The Talking Animals

‘My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord: and let all flesh bless His Holy name for ever and ever.’

Psalm 145:21

‘All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.’

1 Corinthians 15:39

In order to make a case for animals that can ‘talk,’ let’s look at the above Scriptures together and see what they can teach us. These are another example of the richness of God’s word and how the Bible interprets itself. How subjects and truths are scattered ‘hear a little, and there a little.’

Breaking down Psalm 145:21 into two sections we can take and analyse each part separately.

a. ‘my mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord:’

We literally speak and praise the Lord.

b. ‘and let all flesh bless His Holy name forever and ever.’

The second part tells us that all flesh will bless God’s Holy name forevermore. Look at what this is saying. All flesh with bless God’s name! Not only that, but all flesh will bless His name eternally. If this is the case, then all animals are eternal.

Now before you say that the phrase ‘all flesh’ in the Psalms doesn’t include the animals, I would ask you to remember how the Bible interprets itself and that in 1 Corinthians we are told exactly what is meant by the term ‘all flesh.’

1 Corinthians 15:39

‘All flesh is not the same flesh:’

In this verse we are told there are different kinds of flesh - they are not the same, but they are still flesh. If ‘all flesh’ in Psalm 145 only referred to humans or the one kind of flesh, then the text would have made the distinction. However, Psalm 145 explictly says ‘all flesh’ will bless God’s Holy name eternally. 1 Corinthians then tells us what is meant by ‘all flesh.’

‘but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.’

So ‘all flesh’ equals men, beasts, fishes, birds.

They are different in that they had different flesh, but all fall under the umbrella of ‘flesh.’ In other words, sentient beings.

As a side note; this verse in 1 Corinthians reiterates the term ‘kind'.’ There is one ‘kind’ of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts etc. This hearkens back to Genesis 1 when God made all sentient beings after their ‘kind.’ He also make the plants after their ‘kind.’

Evolution proposes that fish and marine life gradually evolved to come out of the sea and change in order to become land animals. God says this is not the case. There is flesh for fishes, flesh for land animals. There was no evolving one species to another.

In fact, ask any evolutionary scientist for fossil ‘evidence’ of an ‘inbetween’ creature, and they cannot produce any. There is no evidence of animals evolving into different animals.

None.

So why then is this theory so readily accepted?

In order for any person or animal to ‘bless His Holy name,’ there must be understanding of who their maker is. Animals recognise God. They know Him. Remember it is only man that sinned. Only man that brought the Genesis curse down.

So does ‘bless His Holy name,’ mean that the animals could speak? Is that stretching the meaning of the Scripture too far? We need to go back to the Bible to find out.

Revelation

The book of Revelation is the last book of the Bible. In it God allows the curtain to be pulled back just a fraction, and we are given a small glimpse of Heaven. We are told everything that must come to pass in the future. The book is rich in imagery and the throne of God Himself is described in beautiful detail.

Revelation also has something to say about animals in Heaven.

‘And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.’

Revelation 5:13

I have often heard it said that the Bible is silent on the subject of animals in Heaven. Some Christians then think that there is no way of knowing if this is the case, whilst others will say that if the Bible has nothing to say on the matter, then it means there cannot be a wonderful afterlife for the animals.

Even if we were to take this verse in Revelation on its own, this text refutes both the argument that the Bible is silent on the matter, and also should put to rest the myth that there are no animals in Heaven.

The verse begins with, ‘And every creature..;’ now you tell me what that leaves out. The text does not say, ‘some’ creatures or one ‘kind’. It says, ‘every.’ The Bible cannot speak plainer on the subject than that. And just in case you’re not sure, it then goes on to specify, where these ‘creatures’ are. They are in:

Heaven

On the Earth

Under the Earth

In the sea

Revelation 5:13 covers every creature, which means mankind, beasts, fishes, birds. The same creatures talked about in Psalm 154:21. Do you begin to see the kind of language God uses in His word when speaking about the animals?… in fact all sentient life forms? He uses terms such as ‘all flesh’ and ‘every creature.’ Right from Genesis 1 everything He had made was ‘very good.’ God doesn’t make any creature superfluous to requirements.

But for me, one of the most fascinating aspects of this verse is that it refers to ‘every creature’ speaking. It is very specific about that. It was John who penned the book of Revelation and here he writes that he hears all these creatures ‘saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto Him that sitteth on the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever!’

John hears the creatures speak.

Every single one of them. It doesn’t matter where these creatures reside, they are speaking words, specific words. Proper language and not just sounds.

They worship God, They praise their maker. They speak giving Him blessing and honour. They know who God is, and they give Him all the respect He deserves.

Let that sink in.

In the next post I will begin to look in detail at Jesus Christ’s relationship with the animals.