Genesis 1:25
“And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.”
KJV
Read in Genesis 1Meaning
Terrestrial animals are explicitly included within God's good creation. Their value is affirmed before the narrative turns to humanity.
Read carefully
The verse does not describe animals merely as resources for people. In the sequence of the chapter, they are first presented as creatures God makes and calls good.
Reflection
The goodness of nonhuman life places limits on a purely human-centered reading of creation. Other creatures matter within the story because they belong to God's work.