What
Does the Bible Say About
Hunting?
Proverbs 12:27
"The slothful
man roasteth not that which he took in hunting: but the substance of a
diligent man is precious."
The book of
Proverbs deals with many practical subjects as well as spiritual ones.
In this verse we are given advice on hunting. It is not wrong to hunt;
however, Proverbs 12:27 says that the man who hunts for game and just kills
it, and does not take possession of it for eating is a slothful man.
The diligent hunter takes his game for food (roasting) and considers it
a precious possession, as he has food for his family's table. Today men
are slaughtering animals for wicked reasons. Many elephants and rhinos
are killed for their tusks and horns and their bodies are left to rot.
Other animals are slain for just the sport of it and their heads and bodies
are stuffed to hang on a wall for a trophy of man's prowess, while the
meat was discarded. Bulls are slain for men just to watch the sport of
bull fighting. Cock fighting is another sport where the cocks are put together
to see which one will kill the other. Gambling is usually associated with
this sport. We could name other atrocities of killing animals which take
place with evil motives. God looks on the heart and motives of men
when it comes to how we treat His creatures and we shall be judged for
it.
Some people
consider killing animals as an evil thing and have become vegetarians because
they do not want to kill anything. Certainly, this is a noble thing, however,
the Bible does not speak against killing animals for food. It does, however,
speak against abusing or mistreating animals. In the beginning when God
placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and gave man charge over all
the animal kingdom, man was given a fruit, grain and vegetarian diet. All
the animals were under man's dominion and Adam was given the task of naming
all of them. Although we are not given a detailed account of how the animals
responded to Adam it appears they were tame, as they were brought by God
before Adam and he named them all.
Hunting and
killing animals that are wild and attack men or their domesticated animals
is not considered evil either, as David in the Old Testament had to kill
a lion and a bear to protect his sheep as a part of his shepherd's duty.
1 Samuel 17:34-35:
"And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there
came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock: 35 And I went
out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when
he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew
him."
The Bible says
that in the earliest days of creation, all of God's creation, including
animals, were vegetarian. When God blessed Adam and Eve in the Garden of
Eden, He said to them: "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face
of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They
will be food for you. And to the beasts of the earth and all the birds
of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground--everything that
has the breath of life in it--I give every green plant for food.
And it was
so" (Genesis 1:29-30).
It appears
that all creation was vegetarian until after the waters of the Great Flood
receded and Noah
and his family
were left to replenish the earth.
Genesis 9:1-3
says: "Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, "Be fruitful
and increase in number and fill the earth. The fear and dread of you will
fall upon all of the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air,
upon every creature that moves along the ground, and upon all the fish
of the sea; they are given into your hands. Everything that lives and moves
will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, now I give you
everything."
It is interesting
to note that because they didn't eat meat, it could have been one of the
reasons that Noah was able to so easily gather all the animals into the
ark--and explains why the animals did not devour each other while they
were in it.
After the flood,
why did God now deem it fit for His creation to eat each other? A possible
clue that comes to mind is this: Man's wickedness had just reached its
fullness, and God had destroyed almost all of the inhabitants of the earth
because of it. That flood had somehow changed the order of things--and
it was as if Noah and his family were like Adam and Eve, beginning things
all over again, but without the innocence of Adam and Eve. The first world,
which had been created in perfection, was ruined because of sin. For man
to function in the post-flood world, evidently God allowed for the eating
meat that would become a part of our existence. The distinguishing mark
on this particular era of history would be having to live with the blight
of sin.
Because man
chose to sin, he lost his proper position of authority over God's creation;
he lost it in the Garden of Eden, and then it appears that he lost even
more when God decided to flood the world because of man's wickedness. When
man lost his original position on the earth, it caused all of creation
to lose its proper position as well. And now, everything has been tainted
with the perverted character of the Wicked One. Even certain animals must
be destroyed at times because demons have entered them. In the Old
Testament, when an animal killed someone or was vicious, it was commanded
to be destroyed.
Exodus 21:28:
"If an ox gore a man or a woman, that they die: then the ox shall be surely
stoned, and his flesh
shall not be
eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be quit (cleared)."
Today, some
ask if it is a sin to eat meat. The Bible makes it clear that we can eat
meat, even as Jesus ate meat when He was on the earth. Luke 24:42-43, "And
they gave him (Jesus) a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb.
And he took
it, and did eat before them."
In the millenium,
when Jesus comes to restore this earth back to His original plan, we will
then be able to enjoy the original plans and purposes for this earth.
The animals will once again eat grass and not each other. Man will also
enjoy the original foods God made for him and since the devil will no longer
be present in this earth, all creation will be free from the curse of sin.
The wild animals will no longer attack men. The lamb and the lion will
lie down together. Man will have no desire to hunt or kill anything.
All the earth groans and awaits for that day to come when the devil no
longer roams this earth
but is chained
and cast into hell along with all of his followers. Isaiah 11:6-9:
6 The wolf
also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the
kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little
child shall lead them.
7 And the cow
and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and
the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 And the sucking
child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put
his hand on the cockatrice' den.
9 They shall
not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain:
for the earth
shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
Prayer for
the Day:
Dear Heavenly
Father, Thank You for Your creation of animals. You made so many
magnificent creatures. Your diversity is astounding. Some are such
a delight to watch. We can learn from so many of them. Your domesticated
animals are such a joy to us, while the wild ones challenge us to observe
their ways and learn about them. Thank you that You made them for
man's enjoyment and use. Since many of them are directly dependant
upon us, help us to be good stewards over them. Lord, protect the endangered
beasts of the earth who are hunted by poachers for the wrong reasons. Lord,
may our prayers create a spiritual ark for the preservation of your animals,
especially the ones that are near extinction. Give us Your heart for the
animals You created.
I ask this
in the name of Jesus. Amen.
This teaching
was taken from the Book of Proverbs Daily Devotional series.
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