“Shrewd as snakes and innocent as doves”
Matthew 10:16
Figure of speechSettledJesus
Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. (Matthew 10:16 BSB)
What it sounds like today
A nice balance of cleverness and niceness.
The cultural key
Each animal was proverbial: the serpent for shrewd self-preservation since Eden ('more crafty than any other beast,' Genesis 3:1), the dove for purity and guilelessness, the only bird fit for sacrifice, and Israel's own emblem in rabbinic imagery. The setup line is the shock: sheep sent into the wolves, prey deliberately dispatched among predators.
Recovered meaning
Under persecution, be street-smart without becoming what hunts you: all of the serpent's savvy, none of its venom; all of the dove's innocence, none of its naivety.
Parallels: Luke 10:3