Throughout the Bible, animals are often used to symbolize strength, power, and divine lessons. Among these animals, bears are mentioned as both creatures of the wild and as instruments of God’s judgment. Their presence in Scripture reflects their might, unpredictability, and role in biblical narratives.
Bears in the Bible are often associated with danger, destruction, and the consequences of disobedience. However, they also symbolize protection and God’s control over nature. Whether used in prophecy or historical accounts, their appearances carry deep spiritual significance.
Understanding the biblical perspective on bears helps us see the connection between God’s sovereignty and the natural world. Let’s read these Bible verses that reference bears, their role in Scripture, and their significance in God’s divine plan.
Powerful Bible Verses About Bears
1. 2 Kings 2:23-24
“Then he went up from there to Bethel; and as he was going up the road, some youths came from the city and mocked him, and said to him, ‘Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!’ So he turned around and looked at them, and pronounced a curse on them in the name of the Lord. And two female bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the youths.”
2. Daniel 7:5
“And suddenly another beast, a second, like a bear. It was raised up on one side, and had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. And they said thus to it: ‘Arise, devour much flesh!’”
3. Proverbs 17:12
“Let a man meet a bear robbed of her cubs, rather than a fool in his folly.”
4. Isaiah 11:7
“The cow and the bear shall graze; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.”
5. Lamentations 3:10
“He has been to me a bear lying in wait, like a lion in ambush.”
6. Hosea 13:8
“I will meet them like a bear deprived of her cubs; I will tear open their rib cage, and there I will devour them like a lion. The wild beast shall tear them.”
7. Revelation 13:2
“Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, his feet were like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority.”
8. 1 Samuel 17:34-35
“But David said to Saul, ‘Your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it.’”
9. Amos 5:19
“It will be as though a man fled from a lion, and a bear met him! Or as though he went into the house, leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him!”
10. Job 10:16
“If my head is exalted, You hunt me like a fierce lion, and again You show Yourself awesome against me.”
11. Nahum 2:11-12
“Where is the dwelling of the lions, and the feeding place of the young lions, where the lion walked, the lioness and lion’s cub, and no one made them afraid? The lion tore in pieces enough for his cubs, killed for his lionesses, filled his caves with prey, and his dens with flesh.”
12. Isaiah 59:11
“We all growl like bears, and moan sadly like doves; we look for justice, but there is none; for salvation, but it is far from us.”
13. Jeremiah 5:6
“Therefore a lion from the forest shall slay them, a wolf of the deserts shall destroy them; a leopard will watch over their cities. Everyone who goes out from there shall be torn in pieces, because their transgressions are many; their backslidings have increased.”
14. Micah 5:8
“And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among flocks of sheep, who, if he passes through, both treads down and tears in pieces, and none can deliver.”
15. Psalm 22:12-13
“Many bulls have surrounded me; strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me. They gape at me with their mouths, like a raging and roaring lion.”
16. Job 37:1-2
“At this also my heart trembles, and leaps from its place. Hear attentively the thunder of His voice, and the rumbling that comes from His mouth.”
17. Genesis 49:9
“Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; and as a lion, who shall rouse him?”
18. Psalm 104:21
“The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their food from God.”
19. Job 38:39-40
“Can you hunt the prey for the lion, or satisfy the appetite of the young lions, when they crouch in their dens, or lurk in their lairs to lie in wait?”
20. Ezekiel 34:25
“I will make a covenant of peace with them, and cause wild beasts to cease from the land; and they will dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods.”
21. Isaiah 35:9
“No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast go up on it; it shall not be found there. But the redeemed shall walk there.”
22. Genesis 1:26
“Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’”
23. 1 Kings 13:24
“When he was gone, a lion met him on the road and killed him, and his corpse was thrown on the road, and the donkey stood by it; the lion also stood by the corpse.”
24. Leviticus 26:22
“I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, destroy your livestock, and make you few in number; and your highways shall be desolate.”
25. Deuteronomy 7:22
“And the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you little by little; you will be unable to destroy them at once, lest the beasts of the field become too numerous for you.”
26. Ezekiel 14:15
“If I cause wild beasts to pass through the land, and they empty it, and make it so desolate that no man may pass through because of the beasts.”
27. Psalm 50:10-11
“For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are Mine.”
28. Deuteronomy 32:24
“They shall be wasted with hunger, devoured by pestilence and bitter destruction; I will also send against them the teeth of beasts, with the poison of serpents of the dust.”
29. Ezekiel 34:28
“And they shall no longer be a prey for the nations, nor shall beasts of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and no one shall make them afraid.”
30. Isaiah 43:20
“The beast of the field will honor Me, the jackals and the ostriches, because I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to My people, My chosen.”
31. Ezekiel 39:17
“And as for you, son of man, thus says the Lord God, ‘Speak to every sort of bird and to every beast of the field: Assemble yourselves and come; gather together from all sides to My sacrificial meal which I am sacrificing for you, a great sacrificial meal on the mountains of Israel, that you may eat flesh and drink blood.’”
32. 2 Samuel 17:8
“For,” said Hushai, “you know your father and his men, that they are mighty men, and they are enraged in their minds, like a bear robbed of her cubs in the field; and your father is a man of war, and will not camp with the people.”
33. Proverbs 28:15
“Like a roaring lion and a charging bear is a wicked ruler over poor people.”
34. Ezekiel 22:27
“Her princes in her midst are like wolves tearing the prey, to shed blood, to destroy people, and to get dishonest gain.”
35. Genesis 37:33
“And he recognized it and said, ‘It is my son’s tunic. A wild beast has devoured him. Without doubt Joseph is torn to pieces.’”
Our Thought on What the Bible Says About Bears
Bears in the Bible are often used to illustrate power, judgment, and survival in the wilderness. They serve as reminders of both God’s protection and His justice. When Elisha was mocked, bears executed divine judgment. In prophecy, bears symbolized empires and destruction, emphasizing God’s control over history.
The Bible also warns against foolishness by comparing it to encountering a mother bear robbed of her cubs. This highlights the unpredictability and fierceness of bears as a warning about dangerous behavior. However, Isaiah’s prophecy of peace in God’s kingdom paints a different picture-bears lying peacefully with other animals, symbolizing restoration.
Overall, bears in Scripture reflect God’s authority over nature and His power in judgment, yet they also foreshadow the peace that will come when His kingdom is fully established.