Worldview #11: Dinosaurs in the Bible

Two months ago, we briefly considered the historical, archaeological, and Biblical evidence which supports man coexisting with dinosaurs.  This month, we turn our attention to the Biblical record concerning dinosaurs. The Bible says very clearly “For in 6 days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them…” (Ex. 20:11) Mankind was created on the sixth day, and death did not enter the world until after Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden (Rom. 5:12). This means that Adam and Eve must have seen dinosaurs. Ken Ham said, “If we accept God’s Word, beginning with Genesis, as being true and authoritative, then we can explain dinosaurs and make sense of the evidence we observe in the world around us” (The New Answers Book, p.176).

While the Bible never uses the word dinosaur, it does mention at least 4 different types of dinosaurs. As we talked about previously, the word dinosaur did not enter the English language until 230 years after the King James Version (KJV) was translated in 1611. Prior to the 1841 invention of the word “dinosaur,” dinosaurs were frequently called “dragons.” There are multiple references to dragons in the KJV (Psalm 44:19; Jer. 9:11; 14:6; 49:33; 51:34; Mic. 1:8). Beyond that, the description given of 4 different creatures in the Bible clearly matches that of certain types of dinosaurs.

First, Psalm 74:13 mentions “dragons in the waters,” aka “sea monsters.” could have included dinosaur-type animals such as the Mosasaurus. 

Second, multiple passages talk about “flying serpents” (Isa. 14:29; 30:6) These passages distinguish between a normal serpent and the flying serpent. The flying serpents could be a reference to one of the pterodactyls, which are popularly thought of as flying dinosaurs, such as the Pteranodon, Rhamphoorhynchus, or Ornithocheirus.

Third, Job gives very clear descriptions of two different dinosaurs. Job 41 describes a great animal that lived in the sea, “leviathan.” This creature breathed fire. It may have been 40 feet or more in length, possibly a Sarcosuchus imperator (Super Croc), or the 82 ft. Liopleurodon. 

Lastly, Job 40:15-22 mentions the “behemoth.” Many Bible commentaries claim that this creature is possibly the hippopotamus or elephant. Some versions actually translate it this way. Besides the fact that the elephant and hippo were not the largest land animals God made (some of the dinosaurs far eclipsed these), this description does not make sense, since the tail of behemoth is compared to the large cedar tree (Job 40:17).  No living creature today comes close to this description. However, behemoth is very much like Brachiosaurus, one of the largest dinosaurs.

Next month we will consider what happened to the dinosaurs. But for now, let us recognize that the Bile gives us a framework for explaining dinosaurs and ultimately points us to Christ as we will see soon see.

In His service,

      Matt