated their website. By the way, it is hardly reasonable to call this a “bash on Arnold Murray site,” since there are roughly 100 posts & only two (counting this one) discuss Murray.
There are many comments on the old post, but none actually addressed a question that I asked. What does “Kenite” mean? On his “Answer to Critics” page, Murray states:
What about the use of the word Kenites? It is a Hebrew word that has only one meaning, “sons of Cain.”
Strong’s Concordance and the Brown-Driver-Briggs’ lexicon do not give this definition. None of the commenters addressed this issue (other than Kendall Rycroft, who simply says that I am wrong), this is probably because they just pasted in comments they previously posted on a “I-know-Murray-is-right-because-I-can-look-up-words-in-Strong’s-concordance-and-anyone-who-criticizes-him-is-Satan’s-seed” forum (e.g., Bill). Strong’s concordance is a valuable tool for Bible study, by the way, it is not my intent to disparage it. I plan on addressing its value in my upcoming post of Arnold Murray.
To help me with the next post, I would like to ask two questions for my commenters. Read More »
UPDATE: What does “Kenite” mean?
“And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain…” so begins Genesis 4. That seems pretty plain – Cain is born from a union of Adam and Eve. I have recently come into contact with folks that do not believe this! Their teaching is called “the serpent seed doctrine.” In brief, the doctrine teaches that Eve’s sin in the garden was not disobedience but sexual contact with the serpent! As a result of this sexual contact with the serpent Cain was born. My initial reaction to this peculiar theology was “You’ve got to be kidding me!” Since I interact regularly with some folks who believe this, I thought I would investigate it in this post. The truth about the serpent’s seed is found in Genesis 3:15, where the first reference is made to the coming Redeemer Who will destroy Satan and his seed. In John 8:44, Jesus makes it clear that unbelievers are serpent’s seed: “Ye are of your father the devil…” This new “serpent seed doctrine” comes from the serpent himself (1 Timothy 4:1).
One of Satan’s messengers for this false doctrine is Arnold Murray of the Shepherd’s Chapel. Murray teaches that the Kenites are the descendants of Cain. According to Murray, the Kenites survived the global flood and continue to this day (source: www.carm.org). Obviously, Murray must not believe what God’s Word says concerning the flood (Genesis 7:21-22). He states plainly of Kenites on the Shepherd’s Chapel website:
It is a Hebrew word that has only one meaning, “sons of Cain.”
This Hebrew definition was apparently concocted by Murray. Upon examining Strong’s Concordance, the word means “a Kenite or member of the tribe of Kajin.” The Brown-Driver-Briggs’ Definitions gives this meaning: “Kenite = “smiths” 1) the tribe from which the father-in-law of Moses was a member and which lived in the area between southern Palestine and the mountains of Sinai.” Two standard Hebrew lexical references do not have the “only one meaning” of the word according to Arnold Murray.
The only way this wacky doctrine can be supported is by abandoning a literal interpretation of Scripture. Serpent must not mean serpent (how could a woman and a snake have intercourse?). Genesis 4:1 must not mean what it says (Adam is the father of Cain). There is no sense in answering any other arguments from Murray. By not accepting his teaching, it is probably just because I am a Kenite – child of Satan (according to Murray).
What are the consequences of believing in the serpent seed doctrine?
- The Scriptures cannot be trusted. If they could, then a plain reading of the Bible could be believed instead of Arnold Murray’s perverse twisting of the Word (which defies logic and context).
- If a literal interpretation of the Scriptures is thrown out, then the Words of Scripture have no authority. The meaning is up to each individual’s imagination.
Fortunately, we do not have to depend on the teachings of Arnold Murray or any other man to reveal hidden or lost truths in the Scriptures. We just need to read the Scriptures with an open heart and mind to receive God’s truth.
