Biblical Examples Informing Environmental Stewardship Practices
Biblical texts offer numerous examples and metaphors that inform environmental stewardship practices, often highlighting God's providential care for creation and humanity's role within it. The imagery of shepherds and their flocks, for instance, frequently illustrates God's relationship with his people and, by extension, the responsibility of human leaders to care for those under their charge [6, 7, 11]. David's Psalm 23, a well-known passage, describes God's "providential care in providing refreshment, guidance, protection, and abundance" through the metaphor of a shepherd [7]. This pastoral imagery is applied to God himself in passages like Psalm 80:1 and Isaiah 40:11, and to the coming Messiah in Ezekiel 34:23-24, fulfilled in Christ as the Good Shepherd [5, 6, 11].
The Bible also frequently uses natural elements to convey spiritual truths and God's interaction with the world. Rivers, for example, are depicted as sources of life and sustenance, promoting vegetation and providing drink [2]. The book of Ecclesiastes mentions the construction of pools to irrigate "a forest of growing trees" [4]. Gardens, often enclosed and refreshed by fountains, are described as places for entertainment, retirement, and even burial [1]. The cedar tree, noted for its height, spreading branches, fragrance, and durability, is presented as being "planted by God" and made to "glorify God" [3]. These descriptions suggest an inherent value and purpose in creation, independent of human utility.
Furthermore, the concept of God providing for his creation is evident in passages that speak of making a "way in the wilderness" and causing "rivers in the desert," symbolizing God's ability to bring life and provision to barren places [8]. Those who trust in the Lord are compared to trees planted by a riverbank, having abundant resources and being prepared for life's challenges, with water often representing the law of the Lord [9]. Conversely, the destruction of cities and their return to a natural state, becoming "pasture" or "shepherd camps," is presented as a severe form of divine punishment, indicating a disruption of the created order due to human sin [10]. These examples collectively underscore a biblical perspective where creation is not merely a backdrop for human activity but an integral part of God's design, requiring careful attention and stewardship.
Sources
- Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Gardens — Often made by the banks of rivers -- Nu 24:6. Kinds of, mentioned in scripture Herbs. -- De 11:10; 1Ki 21:2. Cucumbers. -- Isa 1:8. Fruit trees. -- Ec 2:5,6. Spices, &c. -- Song 4:16; 6:2. Often enclosed -- Song 4:12. Often refreshed by fountains -- Song 4:15. Taken care of by gardeners -- Joh 20:15. Lodges erected in -- Isa 1:8. Often used for Entertainments. -- Song 5:1. Retirement. -- Joh 18:1. Burial places. -- 2Ki 21:18,26; Joh 19:41. Idolatrous worship. -- Isa 1:29; 65:3. Blasting of, a punishment -- Am 4:9. Jews ordered to plant, in Babylon -- Jer 29”
- Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Rivers — Source of -- Job 28:10; Ps 104:8,10. Enclosed within banks -- Da 12:5. Flow through valleys -- Ps 104:8,10. Some of Great and mighty. -- Ge 15:18; Ps 74:15. Deep. -- Eze 47:5; Zec 10:11. Broad. -- Isa 33:21. Rapid. -- Jdj 5:21. Parted into many streams. -- Ge 2:10; Isa 11:5. Run into the sea -- Ec 1:7; Eze 47:8. God's power over, unlimited -- Isa 50:2; Na 1:4. Useful for Supplying drink to the people. -- Jer 2:18. Commerce. -- Isa 23:3. Promoting vegetation. -- Ge 2:10. Bathing. -- Ex 2:5. Baptism often performed in -- Mt 3:6. Of Canaan abounded with fish --”
- Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Cedar, The — Planted by God -- Ps 104:16; Isa 41:19. Made to glorify God -- Ps 148:9. Lebanon celebrated for -- Jdj 9:15; Ps 92:12. Banks of rivers favourable to the growth of -- Nu 24:6. Imported largely by Solomon -- 1Ki 10:27. Described as High. -- Isa 37:24; Eze 17:22; Am 2:9. Spreading. -- Ps 80:10,11. Fragrant. -- Song 4:11. Graceful and beautiful. -- Ps 80:10; Eze 17:23. Strong and durable. -- Isa 9:10. Considered the first of trees -- 1Ki 4:33. Extensive commerce in -- 1Ki 5:10,11; Ezr 3:7. Used in Building temples. -- 1Ki 5:5,6; 6:9,10. Building palaces. -- ”
- Ecclesiastes “et exstruxi mihi piscinas aquarum, ut irrigarem silvam lignorum germinantium. -- Ecclesiastes 2:6”
- Psalms “Hear us, Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock, you who sit above the cherubim, shine out. -- Psalms 80:1”
- 1 Kings (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on 1 Kings 22:17: 22:17 Like God himself (Ps 23; Isa 40:10-11), Israel’s kings and leaders were charged with care of the people much as a shepherd cares for his sheep (Num 27:16-17; Ezek 34:2, 11-16). The motif of the shepherd and the sheep, applied to the coming Messiah (Ezek 34:23-24), was fulfilled in Christ the Good Shepherd (John 10:1-11). Although he laid down his life for the sheep (John 10:14-18; 1 Pet 2:24-25), he still lives (Heb 13:20) and will come again for them (1 Pet 5:4).”
- Psalms (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Psalms 23 (introduction): Under a metaphor borrowed from scenes of pastoral life, with which David was familiar, he describes God's providential care in providing refreshment, guidance, protection, and abundance, and so affording grounds of confidence in His perpetual favor. (Psa 23:1-6) Christ's relation to His people is often represented by the figure of a shepherd (Joh 10:14; Heb 13:20; Pe1 2:25; Pe1 5:4), and therefore the opinion that He is the Lord here so described, and in Gen 48:15; Psa 80:1; Isa 40:11, is not without some good reason.”
- Isaiah (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Isaiah 43:19: new--unprecedented in its wonderful character (Isa 42:9). spring forth--as a germinating herb: a beautiful image of the silent but certain gradual growth of events in God's providence (Mar 4:26-28). way in . . . wilderness--just as Israel in the wilderness, between the Red Sea and Canaan, was guided, and supplied with water by Jehovah; but the "new" deliverance shall be attended with manifestations of God's power and love, eclipsing the old (compare Isa 41:17-19). "I will open a way, not merely in the Red Sea, but in the wilderness of the whole wo”
- Jeremiah (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Jeremiah 17:7: 17:7-8 Those who trust in the Lord, like trees planted along a riverbank, will have abundant resources and be well prepared to meet the vicissitudes of life. • Water represents the law of the Lord (cp. Ps 1; Ezek 47:1-12; Rev 2:1-2).”
- Zephaniah (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Zephaniah 2:6: 2:6 pasture . . . shepherd camps and enclosures for sheep: The destruction of cities and their return to a natural state represents a severe form of punishment from God. See also Isa 7:23-25; 13:19-21; 32:9-15; Ezek 35:9.”
- Isaiah (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Isaiah 40:11: 40:11 Isaiah used the familiar biblical metaphor of a shepherd to speak of God’s care for his people (see also 49:10; Ps 23:1; Jer 3:15; 23:4; Ezek 34:11-17; Matt 2:6; John 10:1-18).”