The Serpent was the first Technocrat

The serpent is a main character in the story of the Garden of Eden in Parashat Bereshit, the first portion of the Book of Genesis. Let’s look at some of the comments the Rav makes about this creature, and see how they could apply to the technocrats of today.

First, this is how the Torah describes the serpent:
“Now the serpent was cunning (Hebrew – ‘arum;’ root ‘ormah.’)” Bereshit 3.1.

This is what the Rav says about him, and how he perceived God:
“In contradistinction to chochmah (wisdom,) ormah usually has a negative connotation, denoting slyness, cunning and scheming. Ormah mostly implies a conspiratorial mood, disguised deceit, hypocritical behavior, malice and falsity… The serpent did not comprehend God as the ethical being whose power is goodness and who sympathetically shares His infinite, unconditioned existence with the finite conditioned human being. God appeared to the serpent as a powerful tyrant who is jealous of man and whose only interest is centered about the preservation of His privileged position. A new personality was born: the demonic, unsatiated, daring, despotic, dominating, masterful animal persona, whether it be a captain of industry, a politician, a don Juan, or a robber baron. Two personae thus appeared on the Biblical stage: the weird demonic serpent personality and the ethical-sympathetic Adam personality. The battle lines were drawn…” Chumash HaRav, Vol Bereshit, p. 27.

This is what the serpent said to Eve to fool her into sinning:
“… and you will be like God.” Bereshit 3.5.

This is what the Rav thought was the motivation of the serpent in telling her this lie:
“The serpent wished to replace God, to claim validity for an alternative doctrine and establish it as a moral norm. From the serpent’s perspective, man’s job is to replace the Almighty. This is evil itself. Such metaphysical arrogance was prohibited by the first commandment, ‘I am the Lord Your God..'” Chumash HaRav, Vol Bereshit, p. 28.

Having been manipulated by the serpent into disobeying God, this is how Adam and Eve reacted when God called them into account:
“I was afraid… so I hid.” Bereshit 3.10.

Exactly why were they afraid? The Rav explains that it had to do with the serpent persuading them that God was evil, not good; so they should fear Him:
“For the first time man became aware that he is afraid of God and fled from before Him. Why did man and woman fear God? Because they began to compete with Him…man, impressed by the serpent’s demonic description… must experience horror and shuddering, uncanniness, and strangeness when he is in God’s proximity… The flight of man from God is the flight of the demonic personality who converted love into antagonism, fellowship into tension…” Chumash HaRav, Vol Bereshit, p. 31.

By the time Noah appears on the scene, the demonic personality had become entrenched in many people, including the “privileged elite.” They became predators, especially of women:
“That the sons of the nobles saw the daughters of man because they were beautiful, and they took for themselves wives from whomever they chose.” Bereshit 6.2.

The Rav describes in harsh detail the depravity of these men:
“Who were these ‘bnei elohim,’ ‘sons of nobles’? The demonic personalities who craved power and unlimited opportunities were the sons of the privileged few, of the masters and robber barons who thought they were competing with the Elohim, the Almighty. They rebelled against the moral law. If a woman was fair and aroused desire, they took her prisoner and defiled her human sanctity and dignity.” Chumash HaRav, Vol Bereshit, p. 45.

In just these few comments by the Rav to characterize the serpent and his influence on mankind, we can see the origin of today’s technocrat. These are people who:

… attempt to play god.
… lie and cheat to get their way.
… establish a “new normal” that gives them more power.
… take whatever and whomever they want to use, abuse, and toss away.
… and yet try as hard as they can to avoid transparency, accountability, and taking responsibility for the damage they cause.

Details of their horribly destructive ways can be found here:
https://www.freedomdefenseresourcecenter.com/directory/

I would add this:

The serpent was indeed not just the first technocrat, but the template for evil tyrants for generations to come — including today. This gives us an important perspective in our battles to protect our God-given freedoms. We must keep our eyes on the target: the evil-doers themselves. They must be so soundly defeated, that they feel compelled to stop attacking and back off.

But as the Rav teaches, the demonic personality has become entrenched in humanity. After we defeat the technocracy, we should expect new forms of tyranny to emerge. We must remain vigilant and prepared to defend ourselves against future attacks on our freedoms; yet we should also be patient and confident that when God finally redeems the world, all traces of the serpent’s evil influence will be eradicated.