# Does the bible mention cats? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 10, 2009, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109 "2009-11-10T23:40:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/1 "2009-11-10T23:40:46Z")
Are cats mentioned anywhere in the old or new testaments? How about dogs? ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/2 "2009-11-10T23:45:21Z")
Dogs are prominent supporting players in the biblical cast of characters; their roles include eating Jezebel, licking up the blood of Naboth, eating the crumbs from their masters’ tables, and furnishing comparisons for proverbs. Do a keyword search on Bible Gateway to find all their appearances. Cats, as far as I can tell, aren’t mentioned. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/3 "2009-11-11T00:39:14Z")
I assume you mean housecats (_Felis silvestris_), such as the Egyptians would have had? I remember that Samson killed a lion (with his bare hands IIRC) and later on found a beehive and honey in the lion’s dead body. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/4 "2009-11-11T00:50:43Z")
Cats are mentioned in the Hadith, but I can’t find anything in the Quran. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/5 "2009-11-11T01:05:30Z")
I found a Bible of a women with 32 cats and right there on page one it says “In the beginning CATS created the heaven and Earth.” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/6 "2009-11-11T01:20:54Z")
[Sure it does.](http://www.lolcatbible.com/index.php?title=Main_Page) kthxbai 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![j\_sum1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8baadc/32.png) [@j\_sum1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j_sum1)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/7 "2009-11-11T01:28:19Z")
The bible mentions lions frequently. More than 150 times in the KJV. THere are references to leopard but beyond that I am not aware of any other cat references. No generic word for cat, and I don’t think any other cats. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/8 "2009-11-11T01:39:17Z")
Nope, no house cats mentioned (at least in the Jewish bible; I’m not familiar with the NT). ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/9 "2009-11-11T01:57:36Z")
The Bible is searchable online. [http://www.biblegateway.com/](http://www.biblegateway.com/) searching for cat returns several verses about cattle or catastrophe, but no cat. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/10 "2009-11-11T02:04:53Z")
Well, me-_ow!_ ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/11 "2009-11-11T03:01:13Z")
Maybe not in the Bible _per se_, but Catholic theology at least has expanded to include the concept of Purr-gatory. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/12 "2009-11-11T03:05:50Z")
And of course there’s the festival of Purr-im. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/13 "2009-11-11T03:24:52Z")
> [@robardin](#): > > Maybe not in the Bible _per se_, but Catholic theology at least has expanded to include the concept of Purr-gatory. You misspelt\* cat-holic\*. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/14 "2009-11-11T03:49:17Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > Cats are mentioned in the Hadith, but I can’t find anything in the Quran. Muhammad famously loved cats. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/15 "2009-11-11T03:53:12Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Muhammad famously loved cats. [Muezza](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muezza), but I don’t think this appears in anywhere official. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/16 "2009-11-11T04:33:24Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > And of course there’s the festival of Purr-im. Doesn’t that take place in the tabbynacle? ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 9:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/17 "2009-11-11T09:57:32Z")
God did say “I loved The Passion of the Christ, much better than Cats” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/18 "2009-11-11T11:39:24Z")
> [@](#): > > _As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly_ Proverbs 26:11 Behaviour which many dog owners will have noted. ---
**Author:** ![Xotan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/278dde/32.png) [@Xotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xotan)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/19 "2009-11-11T14:59:30Z")
And don’t forget Santa Claws! ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2009, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109/20 "2009-11-11T15:20:56Z")
I think y’all are all missing the fact that the O.T. God was obviously a cat: fickle, judgmental, alternately cold and indifferent and raging with fury, and prone to putting people in sandy places and shitting all over them. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-bible-mention-cats/517109.md?page=2)