SERPENT-CHARMING

-charm'-ing: Allusion to this art, widely practiced by the ancients (see references inDB , under the word; especially Bothart, Hieron., III, 161, 164, etc.), as by modern Orientals, is found in Psalms 58:5; Ecclesiastes 10:11; Jeremiah 8:17; Sirach 12:13, perhaps in James 3:7. The skill displayed in taming snakes, often without removing the poison fangs, is very surprising. Bruce, Davy, and other travelers give striking illustrations. See especially the interesting account of serpent-charming in Hengstenberg's Egypt and the Books of Moses, English Translation, 100-104.

From the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
Edited by James Orr, published in 1939 by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.