Animal Rights, Ownership, & Use: Bible & Human Dominion

Note: This article continues a series of studies about animal liberation and the Bible. If you have not read the previous articles, then please click here to start at the beginning.

A basic teaching of animal rights is that men have no more right to own, use, confine, harm, or kill animals for their own purposes than they have to do such things to human beings. Note specific areas of concern.

I. May People Possess or Use Animals as Property?

A. The View of Animal Rights

* Animal rights activists believe "that all human use of animals should stop immediately" - Sherry, p xi.

* "If we have dominion over animals, surely it is to protect them, not to use them for our own ends" - PETA FAQ.

* Ingrid Newkirk, a PETA founder, said "...the act of confinement is traumatizing in itself."

* They quote with approval "Rev." Andrew Linzey who said, "Animals are God's creatures, not human property, nor utilities, nor resources, nor commodities..." - JesusVeg FAQ. But remember, plants, lakes, and rocks are God's creatures too. Does that prove they too should not be human property or resources, etc.?

* And remember their basic premise that is, "A rat is a pig is a dog is a boy." Animals should be treated as we would treat a retarded human child.

So they claim humans must never in any form own or possess animals as property or wealth. We must not confine them, as in cages, barns, or fields; they must be as free as humans to roam where they will. We must not ride them or make them pull plows or wagons or otherwise compel them to work, since this involves using, owning, and confining them. We would not treat humans in this way.

We must never in any way use them for our purposes against their will, but may only "protect" them. This means animals can have their cake and eat it too: we are responsible to work for their benefit, but they have no responsibility to do anything for us!

While animal activists may not accept it, the logical conclusion would be that we could not even make pets of animals, if this involved owning or confining them. Instead animals should be viewed as our "companions" or "friends," and efforts are being made to put such language into law. But you do not own or confine a friend, nor can you compel someone to be your friend.

Animal activists prefer to attack extreme abuses, so they usually do not openly publicize all of these conclusions. Yet all this follows from their arguments, and most leaders of the movement accept these conclusions.

B. The Teaching of the Bible

The dominion mandate authorizes control and possession of animals.

Genesis 1:26-28 - From creation man was given dominion over all animals. Animal liberation argues this means men should just protect the animals, but dominion involves much more. Note further Bible teaching.

Genesis 9:1,2 - Animals are "given" into our hand by God Himself. This implies possession and the power of owners to control and use animals for our purposes (v3).

Psalms 8:4-7 - God explains man's dominion over animals: it means they are put under man's feet. This is a position of absolute submission, not just voluntary service.

Divine approval of owning and confining animals

Exodus 21:28,29 - If an ox is known to gore, its owner must keep it confined. God expressly approves ownership and confinement of animals. [vv 35,36]

Deuteronomy 22:1-4 - You must return anything you find which belongs to your brother and he has lost. This includes animals as well as garments or anything else. So animals are property to be kept like a garment or any other possession. God expressly condoned owning animals. He also condoned confining them so they are not at liberty to "go astray."

It follows from these passages that, when people, like some Animal Liberation advocates, take people's animals and release them against the owner's will, they are doing wrong, not right.

1 Samuel 12:3 - Samuel said that, if he had improperly taken anyone's ox or donkey, he would restore it. So property, including animals, may be owned and godly people respect the rights of people who own animals. This is doing right, not wrong.

Job 1:3 - Job's flocks were part of his "possessions" which demonstrated his wealth. Yet he was not evil but blameless and upright and shunned evil (v1). Satan took them away, but God blessed Job by restoring more than he had before (42:12).

Isaiah 1:3 - The ox knows its owner and the donkey its master's crib, but God's people ("my people") did not know their owner (God). Note that people own animals and are their masters like God owns us and is our Master. Surely this is not just protection; it is the right of possession and use and work.

Divine approval of using animals to work for us

Deuteronomy 25:4 - Oxen were made to work by treading out grain. It would be rewarded for its work, but man has the right to expect it to work for our benefit.

1 Kings 1:33,38,44 - David had a mule which was his "own" mule, and they had Solomon ride on it. David possessed it and used it for riding.

1 Kings 19:19 - Elisha was using oxen to plow when he was called by Elijah to be a prophet. So godly people used animals to plow.

Job 1:14 - The oxen owned by Job, who was blameless and upright, were made to work at plowing (v14).

New Testament examples

Luke 10:34 - The Good Samaritan helped the needy man by putting him on his own animal. Note: The teaching of Jesus Himself proves that good people may own animals, use animals, and ride animals.

Furthermore, Jesus told this story to illustrate what it means to love your neighbor as yourself. He shows that the command to love your neighbor as yourself applies to people, not animals. Note that the man rode the animal, the animal did not ride the man. No one would want to be compelled to let an animal ride him; so the command to love your neighbor does not forbid using animals in ways that you would never use a person. No passage commands anyone to love an animal as yourself. Jesus' teaching clearly distinguished people from animals and shows they should be treated by different rules.

Luke 19:30,33-35; Matthew 21:5 - Scripture says that a donkey had human "owners," and Jesus rode on the donkey. Not only did Jesus approve of people owning animals, but He Himself used an animal to ride on.

