Can Christians drink deadly poison without being harmed?

Question

In Mark 16:17-18, Jesus says:

"And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."

Is this part of the Bible literally true? Does it mean that "those who believe" really can drink deadly poison without being harmed?

Answer 1

A few "good christians" here should try it and get back to us.

Answer 2

Actually Christians can "drink deadly poison" without being harmed. Throughout the Bible, false words against God are considered poison.

James 3:8 But the tongue can no man tame; [it is] an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

So it could be used that way, just as snakes or serpents are used to depict Satan. And Paul was bitten by a poisonous snake and he was fine, so anything is possible with God by your side! Paul didn't go looking for the snake to prove a point though. It was accidental.

Whether literal or not, Christians have been and will continue to be protected by Christ Jesus and these signs will continue. Jesus is The Truth.

God Bless.

Answer 3

The Bible says these will be signs whether they be literal or otherwise they will be revealed before the end. I believe literal signs of those believers at the end time though we do not tempt God and the time of these things is not come.
The verse does not say they will purposely drink poison but that they will not die should they drink it.

17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them: they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.


These signs are not person specific but belong to the followers of Christ some will have one gift and some another.
The signs will come from some believers as a sign that these are God's people.

Answer 4

A Christian who is a real Christian, meaning one who is filled with the Holy Spirit, can indeed drink poison and pick up snakes, and so forth. However, just as Paul shook off the snake when it bit him, the act of drinking poison or picking up snakes must be according to need, not by some "let me prove god exists" whim. The problem is that most so called Christians today are nothing but fakes and wannabe's. Most prefer a Christian lifestyle without living up to the holy standard that God sets for them.

Answer 5

There must be a mistake somewhere. In fact, that is what nearly all modern Bible scholars have concluded, namely, that these words—and not only these words but all of what appears as Mark 16:9-20—were not written by Mark but were added by a later hand.

These verses appear in certain Bible manuscripts and versions of the fifth and sixth centuries C.E. But they do not appear in the older Greek manuscripts, the Sinaiticus and Vatican MS. 1209 of the fourth century. Dr. B. F. Westcott, an authority on Bible manuscripts, said that “the verses . . . are no part of the original narrative but an appendage.” (An Introduction to the Study of the Gospels, London, 1881, p. 338) Bible translator Jerome, in the fifth century, said that “almost all the Greek codices [are] without this passage.” (The Last Twelve Verses of the Gospel According to S. Mark, London, 1871, J. W. Burgon, p. 53) The New Catholic Encyclopedia (1967) says: “Its vocabulary and style differ so radically from the rest of the Gospel that it hardly seems possible Mark himself composed it [that is, verses 9-20].” (Vol. IX, p. 240) There is no record that early Christians either drank poison or handled serpents to prove they were believers.

Answer 6

Way back deep in the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee there are groups of "christian" hill-billies that take these verses literally. They actually do handle snakes and drink poison to prove that they are true christians.

Occasionally some of them die. However, in general, they manage to build up an immunity to the specific poisons they use by initially ingesting very small quantities of them over a very long time period.

These groups are normally referred to as "Snake-Handling Churches".

Answer 7

All *true* Christians can drink deadly poison without being harmed. All the rest have weak faiths and are false Christians.

Answer 8

It is not meant to be tested, as the snake handler have often discovered. The verse refers to supernatural protection from harm, not "pick up that snake and see if it bites you" or "drink this and see what happens"

God doesn't appreciate stupidity anymore than we do.

Answer 9

not literally. it means if we follow him we will go to heaven and everything will be ok. christians are mortal, which means we are going to die eventually. and use common sense, people who may have been christians may have been murdered by form of poison. you always hear about it on crime shows. by the way, if you dont belive in christianity, than how did you get a new testament bible?

Answer 10

No. 1, it doesn't say that all christians will do these things.

No. 2, when Jesus was tempted by Satan after His fast, Jesus said not to test God. God will test us. So, I wouldn't go out drinking poison or grabbing any snakes anytime soon.

Answer 11

Yes, but that doesn't mean we can go off and do what we want. What this passage means is that if someone tries to poison us, if we call on God in the name of Jesus, it won't kill us.