Snared! #2

Let’s talk about snares. A snare is one of the simplest forms of a trap. It’s a simple noose suspended over a path at the proper level to cause the noose to close on a part of a rabbit’s body as it passes by. The other end of the rope or cord is tied to a tree or a stake in the ground. As soon as the rabbit feels the noose it panics. It exerts all of its energy to get away. But the harder it struggles, the tighter the noose is drawn. If the noose ends up around the rabbits neck, the rabbit will choke itself to death.

I think it’s highly significant that the Holy Spirit choose to use the word snare. There are other kinds of traps that aren’t so easy to get out of. Take a pit, for instance. You’re walking along and you see some leaves on the path. What you don’t know is that the leaves are resting on thin sticks covering a deep hole in the ground. As you step on the leaves, you suddenly find yourself falling into the pit. If the pit is deep enough, and you won’t be able to climb out.

There are other kinds of traps that cause some kind of a spear or sharp instrument to pierce your body as you step on the trigger. Even if you can pull the spear loose, you are still in a great deal of trouble because you have a serious wound.

Snares are another matter all together. If you get caught in a noose, you can easily escape if you take the time to think about what has happened to you. Understand that a snare is not attached to a mechanical device to cause the noose to tighten. It is the panicked, unthinking struggling of the prey that tightens the snare.