Genesis 1:26 is sometimes referred to as the creation or cultural mandate. In that verse we read Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
Similarly, in Genesis 1:28 we read of God blessing man and saying to them “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
Mankind is envisaged as being fruitful and increasing and ruling over the rest of creation. This mandate means that we are all under some obligation to propagate and to fill the earth. The world's population is currently around the 7.5 billion mark. Some get rather alarmed at that (even though if we all squeezed together we could apparently fit into New York City). When we are nearer 70 billion perhaps people will laugh at earlier fears (it should be 10 billion by 2050). There are undoubtedly issues with large populations but it is equally clear that in nations where the birth rate drops too far problems follow.
As for ruling, this suggests a subduing of the earth so that we are able to use its resources in ways that will benefit humankind. Things such as taming and domesticating animals, growing food, extracting useful materials from the ground come to mind. This is not an excuse for rapaciousness. In fact this suggests rather a conservative approach. What a tragedy when animals become extinct or we fail to explore the universe as thoroughly as we ought.
As for ruling, this suggests a subduing of the earth so that we are able to use its resources in ways that will benefit humankind. Things such as taming and domesticating animals, growing food, extracting useful materials from the ground come to mind. This is not an excuse for rapaciousness. In fact this suggests rather a conservative approach. What a tragedy when animals become extinct or we fail to explore the universe as thoroughly as we ought.
