What a delightful thing it is to have a familiar Bible verse suddenly explode with new meaning when viewed in spiritual light.

This happened to me recently while reading this passage from the much-loved ninety-first Psalm: "Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder." ^{Ps. 91:13;} In the past, I suppose, I had more or less considered this line a comforting promise for anyone facing an angry lion or poisonous snake. But I dismissed it as having little relevance for me, since where I live a personal encounter with a lion or adder is hardly an everyday happening! This time, however, I read the verse not as a promise but as a command. It seemed to me that the Psalmist was enjoining us to trample the lion and serpent with the same authoritative "Thou shalt" that Moses used in the Ten Commandments.

Clearly, this injunction calls for spiritual interpretation. Here the lion and adder that we are divinely empowered to tread on are symbols for evil. Specifically, they could symbolize two ways in which evil suggestions try to enter our thinking.

The lion could represent evil's aggressive nature, roaring for attention. Using the material senses, evil attempts to instill fear through intimidation. This overt form of evil is referred to in the First Epistle of Peter: "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." ^{I Pet. 5:8;}

The serpent metaphor, on the other hand, is used throughout the Bible to symbolize evil's subtle, insidious nature. While the lion roars its lies, the serpent whispers them. So subtle are the serpent's covert suggestions that we may easily mistake them for our own thoughts.

But regardless of the form evil may assume, Christian Science makes clear that we have God-given authority to trample it—prove its powerlessness and unreality. And where does this "trampling" take place? Right in our own consciousness. Affirming the omnipotence of God, good, as well as the impotence of evil, is scientific treatment, which protects us from error of every type. Mrs. Eddy tells us, "The audible and inaudible wail of evil never harms Scientists, steadfast in their consciousness of the nothingness of wrong and the supremacy of right." ^{Miscellaneous Writings, p. 267;}

Suppose we are suddenly faced with aggressive suggestions such as pain, accident, or threats of violence. Instead of panicking, we can courageously tread on these "roaring lions"—see their total unreality. Discord is not an act of God, so we need not react to it. As God's idea, man cannot know discord; he knows only the spiritual thoughts and evidence of divine Mind. Understanding this, we can remain calm in emergencies and trust Mind's guidance; harmony is sure to be restored. Like Daniel, we can say, "My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me." ^{Dan. 6:22;}

Listening for God's thoughts and obeying them also enable us to detect and destroy subtle temptations such as pride, dishonesty, or sensualism. These serpentine suggestions may appear beneficial and harmless, but they are deadly to spiritual growth. They originate in the belief of a mind apart from God. To counteract these sinful impulses, we need to affirm God as the only Mind—our Mind. This gives us the wisdom and alertness needed to distinguish the still small voice of Truth from the subtle, selfish whispers of error. By exposing sin as an undesirable intruder, having no part in our true selfhood as the expression of God, we have, in effect, defanged the serpent and rendered it harmless—easily handled.

Nehemiah's rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem gives a good illustration of treading on evil in its various forms. ^{See Neh. 1—6;} At first his enemies tried intimidation and threats of force to hinder his inspired work. When this aggressive, "lion" approach failed, these same enemies turned to the more subtle, "serpent" approach by coaxing him to meet with them. But Nehemiah, detecting their deviousness, refused to be duped by evil posing as good. By relying totally on God and rejecting both the aggressive and deceptive suggestions of evil, he was able to complete his work successfully.

If the qualities of the roaring lion were crossed with those of the subtle serpent (metaphorically speaking), what would be the result? Wouldn't it be something like the "great red dragon" of the Apocalypse? This is how the totality of evil is described in the book of Revelation. As a symbol for evil, the dragon combines the aggressive nature of the lion with the (magnified) form of the serpent. Yet even in the animal kingdom there is no such creature as a seven-headed dragon. It is a mythical beast—imaginary, unreal, powerless. And so is the evil it represents.

The Revelator envisions the great dragon as being "cast out into the earth." ^{Rev. 12:9;} In her chapter entitled "The Apocalypse" in Science and Health Mrs. Eddy writes, "That false claim—that ancient belief, that old serpent whose name is devil (evil), claiming that there is intelligence in matter either to benefit or to injure men—is pure delusion, the red dragon; and it is cast out by Christ, Truth, the spiritual idea, and so proved to be powerless." ^{Science and Health, p. 567.}

Eventually all forms of evil will be exposed and destroyed by Christ, Truth. Each of us can play a significant role in this final destruction of error. And we can begin right now by considering it a command to "tread upon the lion and adder." Every time we utilize the power of the Christ to overcome a fear or resist a temptation, we are also helping to slay the dragon.

Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy:
when I fall, I shall arise;
when I sit in darkness,
the Lord shall be a light unto me.

Micah 7:8