John 10:2-4,11-14 - Jesus said He is like a shepherd who has his "own" sheep. Note how He contrasts Himself to a hireling who does not own the sheep. He does not just care for other people's sheep, but He Himself owns the sheep.

James 3:3,7 - Men tame animals and put bits in their mouths to control them so they obey us. This illustrates how we should tame and control our tongues. Is this teaching "tongue liberation" and "tongue rights? Should we just let our tongues do whatever they want? Clearly we should control and confine our tongues to do only what we will. Likewise, this is how men tame and control animals. Animal liberation and animal rights completely contradict the point.

Clearly, the Biblical teaching of man's dominion over animals includes the right to control them, confine them, and require them to obey us. We have the right to possess them as property, use them, and make them work for us, whether they want to or not. They are required to serve our purposes to meet our needs. They are not at "liberty," nor do they have the "right" to come and go or act as they please. All these are Biblical teachings, yet all of them prove that animals do not have "rights" like people do.

The views of animal rights and animal liberation directly contradict all these Scriptures.

[Gen. 32:5,13-15,18; 36:6; 42:26,27; 44:3; 47:15-17; Ex. 20:17; 22:30; 23:4,12; Num. 20:8,11; 35:3; 1 Sam. 9:3,20; 16:11; 2 Sam. 12:3; 1 Kings 10:25,28; 2 Kings 7:7; Ezra 2:66,67; Neh. 7:68,69; Prov. 12:10; Jer. 27:6; Rev. 18:2]

II. May People Wear Clothing Made from Animal Products?

A. The View of Animal Liberation

PETA's basic principle is that "animals are not ours to eat, wear, experiment on, or use for entertainment" - PETA web site.

Remember, "A rat is a pig is a dog is a boy." We should treat an animal by the same rules we would treat a retarded child.

It follows that we do not have the right to use any part of an animal for clothing. Specifically, animal rights opposes all trapping, hunting, or farming of animals to use them for fur, such as fur coats, etc. They also oppose all wearing of leather, such as shoes, etc.

And to be consistent they must also oppose shepherding and shearing sheep for their wool, just as they oppose herding cows for milk.

Remember that they claim that animals have the same rights as a retarded human child. You surely would not kill a child to use any part of it for clothing. Nor would you farm or herd children so they could grow material for you, like wool from sheep or fur from other animals.

B. The Teaching of the Bible

Note the following evidence that man's "dominion" over animals (Genesis 1:26-28) includes using them for clothing.

Old Testament teaching

Genesis 3:21 - When Adam and Eve sinned, they knew they were naked and needed clothing (vv 7-11). God made tunics of skin to clothe them.

If God's rule is that we should wear only clothing made from plants or non-living materials, why did God teach the very first man and woman to wear clothing made from animal skins? Why did He Himself set this example? What kind of teacher would He be if He taught them to violate His own rule? The fact is that, since man first began to wear clothing, God Himself authorized and arranged for people to use animal skin for that purpose!

Exodus 25:1-6; 26:7,14 - God expressly commanded people to provide animal skins and animal hair to be used in building the tabernacle. How can it be wrong for people to make things from animal skins, when God Himself expressly commanded people to use them to make the tabernacle? [35:4-7,23; 36:14]

Leviticus 13:47-49,59 [15:17] - God gave instructions for cleansing garments made of leather. Note that He not only permitted people to wear them, but He had rules whereby they were declared ceremonially clean. [Num. 31:20]

Proverbs 31:13 - The worthy woman, upheld as an example for godly women to imitate, used wool as well as flax.

2 Kings 1:7,8 - The faithful prophet Elijah was known for wearing a girdle made of leather.

New Testament teaching

Matthew 3:4 - John the Baptist was in many ways like Elijah. Both were bold and faithful prophets of God, but another similarity was that John also wore a girdle made of leather. He also wore camel's hair. Was he immoral and sinful?

Hebrews 11:37 - God describes His faithful servants in the Old Testament and holds them up as examples for us. He specifically states that some wore sheepskins and goatskins. So God Himself upholds people who wore animal skins as examples of faith!

John 10:1-15; Psalms 23:1-4 - Both God and Jesus compared themselves to shepherds in both the Old and New Testaments. Multitudes of Old Testament and New Testament people kept herds of sheep and goats, and many were shepherds (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David). Shepherds were among the first to whom Jesus' birth was announced and came to worship Him (Luke 2:8-20). [Luke 15:3-7; Psalms 78:52; Isaiah 40:11; Ezek. 34:11,12]

Proverbs 27:23-26 - But shepherds not only possessed and used and confined sheep and goats (as in a sheep fold), but they also used them for wool for clothing. [2 Kings 3:4; Hosea 2:9]

Once again the Animal Liberation movement is in direct contradiction to God's word. The Bible not only does not condemn the use of animal skins, fur, and wool or hair for clothing, but it expressly and repeatedly approves of it. This includes possessing, confining, using, and even killing animals, all of which the Animal Rights movement opposes.

The Bible simply does not agree with the views held by the Animal Rights movement, and it most definitely does not agree that animals should be treated like humans.

This is the conclusion of this portion of our study about animal liberation. To continue with the next section, please click here: Part 3: May People Kill and Eat Animals and Animal Products?