“旧约·创世纪3∶14-19” 耶和华上帝对蛇说：“你既做了这事，就必受咒诅，比一切的牲畜野兽更甚。你必用肚子行走，终身吃土。我又要叫你和女人彼此为仇；你的后裔和女人的后裔也彼此为仇。女人的后裔要伤你的头；你要伤他的脚跟。”又对女人说：“我必多多加增你怀胎的苦楚；你生产儿女必多受苦楚。你必恋慕你丈夫；你丈夫必管辖你。”又对亚当说：“你既听从妻子的话，吃了我所吩咐你不可吃的那树上的果子，地必为你的缘故受咒诅；你必终身劳苦，才能从地里得吃的。地必给你长出荆棘和蒺藜来；你也要吃田间的菜蔬。你必汗流满面才得糊口，直到你归了土，因为你是从土而出的。你本是尘土，仍要归于尘土。”
So the Lord God said to the serpent， “Because you have done this， Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals！ You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life。 And I will put enmity between you and the woman， and between your offspring and hers； he will crush your head， and you will strike his heel。”To the woman he said，“I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing； with pain you will give birth to children。 Your desire will be for your husband， and he will rule over you。”To Adam he said，“Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you， ‘You must not eat of it，’Cursed is the ground because of you； through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life。 It will produce thorns and thistles for you， and you will eat the plants of the field。 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground， since from it you were taken； for dust you are and to dust you will return。”
这里的蛇就是魔鬼撒旦。撒旦本是上帝座前的六翼天使，后来堕落成魔鬼。亚当和夏娃没有遵守上帝的警告，经不住蛇的诱惑，偷吃禁果犯了罪。当上帝质问亚当时，他把责任归咎于夏娃，夏娃又推到蛇的身上。其实，现在的人也是这样，总是推卸责任，或找客观原因为自己的错误或罪责辩护。据此，人类都有犯罪的本性，因为祖先亚当和夏娃就有犯罪的基因，并一直遗传下来。犯罪就要受到惩罚，这是刻骨铭心的警戒，为的是避免重新犯罪。
上帝让蛇与女人彼此为仇是隐喻，暗示光明正义与阴暗邪恶势不两立。蛇的后裔与女人的后裔也是如此，暗示着人类正义与邪恶的战争是旷日持久的，而正义力量一定强过邪恶势力，所以要伤蛇的头，那是很严重的打击；而邪恶战胜不了正义，只能伤到正义的脚跟，这是种轻微伤。
