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47 Bible verses about caring for animals
Think about the Old Testament, how animal sacrifices were the norm. But even then, there are so many verses showing God pushing back against those sacrifices and calling for animal care. It really makes you think.
Proverbs 12:1010, for instance, says, "The righteous care for the needs of their animals, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel." That's powerful. God's word includes advocating for animals. It's right there in the Bible.
If you really dig into the prophets, you'll find tons of verses urging care for animals. Hosea 8:1313 puts it plainly: "They offer sacrifices of animals and eat the meat, but the Lord is not pleased with them. Now he will remember their wickedness and punish their sins." It's a good reminder that true worship goes beyond rituals and involves how we treat all of God's creation.
And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every animal that creepeth upon the earth, in which is life, I have given every green herb for food: and it was so.
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 animal that creepeth upon the earth.
And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and the creeping animal, and the beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
And God blessed them, and God said to 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 animal that moveth upon the earth.
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.
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 animal that creepeth upon the earth.So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.And God blessed them, and God said to 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 animal that moveth upon the earth.
A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.
And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth on the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered.Every moving thing that liveth shall be food for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things:
And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden, to dress it, and to keep it.
If thou shalt meet thy enemy's ox or his ass going astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again.If thou shalt see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.
The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpents' food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD.
And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you;And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you, from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth.
The hart, and the roebuck, and the fallow-deer, and the wild-goat, and the pygarg, and the wild ox, and the chamois.
But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.For riches are not for ever: and doth the crown endure to every generation?The plant appeareth, and the tender grass showeth itself, and herbs of the mountains are gathered.The lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field.And thou shalt have goats milk enough for thy food, for the food of thy household, and for maintenance for thy maidens.
Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep: O LORD, thou preservest man and beast.
And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee: they shall be male and female.
Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thy ox and thy ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.
Thou shalt not see thy brother's ox or his sheep go astray, and hide thyself from them: thou shalt in any case bring them again to thy brother.And if thy brother shall not be nigh to thee, or if thou shalt not know him, then thou shalt bring it to thy own house, and it shall be with thee until thy brother shall seek after it, and thou shalt restore it to him again.In like manner shalt thou do with his ass; and so shalt thou do with his raiment; and with all lost things of thy brother's, which he hath lost, and thou hast found, shalt thou do likewise: thou mayest not hide thyself.Thou shalt not see thy brother's ass or his ox fall down by the way, and hide thyself from them: thou shalt surely help him to lift them up again.
But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee:Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee: and the fishes of the sea shall declare to thee.Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the LORD hath wrought this?In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.
For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yes, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no pre-eminence above a beast: for all is vanity.All go to one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.
If a bird's nest shall chance to be before thee in the way on any tree, or on the ground, whether with young ones, or eggs, and the dam sitting upon the young, or upon the eggs, thou shalt not take the dam with the young:But 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.
If thou shalt see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.
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.And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.And the suckling child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the den of the basilisk.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.
And Noah built an altar to the LORD, and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt-offerings on the altar.
For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine.
He will feed his flock like a shepherd: he will gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and will gently lead those that are with young.
Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and not one of them shall fall on the ground without your Father.
And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not forthwith pull him out on the sabbath?
Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God?But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.
For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope:Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption, into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand, and also many cattle?
O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches.So is this great and wide sea, in which are creeping animals innumerable, both small and great beasts.
For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen?Or saith he this altogether for our sakes? for our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope.
And the angel of the LORD said to him, Why hast thou smitten thy ass these three times? behold, I went out to withstand thee, because thy way is perverse before me:And the ass saw me, and turned from me these three times: unless she had turned from me, surely now also I had slain thee, and saved her alive.
As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good to all men, especially to them who are of the household of faith.
Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption, into the glorious liberty of the children of God.For we know that the whole creation groaneth, and travaileth in pain together until now:
Knowest thou the time when the wild goats of the rock bring forth? or canst thou mark when the hinds do calve?Canst thou number the months that they fulfill? or knowest thou the time when they bring forth?They bow themselves, they bring forth their young ones, they cast out their sorrows.Their young ones are in good liking, they grow up with corn; they go forth, and return not to them.
Thou hast made him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:All sheep and oxen, yes, and the beasts of the field;The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatever passeth through the paths of the seas.