The Surprising Meaning Behind 'God Owns the Cattle on a Thousand Hills'

In the middle of describing a sacrificial system for Israel to worship him, God says, “I own the cattle on a thousand hills.”

Ownership is important to people to varying degrees. Some individuals see their possessions as indicating their worth. Others feel pride in achievement and accumulation. A few see possessions themselves as part of an oppressive system, but ownership alone isn’t evil. God wants us to be responsible with what we own, from finances to our own hearts.

What does God mean when he says in Scripture that he owns the cattle on a thousand hills? It could seem prideful or even discourage us from bringing him our possessions, but those ideas aren’t consistent with God’s character. And since, under the New Covenant, we’re no longer under the old system of killing animals for worship, maybe we shouldn’t care.

Or there’s a deeper meaning for us today.

Where Does the Bible Say God Owns the Cattle on a Thousand Hills?

This notable expression is found in Psalm 50:10: “For every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.” The verse fits into a passage where God, depicted as the divine judge, addresses the Israelites, emphasizing their offerings’ spiritual significance and the true nature of their relationship with Him.

Psalm 50’s context helps us understand this statement. In the preceding verses, God rebukes the people for their misplaced confidence in ritualistic sacrifices, emphasizing that He does not require offerings for His sustenance or benefit. Instead, God reiterates His sovereignty over all creation, emphasizing that every beast in the forest and every cattle on a thousand hills are already His possession.

This poetic expression powerfully conveys the vastness and completeness of God’s ownership. “A thousand hills” is not meant to limit God’s ownership to a specific number but rather to emphasize the entirety of His dominion.

Israel’s tribes had a history of being pastoral people. One of several conflicts between the Israelites and the Egyptian culture was the difference between their nomadic shepherding and Egyptian farming (Genesis 46:34). Because of the Nile River, Egypt’s fertile land caused farming to flourish, and the Israelites competed for this prime real estate with their abundant herds. This reason, and others, led to Egypt enslaving the Israelites.

When Psalm 50 was written, Israel had settled in the Promised Land, so they were an agricultural and pastoral society. The mention of cattle and hills would have resonated deeply with farmers and shepherds, symbolizing wealth and prosperity.

Who Wrote that God Owns Cattle on a Thousand Hills?

The Bible attributes Psalm 50 to Asaph, a Levite appointed by King David to be one of the chief musicians and worship leaders.

Asaph is recognized as a prominent figure in the Old Testament, particularly in 1 Chronicles and 2 Chronicles. He is credited with composing numerous psalms (twelve included in the book of Psalms). In addition to his musician role, Asaph served as a prophet and seer, offering spiritual leadership to Israelites during King David’s reign.

When King David brought the Ark of the Covenant back to Israel, he didn’t bring it to the Tabernacle of Moses. Instead, he transferred the Ark to Jerusalem, where he erected an open tent outside the city. David placed the Ark in the tent’s center, open for all to see—Israelites, Gentiles, men and women, clean and unclean. Then, he set up continuous worship around the presence of God. King David paid for and trained specific singers and worshippers for this task. Asaph was a primary figure in this continuous worship (1 Corinthians 15-16).

Psalm 50 calls the Israelites to gather before God, portraying Him as a divine judge who will evaluate their sacrifices and offerings. The context helps us understand true worship and the relationship between God and His people.

The enduring impact of Psalm 50:10 is reflected in how many sermons, teachings, and devotions mention it. The verse communicates God’s sovereignty and ownership, a profound theological truth extending beyond its original cultural setting.

Why Does God Tell People He Owns Cattle on a Thousand Hills?

According to the psalm, the Israelites had begun to believe lies about religious traditions and requirements—as if they actually gave God anything. God created all we see and know. All things come from him. He would create one from nothing if he wanted a cow or bull. He didn’t need their cattle or sheep. It was pride to assume God needed them for this.

Further, pagan ideas had influenced the Israelites. Other gods asked for sacrifice as if they fed on food for pleasure or sustenance. In pagan worship, people offered sacrifices to gain favor from their idols.

God corrects this idea by poetically stating he owns the cattle on a thousand hills, affirming his ownership of all things as Creator. If the Israelites imagined cattle on a thousand hills, they would assume a wealthy man owned those herds. But God says all animals—every sheep or bull, no matter its owner—already belong to him. Their herds already belong to him.

This inverts the pagan concept of worship. In worshipping God, the Israelites were to recognize all things they owned already came from God, which means God ultimately owned all their possessions. Their worship acknowledged this truth.

Of course, Christians aren’t under the Old Covenant of sacrifice. So, what does this verse mean for us?

