And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man.
After the great flood, God makes a covenant with Noah and all of humanity. In this verse, God establishes the sacredness of human life — He declares that He will hold everyone accountable for taking another person's life, whether the killer is animal or human. The word "accounting" carries legal weight: God keeps a record, and life taken unjustly does not go unnoticed. This reflects a principle introduced just after this verse — that humans are made in God's image, making every life uniquely precious. These words were spoken at the dawn of a new civilization, as Noah stepped off the ark onto ground that had never been walked before.
God, You see every life — including the ones the world forgets. Thank You for a love that refuses to let injustice disappear into silence. Help me carry the weight of other people's worth the way You do, treating every person I meet as someone You would demand an accounting for. Amen.
There is something in us that wants to believe the dead are simply forgotten — that violence disappears into silence, that cruelty leaves no permanent mark. God says otherwise. After the flood waters recede and Noah steps onto fresh earth, God doesn't offer a motivational speech. He draws a line — a sacred boundary around human life. Every life taken, He says, will be answered for. This isn't God being punitive for sport. It's God saying: I see. Every person who has ever been erased, silenced, or discarded — God marks their name. What does it do to how you live, knowing that the life of the person in front of you carries that kind of weight? The coworker you dismiss. The stranger you scroll past in the news. God is not neutral about any of them. This verse invites you to ask whether your own accounting of other people's lives matches His.
What does it mean for God to "demand an accounting" — is this primarily about punishment, justice, or something else entirely?
How does knowing that God counts every life affect how you think about people you tend to overlook in your daily routine?
Does this verse make God feel comforting, frightening, or both — and why might it honestly be both at the same time?
How does taking human life seriously — the way God does here — change how you treat people you find difficult, annoying, or even threatening?
Is there someone in your life whose worth you have been undervaluing? What is one concrete thing you could do this week to honor their dignity?
Thou shalt not kill.
Exodus 20:13
He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death.
Exodus 21:12
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:
Matthew 5:21
When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
Ezekiel 3:18
And he that killeth any man shall surely be put to death.
Leviticus 24:17
And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.
Genesis 4:10
And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?
Genesis 4:9
He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.
Revelation 13:10
For your lifeblood I will most certainly require an accounting; from every animal [that kills a person] I will require it. And from man, from every man's brother [that is, anyone who murders] I will require the life of man.
AMP
And for your lifeblood I will require a reckoning: from every beast I will require it and from man. From his fellow man I will require a reckoning for the life of man.
ESV
'Surely I will require your lifeblood; from every beast I will require it. And from [every] man, from every man's brother I will require the life of man.
NASB
And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And from each man, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of his fellow man.
NIV
Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the hand of every man’s brother I will require the life of man.
NKJV
“And I will require the blood of anyone who takes another person’s life. If a wild animal kills a person, it must die. And anyone who murders a fellow human must die.
NLT
"But your own lifeblood I will avenge; I will avenge it against both animals and other humans.
MSG