--- title: "The Groaning of Creation: Lament and Hope" date: 2026-09-18T07:00:00-05:00 author: Jennifer Vermeer canonical_url: "https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/the-groaning-of-creation-lament-and-hope" section: In All Things --- [ View All Articles](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things) [Essays](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things?category=essays) Sep 18, 2026 # The Groaning of Creation: Lament and Hope By [Jeff Ploegstra](https://www.dordt.edu/people/jeff-ploegstra) ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/iat-groaning-2.jpg?mode=crop&pos=center-center&w=66&h=57&f=webp&c=5eafe073&v=71abc772d26adf5a5d957aa3e7df414ffe5a84136fe92a5a117244f4385ee360) ![]()There are times when we all wish our pain would end. One afternoon when I was in my teens, I was sitting in the house reading a book. My dad came to the door and asked me to come outside and help him with a quick job. I jumped up and went out to help him. He had an air conditioner in the back of his pick-up and he needed my help to move it behind the garage. I helped him lift it down and I chose the awkward backwards-walking position for our short journey. We began walking and as we neared our destination, I suddenly found myself in the most excruciating pain I have ever experienced. My dad had been burning sticks directly in the path we were walking and I was now standing barefoot in fire, holding an air conditioner. My dad seeing my pain stopped moving, which was exactly the wrong thing for him to do. I managed to not drop the air conditioner but re-routed us and we got the air conditioner in place. My dad asked what was wrong. Probably less calmly than I recall, I said, “you lit a fire where we needed to carry the air conditioner.” His response (probably less callous than I recall). “Why weren’t you wearing shoes?” Before heading to the hospital, my mother, the nurse, helped me immerse my feet in a large bucket of cold water and I proceeded to extract the pieces of wood from the bottom of my foot that had burned their way deep into my flesh. ![Close-up of a campfire with orange flames and dry branches burning, set against a blurred green background.](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/iat-groaning-3.jpg?mode=fit&pos=center-center&w=57&h=65&c=f302d4e3&v=cb7559a9ae38b4efa93dbca0aa170f40c3aacb21c801174e0b2702e46508dc98) As I sat, painfully and methodically working my way from toes to heel, all I could think about was blame. I kept shifting back and forth between anger at my dad for not warning me of the fire, not directing our path differently and anger at myself for relying on the hoofy calloused texture my feet adopted every summer to protect them for the short journey. The physical pain that I experienced was bad enough, but it also hurt that my dad expressed little if any remorse for the situation and little concern for my foot. After the fact, I was able to realize that my anger and pain, and his sense of guilt probably produced just enough shame and awkwardness to keep my dad’s mouth shut. My dad was a great guy and I know he loved me but that silence *hurt*. His callous reply abdicating responsibility for the pain I was experiencing *hurt*… and at least for a time, it created a distance between us. His shame and my pain. Many people think of sin as having *distorted* the creation. That certainly seems true and apparent from the biblical account. On the other hand, I rarely hear people acknowledge that the bible also describes the creation as *suffering*--that At multiple points the bible describes real consequences for mistreating creation and that the creation even experiences “pain.” A few examples for consideration: the land itself receiving justice and rest (Lev. 26:34–35); an animal unjustly suffering and perceiving what a prophet cannot (Num. 22:21–30); prophetic depictions of ecological devastation in which land mourns and animals moan (Hos. 4; Joel 1:18–20; Zech. 14:12–15); Paul’s description of creation “groaning” in anticipation (Rom. 8:18–22); and the warning that God will judge those who destroy the earth (Rev. 11:18). I wonder how many people experience any shame for the pain and damage they cause. Moreover, I wonder what kind of distance that creates between us and the rest of creation and between us and the creator who called it all “very good.” Does our real or apparent callousness sadden God? I imagine so. > I don’t think it a stretch to image the creation crying “how long oh Lord…” The creation *is* waiting in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. Perhaps drawing on the story in a different way, would it have been better if I were a leper and experienced no pain even as my foot was deeply damaged? And later as it took weeks and weeks to heal, would I have handled it better if I were able to ignore the damage done to such an essential part of myself? Or did the pain remind me to take care. I would like to say that the sight of me hobbling around on crutches led to an apology of some sort from my dad…it probably did even though I don’t remember it. I know my dad well enough to have confidence that there was regret for my suffering and the distance between us. I am less confident that such exists for the suffering of creation in the hearts of humankind. I rarely hear lament. More importantly, I rarely *see* lament. We take instead of receive, ignoring that the earth is the Lord’s. We waste flagrantly, displaying our sense of entitlement rather than gratitude. ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/iat-groaning.jpg?mode=fit&pos=center-center&w=57&h=65&c=a9745167&v=29d73bfddc711b8eb771a49c274219227b76198675d56616e9dab5108df994e3) We destroy wantonly, pretending that creation is clay to be molded rather than a life-filled whole that can experience suffering. We exploit instead of develop, turning all things toward our ends rather than seeking the good of the community of creation. We use instead of share, separating ourselves from each other and needlessly overconsuming. We weaken instead of stabilize, creating ephemeral things in our lust for novelty. > *“Cursed is the ground because of you;* > *through painful toil you will eat food from it* > *all the days of your life.* > *It will produce thorns and thistles for you,* > *and you will eat the plants of the field.* > *By the sweat of your brow* > *you will eat your food* > *until you return to the ground,* > *since from it you were taken;* > *for dust you are* > *and to dust you will return.”\[1\]* Would you not produce thorns for “the human” if he treated you so callously? Would you not resist his every labor if you saw no reciprocity in his efforts but only a greedy grasping? His desire for power causes him to break trust with God and subverts his role. Instead of tending and keeping for God’s glory, he seeks his own elevation. Would you want any part of this? I don’t think it a stretch to image the creation crying “how long oh Lord…” The creation *is* waiting in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. I imagine that revelation can’t help but include lament and repentance—a turning back to God-glorifying tending and keeping. The creation patiently waits in hope. Perhaps some lament will bolster that hope.\[2\] --- **Footnotes:** 1. Genesis 3:17b-19 2. Romans 8:19-25 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. **20** For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope **21** that\[[h](https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%208&version=NIV#fen-NIV-28138h)\] the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. **22** We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. **23** Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. **24** For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? **25** But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. ## Related Articles [### Where the Leaves Fall God’s creation is full of beauty, but how often do we take it for granted? Have we lost the ability to be still and in awe? This realization can stir a quiet longing, but even in it, we rest in the hope that God is redeeming all things. Learn More ](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/where-the-leaves-fall) [### A Stewardship of Land and Creatures Agriculture is often seen as simply a means to produce food and resources, but it’s much more than that. It’s a calling to tend to the needs of creation in a way that allows all of it to thrive and give glory to God through its flourishing. Learn More ](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/a-stewardship-of-land-and-creatures) ## Get the Newsletter Subscribe to the In All Things newsletter to receive biweekly updates with the latest content. ![](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==) ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/i-pGGqLGs-X3_2024-11-13-195007.jpg?mode=fit&pos=center-center&w=50&h=50&c=bc00656c&v=e62248e5eafc8148fb71cd9e499265bf439690ef7d9aed43b8b6fbdad8b7d04a) ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/people/68a815b8161c942e809.jpg?mode=crop&pos=top-center&w=25&h=25&f=webp&c=e5cdb8ef&v=6c183d1879e9c32b715186ab02f7d446a3b9afba2fb06f383bf178e956d694db) ### About the Author Jeff Ploegstra Dr. Jeff Ploegstra serves as dean for Foundational and Health Sciences at Dordt University. [Learn More ](https://www.dordt.edu/people/jeff-ploegstra) --- [Next Article ![](https://d3evso2dxyohou.cloudfront.net/generalUploads/iat-lament-for-readers.jpg?mode=crop&pos=center-center&w=56&h=33&f=webp&c=e7073a00&v=a91c3ee48e48ed21c52c415cc4ad814a1f60fe62cb22086d8978f3802bc72575) Essays Sep 14, 2026 ## A Lament for Readers (of Landscape) By Howard Schaap Our pursuit of efficiency and utility can make us less attentive to the beauty of creation. As Christians, how might we become readers of the world again—recognizing creation’s goodness, grieving its losses, and bearing faithful witness to its beauty? Read More ](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things/a-lament-for-readers-of-landscape) [ ![]() ## In All Things View Articles ](https://www.dordt.edu/in-all-things)