What Does the “Cattle on a Thousand Hills” Verse Teach Us about Sacrifice?

When God declares he owns cattle on a thousand hills, he reveals what he actually wants from his worshippers. Since God never changes, we can see his desire with us today.

God desires heartfelt devotion over external rituals. While Israelites offered sacrifices, God asserted he was interested in more than outward actions. True sacrifice involves a heart turned toward God, expressing genuine love, gratitude, and loyalty. Several times in the prophets’ time, God instructs the people to stop sacrificing: their outward worship abhors him because their hearts are far from him (Amos 5:21-24). He doesn’t want outward expression apart from an inward reality.

Jesus deals with this same concept when he speaks with the woman at the well in the Gospel of John. The woman asks about the right mountain—whether in Samaria or Jerusalem—to worship God from. Jesus replies with the only way to worship God: God is Spirit, so we must worship him in Spirit and truth.

God calls us to action, so his desire for our inner truth doesn’t dismiss our outward obedience. On the contrary, true righteousness can only flow from identity and inward character. This is how God works. God isn’t love because he achieves that through doing loving things. God is already love, and his actions are loving and consistent with his identity. When we do religious actions with selfish hearts, we aren’t acting as God’s children or his people; neither is it in Spirit and truth.

Worshipping God in truth includes realizing all things already belong to God. He has already shown us favor and abundance. He is our provider, both physically and spiritually. Our sacrifices only symbolize that truth and reveal our trust and gratitude.

Extending this to sacrifice, we give to God from a heart of love and relationship because we understand truth. The New Testament compels us to give money to leaders and the poor and our possessions to those in need in the church and the world. This falls under sacrificial giving, yet we aren’t to do it under compulsion but love. Paul tells us to only give from a cheerful heart, not from force or legalism. Also, we give because we understand the idea of sowing and reaping into the eternal (2 Corinthians 9:6-8).

Our whole lives are the sacrifice (Romans 12:1), and we give our lives from the heart in faith.

What Does the “Cattle on a Thousand Hills” Verse Teach Us about Praise?

The Scripture also regards praise as a type of sacrifice (Hebrews 13:15-16), the fruit of our lips honoring and giving glory to God. We could say anything, including giving glory to others or ourselves. Instead, praise sacrifices all we can say, the best use of our voice, to praise God. Praising God is our purpose and destiny. Every knee will bow, and tongue confess he is Lord (Philippians 2:10-11), and we benefit from choosing to do it now.

But where does this come from? We don’t manufacture praise any more than we produce goods to give to God. Just as God already provides and owns the objects we give back to him, he has also provided the praise for us to participate in.

The apostle Paul tells us to speak to one another in hymns, psalms, and spiritual songs (Ephesians 5:19-20), essentially teaching one another through music and singing. Still, we give voice to the Spirit inside us who cries out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit within is the spirit of the Son, Jesus, who calls out to his Father from within us (Galatians 4:6).

Our sacrifice of praise must also come from our heart posture. If our souls resist God, he doesn’t want people who simply repeat the words.

On another level, we should consider what went wrong with the Israelites’ worship. We don’t earn God’s favor the more we sing or praise him. We don’t get him to love us more when we sing louder. The opposite is true. We praise God because we know what he’s done, what he’s doing, and what he will do.

Neither do we add to God in any way when we praise him. He doesn’t become more glorious if we give him glory. He isn’t diminished if we don’t. We give him glory from the truth he alone is worthy. To praise God participates in eternal truth, as Revelation peels back the veil and shows us the constant worship going on around the throne (Revelation 4:8).

The Scripture tells us to give God sacrifices—our hearts, lives, praise, money, material goods, and more. But the motivation behind our giving also matters. We must do it truthfully to be acceptable to God, for he is truth.

Let us come to him humbly, sacrificing everything he asks of us with a willing and cheerful heart.

First, because he alone is worthy.

Second, God can be trusted with our hearts and lives.

He will work all things together for good for those who love him and are called according to his purposes (Romans 8:28).

Peace.

Photo Credit: © Getty Images/erdinhasdemir 

Britt Mooney lives and tells great stories. As an author of fiction and non-fiction, he is passionate about teaching ministries and nonprofits the power of storytelling to inspire and spread truth. Mooney has a podcast called Kingdom Over Coffee and is a published author of We Were Reborn for This: The Jesus Model for Living Heaven on Earth as well as Say Yes: How God-Sized Dreams Take Flight.

This article is part of our larger resource library of popular Bible verse phrases and quotes. We want to provide easy to read articles that answer your questions about the meaning, origin, and history of specific verses within Scripture's context. It is our hope that these will help you better understand the meaning and purpose of God's Word in relation to your life today.

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