Bereshit 3:14 – Do snakes eat dirt?

Bereshit 3:14 records that because the snake induced Havva to eat from the fruit of the tree of knowledge, the snake was cursed to eat dirt (dust?), but today snakes do not eat dirt. 

Hoffmann (1969, p. 85, see also Drazin, 2014, p. 7) suggests that the curse was only that the snakes would crawl on the dirt, which repeats in a different manner the previous phrase in the verse and the repetition would be to add that the snake’s face would also be in the dirt, or that the curse was that when snakes would eat, they would be on the ground, which could add dirt to their food.

Hirsch (1989, p. 82) suggests that either the idea is figurative or that snakes lack of a sense of taste. 

Korman (1998, p. 49) suggests that their food tastes to them like dirt, but this is difficult to prove. 

Sarna (1989, p. 27) writes that a snake’s “flickering tongue appears to lick the dust.” 

My guess is that the curse to eat dirt and crawl on the ground was specific to this particular snake since only he was able to talk and stand up. Note the curse did not refer to the snake losing the ability to speak, but after he died then that ability was gone. 

Bibliography:

Drazin, Israel, 2014, Unusual Bible interpretations, Jerusalem: Gefen Publishing House.

Hirsch, S. R. (1808-1888), 1989, The Pentateuch, rendered into English by Isaac Levy, second edition, Gateshead: Judaica Press.

Hoffmann, David Tzvi (1843-1921), 1969, Commentary on Genesis, Bnei Brak: Nezach.

Korman, Abraham (1917-2002), 1998, The parsha for her generations, Hebrew, Tel Aviv.




Sarna, Nahum (1923-2005), 1989, The JPS Torah Commentary: Genesis, Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society.