Mark 16:17-18 Translation from Source - Picking up Snakes

Mark 16:17–18

σημεῖα δὲ τοῖς πιστεύσασιν ταῦτα παρακολουθήσει·ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί μου δαιμόνια ἐκβαλοῦσιν,γλώσσαις λαλήσουσιν καιναῖς,

And these signs will accompany those who have trusted: in my name they will expel daimons; they will speak in new tongues,

ὄφεις ἀροῦσιν,κἂν θανάσιμόν τι πίωσιν, οὐ μὴ αὐτοὺς βλάψῃ·ἐπὶ ἀρρώστους χεῖρας ἐπιθήσουσιν, καὶ καλῶς ἕξουσιν.

they will lift serpents (ophis), and even if they drink something death inducing (thanasimon), it will certainly not harm them;

This strongly implies they're drinking something death-inducing from a certain type of snake (unspecified)... possibly venoms if we understand snake pharmacology.

Ophis (ὄφεις ἀροῦσιν) — they will lift / take up serpents
Thanasimon (θανάσιμόν τι) — death inducer

It shows how early Greek-speaking communities articulated efficacy: truth is verified by signs that follow, not by doctrine alone.

Here, if you take up snakes, whatever death inducer (from them) that you drink will not harm you. That's a pharmacological statement. Which raises certain questions

That emphasis - especially the coupling of healing, serpents, and lethal substances without harm - places this passage squarely in the world of ancient therapeutic and initiatory language, rather than later abstract theology.

Mark 16:17-18 Translation from Source - Picking up Snakes

See Also