The Symbolic Meaning of Butterflies in Dreams

Dreaming about butterflies? In this article we will take at what butterflies in dreams mean. We will explore the symbolic meaning of butterflies through the Bible. Getting a deep look at what they spiritually mean to us in dreams or visions. Let’s get started…

The past year or so I have been on a kick on writing about dreams and symbolism from a Biblical perspective. If you would like to further your understanding in these areas please check out my other articles below.

• Does God Speak in Dreams?
• What Does It Mean To Dream About Snakes?
• The Ultimate List of Bible Verses on Dreams
• Prophetic Ways We Hear God
• What is the Difference Between Dreams and Visions?
• Joseph’s Dreams: Unlock 7 Life Lessons

And with that said, today I want to hit on dreaming about butterflies. I will be giving you the spiritual and Biblical standpoint of what butterflies mean and how we can get some insight when we dream about them.

The Spiritual Meaning of Butterflies

In a recent article I wrote Are Butterflies In The Bible? I share how we have this little dilemma when it comes to the humble butterfly. See, the thing is that scripture never mentions butterflies.

Over 1,189 chapters and 31,102 verses and not one mention of them. So, how can we get a healthy and true understanding of what they mean?

Well, you have to dig deeper. And I do that in the article I mentioned above. I highly recommend reading it for a full understanding. Here I’ll give a brief overview.

The closes connection we can get from butterfly and the Bible is from the Greek word is metamorphóō, which is where we get our word metaphormosis.

• Scientifically used to describe the transformation the butterfly takes from caterpillar to butterfly.

• Biblically used to describe Christ’s transfiguration in Matthew 17:2 and our transformation as believers in Christ (Romans 12:2, 2 Corinthians 3:18)

It’s also important that we look at what these creatures do in nature. This can give us even more insight into what they could mean in our dreams.

In the natural butterflies are pollinators. According to Sciencing.com, They play an important role in our environment.

“Butterflies are not only beautiful creatures, but do a great deal for the environment. Like bees, they are plant pollinators, and they provide population control for a number of plant and even insect species by eating them. They also serve as sustenance for other species. Because they are so sensitive to changes in their ecosystems, scientists use butterfly population and behavior shifts as metrics for changes and problems in local environments.”

So, from what we can gather here are some key to what the meaning of butterflies are:

THE MEANING OF BUTTERFLIES

• Transformation or Change
• New Season
• Transition (cocoon stage, going from one point to another)
• Death to one thing and life to another
• Immaturity to Maturity
• Networking and connections (pollinating)

How to Interpret Butterflies in Dreams

The thing with dreams is that you can just stick one of the meanings above to a dream and call it good. That’s not how it works. The interpretation can be very personal to the dreamer. A symbol can mean one thing this time and another thing another time.

The Bible is VERY clear where our interpretation needs to come from…

Then Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.” – Genesis 40:8

Understanding Biblical symbolism is important for us as we seek out the interpretation. It grounds us in the Word and helps us piece things together that the Holy Spirit is showing us.

These are some key steps you can take to help you interpret a dream with a butterfly in it.

1. Write the dream out and make note of anything prominent in the dream. (colors, sounds, people, objects, location…)
2. Look into scripture about certain symbols you see in the dream. Take notes and if something is quickened in your spirit than write that down.
3. Begin to pray about the dream and ask God to bring clarity about what the butterfly symbolizes. If you sense anything from the Lord write it down.
4. Share the dream with a good friend who knows God. Tell them what your sensing and ask for their thoughts and counsel. I would encourage you to ask for prayer as well.
5. Pray over what you feel the dream and the butterfly mean and take action if you feel the Lord is leading to you.

Before we head into different colors of butterflies. I want to make a mention of context. The context of the dream matters.

When writing out your dream ask yourself questions about the butterfly. These will help you with the interpretation. Here are examples or questions you should ask yourself.

• What kind of butterfly was in my dream? It’s ok if it’s not a specific type
• What color was the butterfly?
• Was there one or more butterflies?
• What was the butterfly doing?
• Where was the location of the butterfly?
• Did you see the cocoon or the butterfly as a caterpillar?

Answering those questions will give you clarity. For example a butterfly going flower to flower and butterfly coming out of a cocoon will have two different meanings.

Different Colored Butterflies In Dreams

Butterflies are beautiful colorful creatures. And those colors can mean things when we dream about them. Here I will give a brief meaning of some of the popular colors but for more insight please check out The Symbolic Meaning of Colors.

White Butterfly Meaning

A white butterfly can mean cleansing, purity, new, fresh…

Purple Butterfly Meaning

Purple means wealth and royalty…

Red Butterfly Meaning

The color Red has incredible meaning Biblically that can be both be positive or negative. It can mean atonement, covenant, Jesus, sin, wealth, and bloodshed/war.

Cultural understanding of red: Love, Passion, Anger

Yellow Butterfly Meaning

Yellow biblically can mean anointing, gold, the presence of God…

Cultural understanding of yellow: brightness, happy, joy

Blue Butterfly Meaning

Blue means revelation, spirituality, refreshing, life…

Praying Over Your Dream

I mention this in all my articles when it comes to understanding dreams and visions.

The source of the dream also matter. There are times when a dream comes from the Lord. But there are other times these dreams are not from God. They can come from the demonic or from your soul.

If the source of the dream is demonic I usually take it as the enemy being stupid and revealing his plans. I then pray against those plans and ask God to intervene.

Your butterfly dream could be from the Lord sharing with you about a transformation that’s going to take place or one that He wants to take place.

This is why I recommend always praying into a dream. God is so good and kind…He will help you understand your dreams. Just be faithful to write them down and pray into them.

And if a dream really shakes you up… bring it with a friend or a spiritual mentor. Have them pray with you and discuss things going on in your life.

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I hope this has helped you in your understanding of butterflies in dreams. Please leave me a comment below! I would love to hear from you and what God is doing in your life.

For more on butterflies and dreams check out my posts below…