The deer is one of the most mentioned animals in the Bible. From the Old Testament writers and cultures has a special attachment to the deer for specific reasons. For some it was its speed, for others it was its calving and still, some writers borrowed the grace and the beauty of the deer.
As one would expect, there are several symbols of the deer in the Bible. In this article, we should walk through together as we identify the most outstanding ones. The main interest is the spiritual significance of the deer and what the Bible authors meant. What does a deer symbolize in the Bible? Read on!
What You'll Learn Today
The Thirst and Hunger for the LORD
The hunger for the LORD can be expressed in different ways. In Psalm 42:1 the Sons of Korah bring out this desire for the LORD and his fullness through a verse of scripture. The Bible records:
“As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.”
The Psalmist connects the thirst and panting of the deer as it looks or pools of water to the spiritual thirst for the living God. This being a desert landscape, the panting of the deer is a symbol of desperation and wits end. Water is the life-saving grace that we all need to survive and enliven our souls.
Without the water, the deer will die. In the same manner, our souls also need the life-sustaining grace of the LORD. We are in a spiritual jungle and only God’s providence can save us.
A Symbol of Cleanliness
When God set apart his people as his treasured possession, he gave them some rules and regulations by which they were to live by. Among the rules were those concerning food, what to eat and what not to eat.
There were some foods especially animals that the Israelites could freely eat without the fear of becoming ceremonially unclean. In Deuteronomy 14:4-5, the Bible reads:
“These are the animals you may eat: the ox, the sheep, the goat, the deer, the gazelle, the roe deer, the wild goat, the ibex, the antelope and the mountain sheep.”
The deer is therefore approved and set apart by the LORD as a clean animal that the children of Israel could eat and remain holy.
God’s Providence and Care
God is so intentional in our lives that even before we pray, he provides for us. There is so much that God does some of which often escapes our attention and memory.
While we always look at the big things in our lives, and the major events that we want God to come through for us, we tend to forget that he is the God of the entire universe, and he provides for each of his creations.
For instance, the LORD brings rain to both the godly and the ungodly. In one classic example involving the deer, the Bible demonstrates the sovereignty of God in providing for his creation. In Job 39:1 the Bible says:
“Do you know when the wild goats give birth? Have you watched as deer are born in the wild?”
God said this in response to Job who was complaining about what he was going through to the point of invoking God to obliterate the day he was born and forget it completely.
God reminds Job that there is so much that he cares for, things that Job probably didn’t know or had not thought through.
Natural Affection and Freedom
In the book of Genesis 49:21, the Bible describes Naphtali as a doe let loose that gives beautiful words. Naphtali is the state after temptation and the hind let loose symbolizes the natural affection and vibrancy of life.
Temptations have a way of binding the soul and confining it to a state of eternal capture. However, when deliverance comes and the spirit is set free, there is a sense of affection and natural behaviour that makes us as vibrant as a deer.
When you find a deer grazing or running around in the grassland, you’ll in doubt envy its state of freedom and expression. That is how it feels like when we are not under any chains or confinement the beauty within us flows out naturally.
God’s Establishment and Direction
In both Samuel and Psalm, the Bible speaks of God’s establishment and direction in connection to the deer. In 2 Samuel 22:34, the Bible reads:
“He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he causes me to stand on the heights.”
It speaks of how God establishes his people in the territories he wants them to conquer.
The deer is built for the mountains and its foot structure is made in such a way that it can scale the ruggedness of the mountains with finesse.
God is on a mission to establish us and give us territorial dominance in our areas of operation. The deer does not have to look for another landscape rather it adapts to the existing landscape and makes its life worthwhile there.
In the book of Habakkuk 3:19, the Bible speaks of almost the same establishment through the minor prophet Habakkuk. It says:
“The Lord God is my strength, And He has made my feet like hinds’ feet, And makes me walk on my high places.”
