Ask The Beasts
“But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you; or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this? In his hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of all mankind.”
We live in a day and age when people talk to their pets as if they were humans. I suppose we all talk to animals (our dogs and cats), but this is not what I mean. It seems as if people regard animals on par with humanity. They dress them up and push them around in strollers, and when they do talk to them, you can almost sense that they believe the animal communicates with them.
Genesis 1 indicates that all animals were created before Adam. He named them (Gen. 2:19, 20). God gave Adam absolute dominion over all the beasts (Gen. 1:26, 28). What separated Adam from all the animals was that he was created in the image of God and they were not. Do our pets give us pleasure? The answer is yes they do. God has created an incredible array of animal life. Some are miniscule and others rather large and intimidating. Some will kill you and eat you and others will not. Some are domesticated and others are not. We keep birds in a cage, and lions in a zoo. We recognize the subtle difference between the cage and the zoo. You might put your hand into the birdcage, but you would never enter the lion’s cage at the zoo. Some folk believe that their animals communicate with them. There is also no doubt that certain animals provide comfort and companionship. Some dogs guide the blind. Others seek out drugs or avalanche victims. Animals have been used for work for centuries. We call donkeys beasts of burden because they carry loads for their owners.
An incredible amount of research goes into the animal world. It is estimated that there are between 3 and 30 million species of animals in the world. That is an extraordinary number. No doubt, there are species yet to be discovered. Some animals have become extinct and others are on the verge of doing so. It is right to try and preserve such animals, for once lost to us, they cannot be enjoyed. Dominion implies rule. It implies care and concern. It does not imply abuse. Apparently, an animal dies every 6 minutes in the world, and some 250 die every day from abuse and neglect.
Job suggests to his three friends that they should consult the beasts in order to find out what has happened to him. All the beasts, according to Job, know that God created them and that they need God to exist. How they know this is unknown. Psalm 104 tells us that God provides for the animals and their needs. Psalm 104:21, 22 says that “the young lions roar for their prey, seeking their food from God. When the sun rises, they steal away and lie down in their dens.” We know that God can make a donkey speak (Num. 22:28). He can make a fish swallow a runaway prophet (Jon. 1:17). Apparently wild goats can dance (Isa. 13:21) and the high mountains are their home (Ps. 104:18).
Agur tells us in Proverbs 30 that the rock badgers are not a mighty people, but they dwell in cliffs (Prov. 30:26). Jeremiah points out in his diatribe against unrepentant Jerusalem that “a lion from the forest shall strike them down; a wolf from the desert shall devastate them. A leopard is watching their cities; everyone who goes out of them shall be torn in pieces, because their transgressions are many, their apostasies are great. (Jer. 5:6). The Bible mentions sheep and wolves as opposites of each other. Wolves tear their prey (Ezek.22:27) and are ravenous and fierce (Matt. 7:15; Acts 20:29). This is a picture of false prophets and teachers who ravage the church. Sheep are presented as dumb, go astray and get lost (Ps. 119:176; Isa. 53:6, 7; Rom. 8:36; 1 Pet. 2:25). The Bible refers to clean and unclean animals (Lev. 11). Even the mighty ant gets favorable mention (Prov. 6:6; 30:25). Deer and gazelles are beautiful and graceful (2 Sam. 22:34; Ps. 18:33; 29:9; 42:1; Prov. 5:19; Isa. 35:36). Certain animals were used for sacrifice: namely, lambs, goats, rams, oxen, bulls, pigeons and doves. They were to be without blemish, which made them acceptable to God.
According to the Apostle Peter, animals are irrational creatures, creatures of instinct, which is a picture of wicked false prophets and teachers who have invaded the church (2 Pet. 2:12). “Creatures of instinct” points to the fact that they are brute or brutal – they do not reason, yet Job says, “ask the beasts and they will tell you.”
In Job 35, Elihu rebukes Job for his presumption before God (Job 35:2, 3). He argues that Job cannot expect God to grant him favors just because he says he was righteous (vv. 5–8). Elihu reminds Job that God cannot be expected to deliver anyone from oppression just because they cry out to him, without regard for him (vs. 9). He then makes this statement: “But none says, ‘Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night, who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth and makes us wiser than the birds of the heavens?’ There they cry out, but he does not answer, because of the pride of evil men (Job 35:10–12). By not crying out to God in this simple way, we demonstrate that we are like the beasts and the birds.
We remain unteachable and ignorant, Elihu says. We should rather consider God as one who teaches us more than the beasts and makes us wiser than the birds. This is the attitude of humility. Nature is a glorious gift from God. It is not God. God made all things. Scientists are busy eliminating God, indeed they have eliminated Him from all things. We have become masters of the universe and of our own destiny. In this respect, we are no more than beasts who go from birth to the grave in a fierce contest of survival with a lack of purpose in life other than to get what you can from the moment. This is all there is, we are told.
But God tells us otherwise. We are made in his image and for his glory. We are not like the beasts. If they could talk to us, they would tell us that they were made for us. Job points out the limits we might have to go to in order to find out from God what we need to know. But there is no need to ask the beasts. God has spoken and revealed all we need to know. Like the splendor of the heavens, so too, do the beasts of the earth reveal the majestic glory of God. This revelation of God and his glory is for us, that we might seek after God and worship him.
If even the beasts know that God has given life to them (Job 12:10), how do we not know that God has given us life? Job’s point is that we do. Therefore, we have responsibility thrust upon us. Though such knowledge from God and of God may be too wonderful for me, I am accountable to God for knowing it. Job says that God can do as he pleases and wills and none dare stop him or rebuke him (Job 12:13–25).
Just as the beasts need God to feed them and keep them alive, so do we. We need God for everything. We do not exist apart from him. Sin has broken us and ruined us. Jesus has redeemed us and restored us. It is always and only by grace and mercy that we live from day to day. We have much to be thankful for. Even the ant bustles around utterly dependent upon God. Were it not for the Cross, we would display ourselves simply as beasts. We were made for God and his glory. Are we living up to his calling upon our lives? We only do so through our Lord Jesus Christ.