Shadows Over the Deep: Understanding Animal Suffering Through a Biblical Lens
- Vincent Wiggins
- Jul 26, 2025
- 6 min read
Updated: Aug 4, 2025
Introduction: The Theological Dilemma of Animal Suffering
The existence of animal suffering, especially in the wild and prior to humanity’s fall, raises profound theological questions. If God’s creation was “very good” (Genesis 1:31), why do we witness predation, pain, and death in the animal kingdom?
Biblical theology provides a compelling framework. It suggests that animal suffering was not inherently evil but rather a manifestation of pre-human disorder—a shadow of darkness over the deep. Humanity, as God’s image-bearer, was divinely commissioned to subdue this chaos through righteous dominion. This article explores how the Bible presents creation as awaiting humanity’s stewardship. It also examines how the image of God was meant to confront and transform even the most chaotic elements of nature.
The Deep Before the Garden: Creation Awaiting Order
Genesis 1:2 describes the early earth as “formless and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep.” The Hebrew word tehom (“the deep”) often symbolizes chaos or the untamed forces of nature. Crucially, this darkness is not labeled “evil.” Instead, it represents a realm not yet shaped by God’s Word. Into this chaos, God speaks light, separates waters, and brings form and purpose.
This imagery suggests that animal suffering and predation may have existed as part of this untamed wilderness. They were not moral corruptions but raw, ungoverned nature. Creation wasn’t complete; it was poised for human governance.
Animal death—the most extreme form of suffering—may have already existed before humanity’s fall. This understanding is key to grasping God’s warning to Adam: “In the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:17). If Adam had no reference point for death, the warning would lack clarity. It’s plausible that Adam and Eve had observed animal death, perhaps without fully understanding its weight. It had not touched them personally—a stark contrast to what sin would ultimately bring.
Animals, unlike humans, do not bear the image of God. They are not morally accountable, nor do they reflect on their mortality. The ability to fear death, grieve loss, and long for eternity is uniquely human and a result of the fall. We were designed for eternal communion with the source of life—God Himself. Death was never part of the original design for image-bearers.
Humanity as Light-Bearer and Steward
When God created man and woman in His image (Genesis 1:26–27), He assigned them dominion: “Let them rule… over all the earth.” This dominion was not tyranny but stewardship—mirroring God’s own life-giving rule. Humans were tasked with extending Eden’s peace and order into the world beyond.
Eden was not a closed-off paradise but a sacred center intended to expand. Genesis 2:15 states that God placed Adam “in the garden… to work it and keep it.” This priestly charge included cultivating the land and protecting creation. Even naming the animals (Genesis 2:19) expressed intimate responsibility.
Predation and animal suffering may have represented the untouched wilderness outside Eden. Humanity was to be the lamp that spread divine light, order, and peace beyond the garden’s borders.
Jesus echoes this calling when He says, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few” (Luke 10:2). Creation—full of life, ecosystems, and potential—waited for the image-bearer to fulfill their mission. Animals were called “good” not solely for what they were but for what they were meant to become under righteous human care.
This was always God's plan: to partner with humanity in cultivating creation. Adam and Eve were never meant to be passive; they were royal stewards called to glorify God by shaping the world. The new creation in Revelation 21 and Isaiah 65 is not a reset but a fulfillment of that original design. Through Christ, the redeemed will reign (2 Timothy 2:12), completing the task interrupted by sin.
Animals, too, were woven into this purpose. Genesis 1:22 records that they were the first beings blessed by God: “Be fruitful and multiply.” Their role in the sacrificial system foreshadowed Christ’s ultimate offering as the Lamb of God (John 1:29). Animals are not side notes in the biblical story—they are essential participants in creation and redemption.
Creation Groaning for Restoration
Romans 8:19–22 reveals that all of creation “waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed,” groaning under the weight of decay. This is not just a lament; it’s a signal of hope. Nature awaits not just Eden’s return but humanity’s restoration.
Animal suffering may be part of this groaning—not evil in origin but incomplete without image-bearing stewardship.
As Romans 1:20 declares, the divine nature is clearly seen through creation. Yet creation also reflects entropy. The second law of thermodynamics confirms that, without intervention, systems move toward disorder. In a theological sense, suffering increases with disorder. Thus, suffering is not simply a punishment; it is the natural condition of a world waiting for godly order.
That’s where humanity was meant to intervene. In Eden, the charge was to subdue and cultivate. Today, the calling remains: to bring life, healing, and order where chaos and pain persist.
Suffering is also part of the redeemed journey. Jesus said, “If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:20). Peter reminds us that to follow Christ is to walk the path of suffering (1 Peter 2:21). In Exodus 3:7, God tells Moses that He sees the suffering of His people—but Israel had already been in bondage for centuries. God’s timeline moves differently, but He is always working.
We must also confess: in our fallen state, humanity has often failed its calling. Instead of working together to reflect God’s dominion, we dominate each other. As a result, the world suffers—humans, animals, and ecosystems alike. Until Christ returns, that brokenness remains. Just as the poor will always be with us (Matthew 26:11), the ache of creation will remain until the full renewal of all things.
Yet one day, Christ will return as the new Adam, the perfect High Priest. All creation will bow to Him (Philippians 2:10–11), and our current stewardship will give way to eternal harmony. In the meantime, we reflect Christ by how we treat creation—including the animals whose suffering we can either ignore or help alleviate.
Jesus: The True Image and Restorer of Dominion
Where Adam failed, Jesus triumphed. As Colossians 1:15 declares, Christ is “the image of the invisible God.” He doesn’t conquer by force but by healing, restoring, and reigning in peace.
Mark 1:13 describes Jesus in the wilderness, “with the wild animals.” This is no throwaway detail—it’s a profound image of what Adam and Eve were meant to do: dwell in harmony with creation, exercise peaceful authority, and transform disorder with love. Jesus does what Adam could not. He walks into the wild and emerges victorious.
This speaks to a truth that anyone who has participated in team tryouts understands. When individual talents clash in a tryout setting, chaos abounds. The most successful team is not the one with the best individuals but the one that brings order from chaos—harmonizing different parts into one vision. That’s dominion. And that’s what Jesus models.
He didn’t dominate creation with force—He calmed storms, walked on water, and healed the broken. His dominion is one of restoration. He leads the way not with power but with presence. And He calls us to do the same.
Isaiah 11:6–9 offers a glimpse of the future: “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb… They shall not hurt or destroy… for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord.” That’s not fantasy—it’s a promise of restored dominion. It’s the world we were meant to help build.
Conclusion: The Path Forward
Animal suffering is a shadow of the untamed deep—not moral evil, but chaos awaiting godly order. Humanity, made in God’s image, was tasked with extending light, peace, and harmony into that chaos. Though Adam failed, Christ fulfills the role.
Through Him, the groaning of creation will be silenced, and the chaos will give way to everlasting peace. Until then, our calling remains: to act justly, steward compassionately, and live as faithful image-bearers—advancing the kingdom where one day, “they shall not hurt or destroy” ever again.
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