Part One
As for me, I know He will. But others want to know for sure,so I did a small study on it. Some say that animals don't, go to heaven,because they say they don't have soul's. I have felt any living thing that can show so much intelligence , caring for other's ,each have their own personality , die for the one they love who knows and honors God ,has to have a soul.
God gave us animals as a gift ,a blessing and to love ,so why would He say no , we can't have them in heaven? Animals mean a lot to God ,from what we see in His word. When He made the covenant with Noah ,He also made it with the animals!
Gen 9:8-17"And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; And with every living creature that [is] with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth.
And God said, This [is] the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that [is] with you, for perpetual generations:
I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: And I will remember my covenant, which [is] between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that [is] upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, This [is] the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that [is] upon the earth. "
The animals know God and worship Him ,would He just forget them? Some animals never had a good life here on earth ,but still knew and worshiped God.
Job 38:41"Who provideth for the raven his food? when his young ones cry unto God, they wander for lack of meat. "
Rev 5:13"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 honor, and glory, and power, [be] unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. "
Phil. 2:10 & 11"that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,of things in heaven...and things in earth....and things under the earth...; adn that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (There are other verses showing animals know and honor God)
I believe ,in heaven the Lord has a special place for them. And we know by Scripture that along with man animals don't just die and that's it.
Psalm 148:5-12 "Let them praise the name of the LORD: for he commanded, and they were created. He hath also established them for ever and ever: he hath made a decree which shall not pass. raise the LORD from the earth, ye dragons, and all deeps: Fire, and hail; snow, and vapor; stormy wind fulfilling his word: Mountains, and all hills; fruitful trees, and all cedars: Beasts, and all cattle; creeping things, and flying fowl:Kings of the earth, and all people; princes, and all judges of the earth: Both young men, and maidens; old men, and children: Let them praise the name of the LORD: for his name alone is excellent; his glory [is] above the earth and heaven. "
Nehemiah 9:6"Thou, [even] thou, [art] LORD alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all [things] that [are] therein, the seas, and all that [is] therein, and thou "preservest" them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee. "
Psalm 36:6"Thy righteousness [is] like the great mountains; thy judgments [are] a great deep: O LORD, thou" preservest" man and "beast. "
Scofield notes on Romans 8:22 "Adam drew down into his ruin the old creation, of which he was lord and head. Christ will bring into moral unity with God,and into eternal life,all of the new creation of which He is Lord and Head(Eph.1:22-23) Even the animal and material creation,cursed for man's sake will be delivered by Christ(Romans 8:19-22)
Romans 8:19-23 " For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected [the same] in hope, because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only [they], but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, [to wit], the redemption of our body. "
And I think this answers if they have a soul....
Job 12:7-10"But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee: and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee. Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the LORD hath wrought this? In whose hand [is] the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind. "
My Alburny was a Rhode Island Red. I had her for about 3 1/2 years.When I took a nap on the couch she would nap with me.She would make a purring like noise that I called pretty. She was my one of my kids.She went to be with the Lord about 3 years ago.About 4 or 6 months after she left,I had a dream.
Did you ever wake up in a dream and knew you were dreaming? Well that is what happen to me.I was looking for Alburny. I came to this beautiful field,with tall grass,grazing horses,and chickens. I cant remember the other animals.The chickens looked so peaceful,walking in the tall grass and pecking at the ground,very peaceful and quite. I was walking down this road after I called her once.I was ready to pass over like a little bridge and I knew once I crossed over I was going to start dreaming another dream. So before I did, I turned and called alburny once more.There were some white chickens with little bit of black dots on their backs.One looked up in the air and bucked(buck buck) and I called again "Alburny?" She came running down that road,her leg all fixed(she had a bad leg)and she flew into my arms. And I hugged her and said "I will never leave you again!" And as soon as I said it I woke up.(tears)
I had wanted to know if animals that we love go to be with the Lord, or wait until we come to heaven,you see I wanted the best for her! And after having this dream(or what ever)I knew she was there in a place the Lord made for animals. Well about a week later on the internet someone talked about losing their animal and this is what they found on a web site.
Rainbow Bridge
Just this side of Heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge. When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.There is plenty of food,water and sunshine and our friends are warm and comfortable. All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, justRainbow Bridge as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.
The animals are happy and content,except for one small thing:they each miss someone very special,someone who was left behind. They all run and play together,but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance.His bright eyes are intent; his eager body begins to quiver.Suddenly,he breaks from the group,flying over the green grass,faster and faster.You have been spotted,and when you and your special friend finally meet,you cling together in joyous reunion,never to be parted again.The happy kisses rain upon your face,your hands again caress the beloved head,and you look once more into those trusting eyes,so long gone from your life,but never absent from your heart. (Author Unknown)
I believe the Lord showed me,I really saw her,where she is and she was very happy!
In His Love, mizpah
I have had ppl say...I bet ppl didnt feel so strongly about animals as some do now..and God would think its silly...etc. and the Lord said look up 2 Samuel 12:1-7..I never really payed attention to it before...you can read the rest but I will give ya the main part.. 3-"But the poor man had nothing,save one little ewe lamb,which he had bought and nourished up;and it grew up with his children.It did eat of his own food and drank of his own cup,and lay in his bosom,and was unto him AS A DAUGHTER."
Now that blew me away...because thats how much I love my feathered kids...(but I dont share their food dishes..lol) So dont let no one tell you ..you wont have your animals in heaven! If you will notice when you go and read the rest David didnt say or what a nut case..no he thought it was horrible...and didnt think it was abnormal..and God used it to get through to David! In His Love, Miz
Do Animals Have Souls?
