The very first thing to realize when trying to determine if dinosaurs are mentioned in the Bible is that the word "dinosaur" was originally coined in 1841. Check any dictionary (or any other book printed before 1841) and you will NEVER see the word "dinosaur" anyplace. The Bible was written between approximately 1450 BC and 95 AD. My point here is that you will not find that specific word in the Bible because it had never been used before 1841. The Bible does, however, mention lots of animals. It is the belief of creation scientists that the word "dragon" (which is mentioned throughout the Bible) was the word used before 1841 for "dinosaur".
Whether you believe the Bible as being the infallible word of God (which we do here) or not, is really not an issue for this article. For those who do not believe in the authenticity of the Bible and believe the theories put forth by Charles Darwin, can you accept that the writers of the Bible would not make up fictitious animals? It is completely illogical to think that those who authored the books of the Bible would use a description of a non-existent animal. The people of that time would immediately know the passage they were reading was a lie. Therefore, the entire Bible could be discounted as fantasy right from the beginning and Christianity could never have become so popular around the world 2000 to 3000 years later.
The most compelling passage in the Bible for dinosaurs living along side of man is: Job 40:15-19
Job 40:15-19
15 "Look now at the behemoth, which I made along with you; He eats grass like an ox. 16 See now, his strength is in his hips, And his power is in his stomach muscles. 17 He moves his tail like a cedar; The sinews of his thighs are tightly knit. 18 His bones are like beams of bronze, His ribs like bars of iron. 19 He is the first of the ways of God; Only He who made him can bring near His sword."
In these verses God describes to Job a beast that Job was familiar with called "behemoth". It is described as "the chief of the ways of God" and it is most likely the biggest land animal God had created. The bible says he moved his tail like a cedar tree. There are some Bible references that say this could have been an elephant or a hippopotamus, but the description actually fits that of a dinosaur like Brachiosaurus. Just pick up one of your child's dinosaur books and compare it to the description in this chapter!!! Elephants and hippos, in no way, have tails like cedar trees. I find this to be very compelling evidence that dinosaurs DID live along side of man. I can not explain how these references have ever ended up in the margins of some Bibles, but in my opinion it is a disgrace to the Book it is written in.
Another very compelling argument for dinosaurs living along side of man would be Job 41:1-34. The entire Chapter 41 from Job has a lot of detail about this creature that is believed to have been a sea creature based on the descriptions. Some Bibles refer to Leviathan as an alligator or crocodile, but after reading just verses 18-21 below, it is obvious that is not what is being described.
Job 41:18-21
"18 His sneezings flash forth light, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the dawn. 19 Out of his mouth go flaming torches; sparks of fire leap forth. 20 Out of his nostrils comes forth smoke, as from a boiling pot and burning rushes. 21 His breath kindles coals, and a flame comes forth from his mouth."
From the description given above it would be logical to a believe that Leviathan was some type of fire-breathing dragon that lived in the seas.You may say that it is impossible for any animal to "breath fire", but you would be wrong. If you are willing to do the research, you will find that there is one animal in the world TODAY that uses fire. It is called a "bombardier beetle" and is a native of South America. This little critter has a nozzle in its hind end that acts like a little flame thrower. It sprays a high temperature jet of gas fueled by hydroquinones and hydrogen peroxide with oxidative enzymes for protection. I believe that if a Central American beetle can do that, then so could Leviathan of the Bible. I have yet to see any crocodile or alligator ever use this method of defense.
According to Job 41:26-29 Leviathan was a very ferocious and terrifying creature that would be nearly impossible to kill.
Job 41:26-29
26 Though the sword reaches him, it does not avail, nor the spear, the dart, or the javelin. 27 He counts iron as straw, and bronze as rotten wood. 28 The arrow cannot make him flee; for him sling stones are turned to stubble. 29 Clubs are counted as stubble; he laughs at the rattle of javelins.
I will admit that crocodiles and alligators are very ferocious and terrifying, but the description given in the above verses do not seem to apply to them. Can we agree that crocodiles and alligators CAN be killed with arrows or spears or a javelin? I believe that even the men of ancient times could manage to kill one with any number of different weapons including arrows or spears.
There are many other passages in the Bible that refer to dinosaurs, even if they do not use that exact terminology. Just read the passages and think about what is being described. Use your own common sense and logic. Please try to remember the authors of the books in the Bible described these creatures the best way they could without the benefit of a fossil record. They would also know that if they described creatures that never existed, the truth would get out immediately that it was not true. If the Bible could have been proven to be wrong about anything, either in the past or now, Christianity could have never survived so long. Christianity would have only become a footnote in the history books or Christianity would have never made it past the Crucifixion of Jesus.
Toni DeGain
Administrator
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