One morning when the world was new and we first saw the sun,
the Lord lay down to rest a while,
so pleased with what he'd done.
And of all the creatures that were made,
he loved humankind the best.
And so he placed into our hands the fate
of all the rest.
And all these things I give to you to keep and to protect,
from the greatest of the big blue whale to the tiniest insect,
to rule with love and kindness,
the weak, the wild, the strong,
and treat my creatures gently,
only you know right from wrong.
But man was so conceited
that he couldn't see the worth
of all the other creatures who
roam this lovely earth.
One by one we hunted them for food and sport and greed,
and one by one they disappeared,
each species and each breed.
And all these things I give to you to keep and to protect,
from the greatest of the big
blue whale to the tiniest insect,
to rule with love and kindness,
the weak, the wild,
the strong,
and treat my creatures gently,
only you know right from wrong.
After many years had passed,
the Lord came back to see the earth and his creations that
he'd left so fine and free.
Ah,
but where are all my silver streams,
the forest dark
green?
There's only dust and desert where humankind had been.
And all these things I
give to you to keep and to protect,
from the greatest of the big blue whale to the tiniest
insect,
to rule with love and kindness,
the weak, the wild, the strong,
and treat my creatures gently,
only you know right from wrong.
Where are all my animals,
the hippo and the whale,
and the fish that fell the oceans before your ship set sail?
The lion and the tiger and the elephant so tall,
how I left you as their keeper,
do you not recall?
And all these things I gave to you to keep and to
protect,
from the greatest of the big blue whale to the tiniest insect,
to rule with love and kindness,
the weak, the wild, the strong,
and treat my creatures gently,
only you know right from wrong.
I treat my creatures gently,
only you know right from wrong.