Sermons of the American Founding Era: 1730-1805

Political Sermons of the American Founding Era: 1730-1805 (3.87 mb)

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"Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens:
And he saw that rest was good, and the land that it was pleasant; and bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant unto tribute.
Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel.
Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall backward."

An early pamphlet written by the Reverend Thomas Bradbury ("The Ass: or, the Serpent, A Comparison Between the Tribes of Issachar and Dan, in Their Regard for Civil Liberty") and circulating in the American colonies (it was originally published in 1712, but reprinted in 1774, just two years before the Revolution) used the passage above as a jumping off point for an extended riff on the need to resist tyranny.This view became the basis for adopting the snake as a symbol of freedom during the American revolution (the graphic below is a bit murky on the details, but the snake is divided into 13 sections representing the 13 colonies, a further reminder that all were necessary for the successful defense of freedom against English tyranny).