Stewardship of creation

Stewardship of creation concerns humanity's relationship to the earth God made. This page lists verses on the earth belonging to the Lord, dominion and tending the garden, rest for the land, care for animals and trees, creation showing God's glory, and the future of creation.

The earth belongs to the Lord

• Psalm 24:1
  The earth is the LORD’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
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• Deuteronomy 10:14
  Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the Lord’s thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is.
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• Psalm 50:10-12
  ¹⁰For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. ¹¹I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. ¹²If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof.
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• Leviticus 25:23
  The land shall not be sold for ever: for the land is mine; for ye are strangers and sojourners with me.
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Dominion and tending the garden

• Genesis 1:26
  And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
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• Genesis 1:28
  And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
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• Genesis 2:15
  And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
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• Psalm 8:6-8
  ⁶Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: ⁷All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; ⁸The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
  Show context · Read Psalm 8 →

Rest for the land

• Exodus 23:10-11
  ¹⁰And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof: ¹¹But the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still; that the poor of thy people may eat: and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy oliveyard.
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• Leviticus 25:2-5
  ²Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land which I give you, then shall the land keep a sabbath unto the Lord. ³Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof; ⁴But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the Lord: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard. ⁵That which groweth of its own accord of thy harvest thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes of thy vine undressed: for it is a year of rest unto the land.
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Care for animals and trees

• Deuteronomy 20:19
  When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man’s life) to employ them in the siege:
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• Deuteronomy 22:6-7
  ⁶If a bird’s nest chance to be before thee in the way in any tree, or on the ground, whether they be young ones, or eggs, and the dam sitting upon the young, or upon the eggs, thou shalt not take the dam with the young: ⁷But thou shalt in any wise let the dam go, and take the young to thee; that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days.
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• Proverbs 12:10
  A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.
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Creation shows God's glory

• Psalm 19:1
  The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.
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• Psalm 104:24
  O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.
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• Romans 1:20
  For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
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The future of creation

• Romans 8:19-22
  ¹⁹For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. ²⁰For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, ²¹Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. ²²For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
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• Revelation 11:18
  And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.
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See also

• Creation
• Animals
• Work

Notes

1. Verses are quoted in the translation chosen in the Translation menu at the top of the page. See Translations for sources and copyright notices.
2. Each reference links to the full chapter so the verse can be read in context.