Dinosaurs in the Bible?

FAQ: Then what about the dinosaurs? In light of what we read in Genesis, what is the real sequence of events regarding these creatures? If God created dinosaurs, why aren't they mentioned in the Bible? Was man on earth at the same time as the dinosaurs?

Many people don't realize that paleontology (the study of past geological ages based primarily on the study of fossils) is a relatively new science. In fact, the concept of "dinosaurs" only surfaced in its present form less than 180 years ago. Prior to that, anyone who found a large fossilized bone assumed it came from an elephant, dragon or giant. It wasn't until 1841 that English scientist Richard Owens suggested that the group of "newly discovered" animals be called "dinosaurs" (meaning, "terrible lizards"). Therefore, we shouldn't expect to see dinosaurs in the Bible, but we should expect to see descriptions of "dragons" and other large creatures. In fact, we do!

A search for the word "dragon" in the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible produces 34 separate matches across 10 different books written between approximately 2000 BC and 90 AD. The word "dragon" ( Hebrew: tannin) is used throughout the Old Testament, and most directly translates as "sea or land monsters." Interestingly, Genesis 1:21 describes God's creation of sea dragons (tannin) on the 5th day. Today's Bible translations use the following terms instead: "great whales" (KJV), "the great creatures of the sea" (NIV), "the great sea monsters" (NASB), and "great sea creatures" (NLT, NKJV). However, the original Hebrew is more descriptive of the sea-going dinosaurs we now see in numerous museums throughout the world. Even more dramatic is the Book of Job, where the author describes the great land creature, Behemoth (Job 40), and the great water creature, Leviathan (Job 41). Although the latest Bible translations use the words elephant, hippo or crocodile instead of Behemoth and Leviathan, the original Hebrew and the context of the descriptions do not allow for these interpretations.

Descriptions of dinosaur-like creatures are nearly universal throughout the world's ancient cultures. Where did this global concept originate? How did societies throughout the world describe, record, draw, etch, sew and carve such creatures in such uniformity, if they did not witness these creatures during their lifetimes? Of course, these accounts are by no means limited to the Bible. Dragon accounts from China, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America share similar accounts of dinosaur-like beasts. Records of Marco Polo in China show that the royal house kept dragons for ceremonies, and records of the Greek historian Herodotus and the Jewish historian Josephus describe flying reptiles in ancient Egypt and Arabia. In many cultures it was a great honor to kill these creatures. There are numerous records of warriors killing great beasts in order to establish credibility in a village. Gilgamesh, Fafnir, Beowulf and other famous legends, including the mythology of Egypt, Greece and Rome, provide specific descriptions of dragons and other dinosaur-like creatures.

Dinosaurs are depicted on numerous objects of ancient art throughout the world. Dinosaur-like creatures are featured on Babylonian landmarks, Roman mosaics, Asian pottery and royal robes, Egyptian burial shrouds and government seals, Peruvian burial stones and tapestries, Mayan sculptures, Aboriginal and Native American petroglyphs (carved rock drawings), and many other pieces of ceremonial art throughout ancient cultures. If dinosaurs supposedly went extinct at least 50 million years ago, how did ancient man of the last few thousand years precisely and uniformly depict them? The Bible is clear -- sea creatures were created by God on Day 5 and land creatures were created by God on Day 6. These creatures included dinosaurs, which co-existed with man until they died off for various reasons, including most dramatically, the worldwide flood of Noah.

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Dinosaur Theories
Dragon Accounts
Fossil Records

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