What Did Jesus Mean by ‘I Have Given You Authority to Trample on Snakes’?

　　The Lord tells us, "I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you" (Luke 10:19). When we read this verse, it can be difficult to know what the Lord is talking about.

　　Did the Lord really give us the ability to trample on snakes and scorpions, and to overcome the power of the enemy? Or is this figurative speaking?&

Understanding Luke 10:19

　　If the people didn't welcome them, they were to wipe the dust off their feet as a testimony against them. The disciples were sent out by the Lord for a specific purpose and if anyone rejected their message, they were rejecting Christ Himself.

　　As part of the discourse the Lord is telling His disciples, He tells them that He has given them authority to trample on snakes. This might sound strange to us, yet if we understand what the Lord is saying, we can ascertain the message behind His words.

　　When Jesus says He has given them authority to trample on snakes, He is giving them a taste of the power He has given them.

　　When we look in the Bible, we can see how even the demons submit to the Lord's commands. People could drive out demons by using the name of the Lord. While many people might believe this persists into the modern day, we cannot base our own present-day on this passage.

　　What the Lord is saying here is what He is saying directly to His disciples — not to us. There are aspects relating to us, but we must not forget He is directly speaking to His disciples.

　　Jesus gave His disciples the authority to trample on snakes and scorpions as well as to overcome the power of the enemy. The enemy Jesus speaks about is the devil.

　　Throughout the Bible, the devil is referred to as the enemy. It is also thought by many scholars that when the Lord says He gives authority for His disciples to trample on snakes is that it is referring to trampling on Satan and the evil in the world.

　　This is more probable compared to trampling on physical, literal snakes. Snakes are seen as a sign of evil by many cultures; however, in the context of the Lord's words, He could be referring to a specific evil — Satan and his demons. In this sense, God has given all believers the ability and authority to trample evil under our feet.

How Does This Apply to Me?

　　It is best to see these words as figurative in the sense that Jesus gave His disciples the authority to trample on the devil and the evil he causes in the world. As believers, we know we have overcome the world because of Jesus.

　　We have the ability to trample the devil under our feet because we are no longer held under the bondage of the world. All believers have been set free because of Jesus. By being set free by the Lord, we have the authority to trample snakes, evil, and the devil under our feet.

　　This means we no longer have to live in accordance with our sinful nature or in accordance with the sinful practices of the world. It is true that we will be tempted, and this can be hard, yet we can overcome temptation through the power of the Holy Spirit.

　　The Holy Spirit helps us take our stand against the devil and helps us trample him under our feet. The devil has no hold on us because our eternal souls belong to the Lord. We are not prisoners, nor are we held in bondage anymore.

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　　We have a lasting hope found in Jesus. At the moment of salvation, all people are given this free gift of eternal life, forgiveness, and a new life.

　　With this new life, you no longer have to be afraid of the devil or his schemes. The Lord Himself has given us the authority to overcome the evil one.

　　The authority to overcome the evil one shows us that Jesus is much more powerful than the devil in every way and that He has given us the power to overcome the enemy. Through giving us this ability, we are able to trample evil under our feet because of our relationship with the Lord.

　　It is only through Christ that we have the capacity to trample this wicked evil under our feet. It is not within our own power, but rather through the power given to us through the Lord.

　　While none of us can have this power on our own, we are given the authority through the Lord. There might be many people who believe this authority or power comes from themselves, but this is not true.

　　The authority was given to us by the Lord. Just as He gave the disciples this authority, He also now gives it to us. There are many commands and instructions given strictly to the disciples; however, this teaching still rings true for us today.

　　We are not helpless in our fight against evil. God has given us the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives, and He can help us diminish the impact of Satan in our lives. Satan is the exact definition of evil, and through Jesus, we have the ability to overcome him.

　　In fact, everyone who places faith in Jesus overcomes the devil. As mentioned, we are no longer held under the fears and bondages the devil tries to place over us. Through knowing Jesus, we are given the authority to step on the heads of everything that goes against the Lord's commands.

　　This is because Jesus is completely against evil, and as His followers, we should be too. Evil has no place in the life of a believer. Instead, we need to have the hallmarks of love, compassion, and kindness in our words and actions.

Why Does This Matter?

　　While not many believe this refers to physical, literal snakes, it is best not to attempt to trample on a snake to test the Lord.

　　Rather, this passage is referring to Jesus giving His disciples the authority to trample out Satan and evil. This power and authority were only given to them by the Lord, and it gave them a first-time experience of what serving the Lord looked like.

　　Even in the modern day, we, too, have the authority to trample out the devil and the evil in the world. This is only given to us by the Lord, and we don't need to take this for granted.

　　Instead, we need to rejoice that this power has been given to mankind when we accept Jesus as our Savior. Through Jesus, we are given a lasting hope and with this hope, we can trample on the figurative snakes in our lives.

　　For further reading:

　　What Does the Bible Teach Us about Moses and the Snake?

　　What Does the Bible Say about the Authority of Believers?

　　What Does it Mean That the Enemy Comes in Like a Flood?