It’s entertaining to watch monkeys at the zoo. Even King Solomon found them interesting and had some brought to Jerusalem, perhaps as part of a zoo.
There are many species of monkeys and apes in God’s creation. Since they look a little like humans, some people think that humans and monkeys are related, but the Bible assures us that this is not true. There are many differences, both in body structure and intelligence. Apes and monkeys are part of the animal creation. Man was formed separately and is distinct and superior to all other created things. The Bible says, “God created man in His [God’s] own image” (Genesis 1:2727So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. (Genesis 1:27)).
The Barbary macaque is often called the Barbary ape. This is a mistake, because it is a monkey, not an ape. It gets called an ape because it has no tail, and no apes have tails. It is a native of Africa but is also a famous resident of the Rock of Gibraltar, making it the only wild monkey population in Europe. These monkeys live in colonies of 10 to 100 individuals. They are quite playful and interact well with humans, who are drawn in large numbers to visit their colonies on the Rock of Gibraltar. Cute babies are cared for by all members of the colony, including males. They eventually grow to have a body length of up to 27½ inches long. They have excellent memories and are always curious about anything new or strange.
Barbary macaques spend a lot of time grooming other monkeys in their colony. Scientists have determined that this grooming seems to lower stress for the monkey doing the grooming. It provides social relationships, and perhaps this is more important to the groomer than looking for food.
Like most monkeys, the Barbary macaque is a great climber and very acrobatic even without a tail. Most babies are born in the tops of trees. Much of the Barbary macaque’s time is spent searching for food, which includes fruit, leaves, roots, seeds, locusts and lizards.
Perhaps the Barbary macaque can teach us something as we learned how it becomes more relaxed as it grooms another macaque. Our opening verse teaches us that “it is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:3535I have showed you all things, how that so laboring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive. (Acts 20:35)). Do you know who said those words? It was our precious Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. No one ever gave as much as He did, so He showed us by example as well as by His words how to live a life that is pleasing to God. What can you give to someone today? It might be as simple as a kind word to someone or time spent visiting a lonely person.
Did You Know?
Much of the Barbary macaque’s time is spent searching for food, which includes fruit, leaves, roots, seeds, locusts and lizards.
Messages of God’s Love 9/7/2025