The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant.

Isaiah 24:5

When God created the earth, he entrusted it to human beings, to tend it and use it for good (Genesis 2:15). But when the first humans sinned, the earth itself suffered the consequences (Genesis 3:17-19). The human relationship with creation wasn’t severed completely, but it was broken. The earth became a source of pain for people, even as their sin led to the suffering of the earth itself.

When we look at the state of our world today, we see evidence of human sin everywhere. It might be in a park filled with litter, or a bay filled with sewage, or a sky filled with deadly haze. We see the reality of Isaiah 24:5, which, in the NIV, reads, “The earth is defiled by its people.” The Hebrew verb translated here as “defiled” is often rendered as “polluted” (chanef).

Yet, in Isaiah 24:5, Isaiah doesn’t attribute the pollution of the world to industry or chemicals. Rather, the defiling of the earth is a result of human disobedience. “The earth is defiled… [because people] have disobeyed the laws… and broken the everlasting covenant.” One aspect of that covenant was to care for the world God created, an aspect we have frequently broken.

So, the world is polluted, both physically and morally, because of our sin. That’s the bad news. The good news is that God isn’t through with us and with the world. In Romans 8, we learn that creation has been groaning as if in labor pains. But the time will come when creation will be renewed along with human beings. Glory is coming when God makes all things right. That is our hope as Christians.

In the meanwhile, our hope for the future empowers us to live even now in a way that honors God. Though we know we can’t completely heal the earth, we try nevertheless to take care of God’s creation. As stewards of the earth and in faithfulness to the Creator, we seek wise and judicious use of the earth and its resources. This isn’t a matter of political affiliation or political correctness. Rather, it’s part of our covenant relationship with the God who created all things good and entrusted his creation to our care.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:

In what ways have you experienced the brokenness and suffering of the earth?

How do you see yourself as a steward of God’s creation?

Are there things you could change in your work or your personal life so as to be a more faithful steward of the earth?

PRAYER:

Gracious God, Creator of Heaven and Earth, how sad it is to see how our sin has corrupted your wonderful creation. Yet how good to know that you haven’t given up on the earth… or on us, either.

Thank you for your commitment to the renewal of all things. And thank you for choosing to use us in this process. Help us, dear Lord, to be faithful stewards of your creation. May we care for this world and help it to be fruitful. Show us what this means in our daily lives, whether we’re at home or at work. May our concern for the earth be far more than a fad. Instead, may it reflect our love for you and your creation. Amen.

Explore more at the Theology of Work Project online commentary: People Fall into Sin in Work (Genesis 3:1-24)