Genesis 9:2 Daily Devotional & Meaning – The Fear of Man in Creation
- Benjamin Michael Mcgreevy
- Mar 18
- 3 min read
Daily Verses Everyday! Day 44
“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 [upon] the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered.”
In Genesis 9:2, God declares, “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 upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered.” This is something entirely new in human history. Before the Flood, humanity and animals seem to have lived in a different order, one where animals were not instinctively fearful of man. Now, however, God establishes a boundary of protection for humanity by placing dread and fear into the hearts of the animal kingdom. It is a divine safeguard, ensuring that mankind would not be at the mercy of predators but instead would exercise dominion, as God originally intended.
This raises a fascinating question: what was life like before this moment? If animals had no inherent fear of mankind, then the relationship must have been far more direct, perhaps even peaceful in ways we can hardly imagine today. But in a world corrupted by sin, Satan, the one whom Jesus says in John 10:10 comes only “to steal, kill, and destroy,” would have undoubtedly sought to twist that relationship for harm. Without God’s protective barrier of fear, animals could easily have been turned into instruments of destruction, stirred up to attack humanity and accelerate death.
Satan has always hated the image of God stamped upon man, and it would have been in his nature to use even creation itself against humanity. The obvious next step in this train of thought is to ask: how do we know that Satan truly hates the image-bearers of God? Scripture gives us several clear answers.
From the very beginning, Satan’s hostility toward humanity is seen in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were created in the image of God according to Genesis 1:27, designed to reflect His glory, walk in His presence, and rule over creation. Satan’s first act of rebellion against them was to deceive, corrupt, and destroy that reflection of God’s character. By tempting them to sin, he marred the image of God in man and brought death into the world. This alone demonstrates his hatred, as his very first interaction with humanity was an attempt to ruin them. We also see this truth confirmed in Revelation 12, where Satan is described as “the great dragon…which deceiveth the whole world” and is pictured as waging war against the people of God. Revelation 12:17 tells us that he was “wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”
The language is unmistakable as it describes the fact that Satan despises those who belong to God and bears relentless hostility toward them. Jesus Himself made this clear when speaking of the devil. In John 8:44, He declared, “He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him.” The devil’s very nature is bound up with destruction, lies, and hatred of life, especially human life, since humanity bears God’s image in a unique way above all creation.
This is why Genesis 9:2 is so significant. God, knowing the malice of Satan toward His image-bearers, set boundaries in creation itself to protect humanity. By instilling fear into the animals, He placed a hedge of safety around man’s dominion, ensuring that Satan could not easily exploit the animal kingdom to destroy those who carried God’s likeness.
For believers today, this should remind us of two things. First, we have a real enemy who hates us not simply for who we are but for Whose image we bear. Second, our ultimate protection does not rest in our own strength but in the God who establishes boundaries, restrains evil, and guards His people according to His purposes.
If you would like to explore Genesis in a sustained, verse-by-verse way with space to reflect, journal, and trace how these foundational truths unfold through Scripture the Verse by Verse book expands these reflections into a unified reading experience. The book gathers these meditations into a structured journey through Genesis, designed to help readers linger in the text and engage God’s Word more deeply over time.
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