Reference: BEASTS
American
This word, used in contradistinction to man, denotes all animals besides, Ps 36:6, sometimes it means quadrupeds, and not creeping things, Le 11:2-7; and sometimes domestic cattle, in distinction from wild creatures, Ge 1:25. They were all brought to Adam to be named. Few are mentioned in the Bible but such as lived in Palestine and the countries adjacent. Beasts suffer with man under the penalties of the fall, Ge 3:14; Ex 9:6; 3:15; Eze 38:20; Ho 4:3. Yet various merciful provision for them were made in the Jewish law, Ex 20:10; 23:11-12; Le 22:28; 25:7. Animals were classed in the law as clean or unclean, with a primary reference to animal sacrifices, Ge 7:2; Le 11 The word beasts is figuratively used to symbolize various kings and nations, Ps 74:14; Isa 27:1; Eze 29:3; Da 7; 7:8; Re 12:13. It also describes the character of violent and brutal men, Ps 22:12,16; 1Co 15:32; 2Pe 2:12. The Hebrew word commonly rendered beast signifies living creatures. In Ezekiel's vision, Eze 1, this is applied to human beings or their symbols. In the book of Revelation two distinct words are employed symbolically, both rendered "beast" in our version. One is applied to persecuting earthly powers, Re 11:7; 13:1, etc.; the other to superhuman beings or their symbols, Re 4:6, etc. this latter might be appropriately rendered, "living creature," as the corresponding Hebrew word is in Ezekiel.
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And God made the beasts of the earth in their kinds, and cattle in their kinds, and all manner worms of the earth in their kinds: and God saw that it was good.
And the LORD God said unto the serpent, "Because thou hast so done, most cursed be thou of all cattle and of all beasts of the field. Upon thy belly shalt thou go, and earth shalt thou eat all days of thy life.
Of all clean beasts take unto thee seven of every kind, the male and his female, and of unclean beasts a pair, the male and his female:
And God spake further unto Moses, "Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, 'the LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob hath sent me unto you': this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial throughout all generations.
And the LORD did the thing on the morrow, and all the cattle of Egypt died: but of the cattle of the children of Israel died not one.
but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD thy God, in it thou shalt do no manner work: neither thou nor thy son, nor thy daughter, neither thy manservant nor thy maidservant, neither thy cattle neither yet the stranger that is within thy gates.
and the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still, that the poor of thy people may eat, and what they leave, the beasts of the field shall eat: In like manner thou shalt do with thy vineyard and thine olive trees. Six days thou shalt do thy work and the seventh day thou shalt keep holy day, that thine ox and thine ass may rest and the son of thy maid and the stranger may be refreshed.
"Speak unto the children of Israel and say, 'These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth: whatsoever hath hoof and divideth it into two claws and cheweth cud among the beasts, that shall ye eat. read more. Nevertheless, these shall ye not eat of them that chew cud and have hoofs. The camel, for he cheweth cud but he divideth not the hoof into two claws, therefore he shall be unclean unto you. And the cony, for he cheweth the cud but divideth not the hoof into two claws, therefore he is unclean to you. And the hare, for he likewise cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof into two claws, he is therefore unclean to you. And the swine, for though he divide the hoof into two claws, yet he cheweth not the cud and therefore is unclean to you.
And whether it be ox or sheep, ye shall not kill it and her young both in one day.
and for thy cattle and for the beasts that are in thy land, shall all the increase thereof be meat.
Many oxen are come about me; fat bulls of Bashan close me in on every side.
For many dogs are come about me, the counsel of the wicked layeth siege against me.
Thy righteousness standeth like the strong mountains; thy judgments are like the great deep. Thou, LORD, shalt save both man and beast.
Thou smitest the heads of Leviathan in pieces, and givest him to be meat for the people in the wilderness.
In that day, the LORD with his heavy, great, and long sword shall visit Leviathan that fugitive serpent: even Leviathan that crooked serpent, and shall slay the dragon in the sea.
Speak, and tell him, 'Thus sayeth the LORD God: Behold, O Pharaoh thou king of Egypt, I will upon thee, thou great dragon that liest in the waters; thou that sayest, 'The water is mine; I have made it myself.'
The very fishes in the sea, the fowls of the air, the beasts of the field, and all the men that are upon the earth shall tremble for fear of me. The hills also shall be turned upside down, the stairs of stone shall fall, and all walls shall sink to the ground:
Therefore shall the land be in a miserable cause, and all they that dwell therein, shall mourn. The beasts in the field, the fowls in the air, and the fishes in the sea shall die.
And before the seat there was a sea of glass, like unto crystal, and in the midst of the seat, and round about the seat, were four beats full of eyes before and behind.
And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that came out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them: and shall overcome them, and kill them.
And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.
And I stood on the sea sand. And I saw a beast rise out of the sea, having seven heads, and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his head, the name of blasphemy.
Watsons
BEASTS. When this word is used in opposition to man, as Ps 36:5, any brute creature is signified; when to creeping things, as Leviticus 11:2, 7; 29:30, four-looted animals, from the size of the hare and upward, are intended; and when to wild creatures, as Ge 1:25, cattle, or tame animals, are spoken of. In Isa 13:21, several wild animals are mentioned as dwelling among the ruins of Babylon: "Wild beasts of the desert," ????, those of the dry wilderness, as the root of the word implies, "shall dwell there. Their houses shall be full of doleful creatures," ????, marsh animals. "Owls shall dwell there," ostriches, "and satyrs," ??????, shaggy ones, "shall dance there. And the wild beasts of the islands," ????, oases of the desert, "shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons," ????, crocodiles, or amphibious animals, "shall be in their desolate places." St. Paul, 1Co 15:32, speaks of fighting with beasts, &c: by which he does not mean his having been exposed in the amphitheatre to fight as a gladiator, as some have conjectured, but that he had to contend at Ephesus with the fierce uproar of Demetrius and his associates. Ignatius uses the same figure in his epistle to the Romans: "From Syria even unto Rome I fight with wild beasts, both by sea and land, both night and day, being bound to ten leopards;" that is, to a band of soldiers. So Lucian, in like manner, says, "For I am not to fight with ordinary wild beasts, but with men, insolent and hard to be convinced." In Re 4; 5; 6, mention is made of four beasts, or rather, as the word ??? signifies, living creatures, as in Ezekiel 1; and so the word might have been less harshly translated. Wild beasts are used in Scripture as emblems of tyrannical and persecuting powers. The most illustrious conquerors of antiquity also have not a more honourable emblem.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
And God made the beasts of the earth in their kinds, and cattle in their kinds, and all manner worms of the earth in their kinds: and God saw that it was good.
Thy mercy, O LORD, reacheth unto the heavens, and thy faithfulness unto the clouds.
but wild beasts shall lie there, and the houses shall be full of great owls. Ostriches shall dwell there, and apes shall dance there:
That I have fought with beasts at Ephesus after the manner of men, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not again? "Let us eat and drink, tomorrow we shall die."