The Desperate Inhabitants of the Fallen Jerusalem
The book of Lamentations documents is such a graphical way the prophecies concerning the fall of Jerusalem to the hands of the Babylonians. It talks of how deserted the city that was once full of people and the desperation of those left behind.
It mentions the deer referring to the distraught children of Israel. In Lamentations 1:6, the Bible says:
“All the splendor has departed from Daughter Zion Her princes are like deer that find no pasture; in weakness, they have fled before the pursuer.”
Such a vivid descript was meant to warn the children of Israel against turning their back on God lest they suffer the punishment.
Conclusion
The deer is such a swift animal and well established in its territory. It can spot danger and run away faster than the predators.
The Bible uses the deer in several verses of scripture including the Songs of Solomon to demonstrate the beauty, grace and provision of God. It is only God who can establish us and give us direction or how we are to scale the mountains.
I had a dream of a deer. I was sitting on a bench across from a tall grassy field when suddenly the grasses started waving wildly like the wind was blowing them. All of a sudden something jumped out from the grass and came running towards me and stopped in front of me
and reached down and took my whole left hand from the outer side gently into its mouth and just stood there looking at me.
That’s all I remember other than being amazed!!
This us amazing. I was born without my left arm and reading this gave me goose bumps. I am looking at meanings of deer in the Bible for a tattoo idea. God works in wonderful ways.
I don’t fully understand your story but I was just reading this section about when elephants happen to touch and move things.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant_cognition#Death_ritual
As an aside, I think we have a special respect for animals that are nice to us while living independantly from us. Ben Franklin called the bald eagle a scavenger in short. Dog people I see as quantity over quality compared to cat people in this way.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/american-myths-benjamin-franklins-turkey-and-the-presidential-seal-6623414/
It is the day of my wedding, I just woke up from a dream and in my dream there were planets and stars and they were all literally aligning, or converging. I remember I was amazed at the planets but also seeing a deer, it was in an urban environment. I felt that the city I was in was dirty and dingy, dark and full of decay. I felt the need to chase the deer through the city so I did, all the way until morning and when morning came I was out of the dingy city and before me was open fields of green grass blowing in the wind and a bit of a plateau facing in a northward direction. I dont recall seeing the deer I was chasing at this point but I like to imagine it was feeding on top of the plateau.
I had a dream of a deer that came into my house and I knew it was hungry. So I fed it. It lay at my feet wanting me to show it affection. It was beautiful.
I was recently headed to an event (in my car) when I saw a deer about to cross my path. I pointed to it and I said “You stop.” As it it heard me, it paused, looked directly at me and returned back into the thicket. On my way home, in a different spot I saw a deer and a doe. It was the same as before. They both looked at me, and they returned to the thicket. The events were so surreal, that I wanted to know more about the biblical meaning of a deer. Thanks for sharing…..
That’s an astonishing story, Thank you for sharing!
Hi,
I saw two deers grazing out of nowhere and later the same day which is today, I saw a beautiful deer near my house. I have lived here for 22 years and Never seen Any deer in my house aRea! Suddenly Appeared I was pleasantly surprised 😊
This is helpful. I always want ed to know the true meaning of my name Afra (it means deer in Hebrew)
I just had a dream involving a deer. I was in a parking lot and rocks and debris started falling from the sky. It was getting closer to me so I decided to take cover. As I turned to run a deer came out of no where and made eye contact with me. I decided to save the deer if I could. I ran to a shack a moved the board acting as a door. I walked inside and used a rope to secure the door shut. I said a rosary which is weird because I’m not catholic specifically and that never came up in a dream for me before. Inside the shack there were other animals like a lion and tiger and I told them to stop running around in Jesus name. Does anyone know what this is? I believe it’s a prophecy of some sort. Thank you.
I have a deer- a doe- that has been coming to me on my patio. I hand feed her & today she let me pet her. She appears to come looking for me. She is beautiful & I feel so honored. I named her “Beauty”. I love Psalm 18:33 & “ Like the deer that longs for running streams so longs my soul for you”.