God gave to mankind as a whole dominion over the creation. This was supposed to be a dignified and good thing for creation. We were meant to be the shepherd and shepherdess of the animals, the cultivators of the gardens and earth.

If we had done this as we were meant to, it would have been a very good thing. When we look at the animals, it is not a demeaning thing for us to be “master” over them—so long as we did this rightly. Yet we see how miserable of a lord we can be over the animals, for many suffer because of us.

While God created all of us to have dominion in His creation, this is one of the great parts of mankind’s heart that has been deeply poisoned with sin. Rather than being a good thing, as God being Lord over us is truly good, it has become a very dark and bitter thing.

It is a sad thing when people talk as if we should have no mind to the animals or to this earth. While all of these should be secondary to our fellow man, and in “third” place to God, God created us to be lords over creation, and we can see some of the greatest examples of our sin in how miserable an earth we have left in our wake. Some people raise animals too high, and some people act as if God does not account them at all—both are big errors. We can also understand that a person can “rule over” animals much to their harm, and we all have responsibility to be lord over animals and creation with the rights and dignities they deserve. While God is concerned with mankind, and the end of God’s creation is found in His purpose of mankind, we only reveal the entitlement of the heart if we do not believe God rightly regards His creation of the animals—they are also apart of this world (Prov 12:10), and were a great part of our original responsibility before the fall of the world.

One of the most wicked parts of this corruption of dominion in us is in how we have tried to usurp our rightful place, and tried to take dominion over other human beings. Even the very angels of heaven call us fellow servants (Rev 19:10), and yet so many people have tried to take dominion over their fellow human in this world. It seems the words our Lord spoke in Matthew 23:8-12 fall mostly of deaf ears.

While it is no oppression or injustice to be lords over animals and trees, it is the greatest sin to try and do so over our fellow human. Only God has the right to this dominion over a person. To believe otherwise and to act otherwise is the greatest violation of the human soul. Many think violence is bound only in actions, but it is bound in beliefs contrary to the truth. To believe contrary to this truth, to work for it with the swords of words and will, is just as much violation and oppression as any robbery or physical harm.

The world has a very long history of people continually seeking dominion over others. One nation trying to dominate another. One group of people enslaving another. Yet nowhere in creation is this issue more prevalent than with men and women.

One of the great sins of multitudes of men has been their dark desire for dominion over women. A desire to covet the dominion, dignity, meaning, and purpose that God has given humankind all for themselves. So many boast of not coveting gold or possessions, who are guilty of coveting the far greater things of life! We see in Genesis how clearly God created men and women on equal ground, and gave dominion to BOTH, and that woman was never a part of that dominion given.

To seek to bring people beneath us is some of the greatest sin we can have in our hearts against people. It is the sin we are all guilty of in our sin of conceit. We elevate ourselves above others. God spoke so deeply and wisely when He summed up all righteousness towards our fellow person in, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself”. To truly hold our neighbor on equal ground as ourselves, with equal rights, equal regard—is not the opposite the whole issue of sin?

(This is an excerpt from the Genesis 1 commentary.)