In Acts chapter 28 we learn that Paul was on the island called Malta.
“…when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat, and fastened on his hand. So when the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, ‘No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not allow to live.’ But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god” (v. 3-6)
Note that the natives recognized that the viper was poisonous and expected Paul to die. Also, note their particular and peculiar theology: he must have been bitten as divine retribution.
Sometimes a Viper Bite is Just a Viper Bite
In fact, Paul was a murderer, or at least had approvingly presided over the murder of the first Christian martyr, Stephen. But if God had anything to do with the viper bite it seems to have been done so as to get the native’s attention. The text does not indicate that God caused the bite but He appears to have nullified the venom’s deadly effects. I love how Paul just shakes it off and continues doing what he was doing-the natives and he kindled a fire because they were wet and cold (v. 2).
The native’s reaction is shared by many, and many who should know better. The considered it divine retribution and surely many would curse God had they been bitten by a viper, particularly a deadly one. Yet, just as Joseph told his malicious brothers, “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive” (Genesis 50:20). This is a case of the fallacy of presumed arbitrary evil/suffering.
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