והנחש היה ערום וגו׳. פירש״י בשם מ״ר שנתקנא בהם במה שראה אותם מזדווגים יחד ונתאוה לה. והוא פלא. שהרי כל בריה אינו מתאוה אלא למינו כדאי׳ במס׳ ב״מ צ״א מיניה בתר מיניה גריר. והרי לא חסר להנחש נקבה שלו. ואי משום ששימשו לעין כל. הרי גם הנחש לא ידע בושת. אלא הענין שהרגיש דהדביקות האשה לאישה אינו כמו נקבה שלו אליו שאינו בא אלא בשעת התעוררת לזיווג. וזה אינו אלא במקרה והכנה לדבר. משא״כ האשה תמיד דבקה אליו באשר היא עצם מעצמיו הי׳ הדביקות יותר עוד מאח ואחות שגם המה כבשר אחד. אבל מ״מ אינם אחד ממש כמו האשה הראשונה לאדם שהי׳ כמו אבר להראש ובזה התקנא:
Now the snake was the most cunning...
Rashi expounded in the name of Midrash Rabba: He [the snake] became jealous of them [Adam and Chavah] through having seen them pairing off together and he desired her. And this is a wonder! For every creature desires only after its own species, as it says in Tractate Bava Metzi'a 91 - Each species is pulled after its species. And the snake didn't lack for his own female. And if it was because they [Adam and Chavah] engaged in intercourse before all eyes--see, the snake also didn't know shame. But the matter was that he felt that the cleaving of the woman to her man was unlike that of his female to him, for that did not occur except at the time that she was aroused for pairing. And this was only upon occasion and by preparation for the thing. Which was not so for the woman who was always cleaving to him [the man] in that she was "bone of his bones"; the cleaving was more even than between brother and sister who are also like one flesh. But in any case, they are not truly one like the first woman and Adam, for she was like a limb to him [Adam] as the head, and it was of this that he [the snake] was jealous.
(יא) דָּן יָדִין עַמּוֹ (בראשית מט, טז): יְהִי דָן נָחָשׁ עֲלֵי דֶרֶךְ שְׁפִיפֹן, כָּל הַחַיּוֹת מְהַלְּכוֹת זוּגוֹת זוּגוֹת וְהַנָּחָשׁ אֵינוֹ מְהַלֵּךְ בַּדֶּרֶךְ אֶלָּא יְחִידִי. דָּבָר אַחֵר, יְהִי דָן נָחָשׁ עֲלֵי דֶרֶךְ, כְּשֵׁם שֶׁהַנָּחָשׁ נַקְמָן, כָּךְ הָיָה שִׁמְשׁוֹן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (שופטים טז, כח): וְאִנָּקְמָה נְקַם אַחַת...
...Dan shall judge his nation...Dan shall be a serpent on the way, a horned snake... (Breishit 49:16). All the animals went pair by pair but the serpent only walked along the way alone. Another idea: Dan shall be a serpent on the way -- just as the snake is vengeful by nature, so also was Shimshon [of the tribe of Dan] as it is said: That I will avenge one vengeance...[Shoftim 16:28].
The primeval snake--He turned his eyes upon Chavah and came to her, and this explains why it is written: "The snake beguiled me/hishiani...", which is a term of intercourse/tashmish and betrothal/nisuin.
(יט) ...שכל הנותן עיניו במה שאינו שלו מה שמבקש אין נותנין לו ומה שבידו נוטלין הימנו (ע״ב) וכן מצינו בנחש הקדמוני שנתן עיניו במי שאינו שלו מה שביקש לא ניתן לו ומה שבידו נטלו ממנו אמר הקב״ה אני אמרתי יהא מלך על כל בהמה וחיה עכשיו (בראשית ג יד) ארור יהיה מכל הבהמה ומכל חית השדה אני אמרתי ילך בקומה זקופה עכשיו על גחונך תלך אני אמרתי יהא מאכלו מאכל אדם עכשיו (שם) ועפר תאכל הוא אמר אהרוג אדם ואשא את חוה לפיכך (שם) ואיבה אשית בינך ובין האשה ובין זרעך ובין זרעה...:
(19) ...For, whoever casts his eye to desire things which do not belong to him the result will be that not only will he not obtain his desire, but even that which belongs to him will also be taken from him. (Ib. b) And so also do we find in the case of the primeval serpent which cast an eye upon that which did not belong to it. And what he desired he did not get, and what he did have was also taken from it. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: "I said, let it be a king over all the animals and beasts, but now (Breishit 3, 14) Be thou cursed above all the animals, and above other beasts of the field. I had said, let it walk in an upright stance, but now, Upon thy belly shalt thou go; I said, let his food would be human food, but now (Ib) and dust shall thou eat. The serpent said: "I shall kill Adam and then marry Eve." Therefore (Ib) I will put enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed...
(26) וירדו בדגת הים And they shall have dominion over the fish of the sea— The expression וירדו/v-yirdu may imply dominion/ridui as well as descending/yeridah — if he is worthy he dominates over the beasts and cattle, if he is not worthy he will sink lower than them, and the beast will rule over him (Genesis Rabbah 8:12).
The Talmud makes an extraordinary observation about the paradoxes of "standing": "No man stands on [i.e., can rightly under-stand] the words of Torah, unless he has stumbled over them." To discover firm standing ground, it is necessary to explore, to stumble, even to fall, certainly to survive the chaotic vibrations of a world that refuses to be. The gelid certainties of the fully created world are immediately undermined; only because of death and failure is man impelled to created the world anew. "Tremble in His presence, all the earth! The world stands firm; it cannot be shaken" (I Chron. 16:30) One might read this by tuning the strings of paradox tighter: "Tremble in His presence--so that the world may stand firm and not collapse." For how can one stand at all, if one does not know the tremor?
(ז) רַבִּי נַחְמָן בַּר שְׁמוּאֵל בַּר נַחְמָן בְּשֵׁם רַב שְׁמוּאֵל בַּר נַחְמָן אָמַר, הִנֵּה טוֹב מְאֹד, זֶה יֵצֶר טוֹב. וְהִנֵּה טוֹב מְאֹד, זֶה יֵצֶר רָע. וְכִי יֵצֶר הָרָע טוֹב מְאֹד, אֶתְמְהָא. אֶלָּא שֶׁאִלּוּלֵי יֵצֶר הָרָע לֹא בָּנָה אָדָם בַּיִת, וְלֹא נָשָׂא אִשָּׁה, וְלֹא הוֹלִיד, וְלֹא נָשָׂא וְנָתַן. וְכֵן שְׁלֹמֹה אוֹמֵר (קהלת ד, ד): כִּי הִיא קִנְאַת אִישׁ מֵרֵעֵהוּ.
...R. Nachman bar Shmuel bar Nachman in the name of R. Shmuel bar Nachman said: Here it is very good, this is the good inclination. And there it is very good, this is the evil inclination. And the evil inclination is very good - I am astounded! But rather, were it not for the evil inclination, a man would not build a house or marry a woman or beget nor engage in business. And similarly Shlomo said: ...it is the rivalry of each against his fellow. (Qohelet 4:4)