Most of us have heard all our life that animals do not have souls. Yet the first chapter of Genesis indisputably contradicts that position. The Hebrew word for soul is nephish and refers to the part of our being which lives on after physical death. The first chapter of Genesis not only proves that animals have a soul, but it also proves that plant life does not! Here are the verses: Genesis 1:20 And God said, Let the waters swarm with swarmers {fish} having a living soul and let the birds fly over the earth, on the face of the expanse of the heavens.
Genesis 1:21 And God created the great sea animals and the creeping things all having a living soul...
Genesis 1:24 And God said, Let the earth bring forth souls of life according to its kind, the cattle, the beasts of the field, and creeping things according to its kind.
Genesis 1:30 To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens and to every creeping thing on the earth, in which is a living soul, every green plant is given for food.
In all four of the above verses the Hebrew word nephish is used which is the exact same word used of man in Genesis 2:7. Most modern translations give no hint that this is in fact the case, but most older King James bibles do give a footnote: Hebrew, lit: soul for each of the above verses. It is this same "soul" which David refers to in Ps. 16:10 when he says: "You will not abandon my soul to sheol." {Sheol is the place for the souls of those who have physically died.}
Are there animals in heaven?
Rev. 19:11 I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True.
Is. 11: 6-8 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, and the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest. {We believe this refers to the millenium, but could also refer to the new heavens and new earth.}
Zech. 14:20 On that day "Holy to the Lord" will be inscribed on the bells of the horses...
Note: The passage from the Revelation shows that presently there are horses in heaven. The passages in Isaiah and Zechariah show that there will be animals in the millennium kingdom on earth.
The present violence in the animal world is a result of the curse in the garden of Eden pronounced by God due to man's sin.
Rom. 8:19 -22 The creation {this includes animals} waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time...
The Lord put all things in the oceans, in the air, and on earth under man's subjection in Genesis 1:26.
What makes man different from the animals is not that he has a soul, but that he is made in the image of God {Gen. 1:26-27}.
The words "let us make" uses the same Hebrew word for "make" found in Ex. 20:4 in which God commands us to "not make" any graven image. It is because we are made in the image of God that murder is forbidden {Gen. 9:6} Also, God breathed His Spirit into Adam Gen. 2:7. This Spirit no longer resided inside of mankind after the fall in the garden of Eden. If it is the Spirit of God that makes us different, then those who have not accepted Jesus as Lord would be no different than animals, but this is not the case! We know it is not the case, because Gen. 9:6 was written after the fall of man.
I do not pretend to understand what all "made in the image of God" means, but there are some things I know it does not mean: It does not mean that animals do not have souls, Genesis chapter 1 proves that. It does not mean animals cannot reason-- anyone who has ever raised pets of any kind know that animals do reason quite well. At times you can almost read their thoughts as they make decisions about which food to eat, which food not to eat, how to get out of a pen, how to sneak away from you when they know they are in trouble, etc.. From Numbers 22:21-34 {about Balaam and his donkey} it is quite obvious that at times animals are much more spiritual discerning than people are!
As for the animals, however, we know that animals do have souls. We know that the soul lives on after the body has died. We know that there are presently animals in heaven. We know that there will be animals upon the earth in the millennium kingdom. We also know that God himself watches over even the birds of the air {Matt. 6:26} and takes care of them. To say that animals don't go to heaven when they die has no foundation in scripture!
-Living Waters
Do Animals have Souls?
This month's question comes from a concerned child who writes, "Do animals go to heaven? I thought animals had souls. They certainly have personalities. We love them so much and when they die we hope they move on to a better place. That gives us peace of mind."
My own household is home for two dogs, a cat, three rabbits, and a bird and I for one can attest that these animals all do have personalities of their own. But souls? The notion of animals with souls could make a difference in the eating habits of millions of people, since it would seem barbaric to slaughter animals for food if they had souls. And besides, everyone knows animals aren't as smart as people (they don't work for a living though they may be enslaved), they aren't as civilized as people (they don't go to war), and besides, they're dependent on people (how many species have become instinct in the past 100 years?!?).
But do they have souls? Let's turn to scripture and see what we find.
First, we have to look at the creation stories, since that's where we find the accounts of animals being created. Then we have to decide what Hebrew word means "soul." A quick look in the Hebrew dictionary tells us the word nephesh chaya is the word phrase most often translated "soul." Indeed, in the King James Version we read in Genesis 2.7 that the human was created "a living soul"literally, nephesh chaya.
Okay, people have souls. But do animals?
"So God created the great sea monsters and every nephesh chaya that moves, of every kind" (Genesis 1.21). Apparently fish and birds have souls
"And God said, 'Let the earth bring forth nephesh chaya of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.' And it was so" (Genesis 1.24). And apparently so do the rest of the animals.
But if they have souls, can we eat them? Well, eating animals certainly wasn't in the original divine plan. In Genesis 1.29-30 God tells the humans they're to eat vegetables, grains, and fruits while the animals are to eat "every green plant." Animals weren't created to be fodder either for us or for each other (read Genesis 2.18-19 to see why God said animals were created). Animals have personalities. They apparently have souls. And they weren't created for our dining pleasure. But do they go to heaven? The Bible isn't big on telling us what heaven's like. The word picture in Revelation 21 often used to describe heaven actually describes the new earth and the new Jerusalem. The only thing we know for sure about heaven is that there is one, it's where God is, and it's a promised future for the saintsoh, and there are animals there.
Animals in heaven? So says scripture. Horses are regularly pictured as being a part of heaven (2 Kings 2.11; Revelation 6). And there is the list of creatures who are like oxen, lions, and eagles seen by John in heaven gathered around the throne of God, apparently God likes animals too. (Rev. 4.7). These animals are shown as a part of heaven's realm, so it seems likely, since they have souls, that heaven is also the eternal home for those animals that have been an important part of creation from the beginning.
