dinosaurs and the Bible Archives - DOES GOD EXIST? TODAY

September 16, 2024September 15, 2024

Why Doesn’t the Bible Mention Dinosaurs?

The fossil evidence for the existence of dinosaurs is undeniable. Thousands of fossil remains exist, and no human remains have ever been found together with dinosaur fossils. You can go to various museums and see these fossils for yourself or go to this article to see how people dig up and assemble them. Then, if they actually existed, why doesn’t the Bible mention dinosaurs?

Remember that the Bible also does not mention bacteria, platypuses, penguins, parasites, or many other living things. It does not attempt to explain the creation of the millions of species of every living thing on Earth, even though people today want to know about them. However, the Bible was not written just for people living today but also for people living thousands of years ago without microscopes or global travel.

The Bible’s message is spiritual, not a physical history of life on Earth. Why doesn’t the Bible mention dinosaurs? Some people try to say that it does. The Hebrew “behemoth” in Job describes an animal known to Job that ate grass, had a tail like a cedar, and lay under shady trees (Job 40:15-24). None of those things apply to dinosaurs. The description of the “leviathan” of Job 41, Psalms 74:14, and 104:26 has nothing in common with what we know about dinosaurs.

What we do know about dinosaurs is that they were part of a very different ecosystem than what we have today. The world of the dinosaurs was hotter and had a different atmosphere. The time of the dinosaurs was perfect for plant growth, resulting in massive amounts of vegetation. We see the remains of that vegetation in coal and peat.

It is essential to understand that God used two methods to give us the world with the resources we have today. One method was the production of things by a miraculous act. Time, space, and matter/energy were created out of nothing by this method. Today, quantum mechanics helps us verify that. The Hebrew word “bara” describes this method and is correctly translated as “created” in Genesis 1 only in verses 1, 21, and 27.

The second method is to change what God had previously created. The Bible uses the Hebrew “asah” for that. You will find it in verses 7, 16, 25, and 31 of Genesis 1. Humans can locate resources such as coal and oil because God used this method. At the conclusion of the creation account, Genesis 2:3 tells us that He “rested from all His work which God created (bara) and made (asah).” Then why doesn’t the Bible mention dinosaurs? The Bible contains the story of God’s spiritual relationship to humans, and dinosaurs were part of God’s method of preparing the Earth for humans.

— John N. Clayton © 2024
References: “God’s Revelation In His Rocks and His Word” by John N. Clayton and “How to bring a 75-foot-long dinosaur back to life” in National Geographic

April 18, 2020January 4, 2023

Mesozoic Era Small Animals

What most people know about the dinosaurs is what they have seen in a movie or a museum. The emphasis is always on the massive size of these ancient animals. Those of us with a background in paleontology are more interested in the ecosystem in which they lived. The Mesozoic era was a time when the Earth was very different from what it is today. It appears that the oxygen content of the atmosphere was higher, and the temperature was much warmer. The plants and animals living at that time enjoyed a balanced ecosystem that left a legacy that has allowed us to live comfortably on this planet.

The natural resources humans have depended on for our entire history were produced during the Mesozoic era. These include coal, oil, and a wide variety of soils that allow our modern plants to exist. From a biblical standpoint, this was a part of Genesis 1:1 when God prepared the Earth for what was to follow. For more on this, see “God’s Revelation in His Rocks and His Word” on our doesgodexist.org website. (You can purchase printed copies HERE.)

What many people don’t realize is that while the giant dinosaurs were an essential part of the Mesozoic era ecosystem, small creatures were of equal importance. Insects were a significant part of the system, and fossil remains of all kinds of arthropods are abundant in the fossil record. As we all know, insects can reproduce in destructive numbers. Just as there were meat-eating dinosaurs to keep the plant-eaters from destroying all the vegetation, there were insect-eaters to control the insect populations. We have insect swarms like the locusts that are causing massive problems in Africa today because humans are removing the natural controllers of insect populations.

The recent discovery of a creature named Oculudentavis khaungraae has shown us a dinosaur the size of a bee hummingbird, the smallest known modern bird. This dinosaur’s skull was half an inch from front to back, and it had a mouth full of teeth. It was ideally suited for eating insects of all kinds and sizes and was undoubtedly a vital part of the ecosystem during the Mesozoic era of the dinosaurs. God has always used one existence to prepare for another, and the preparation of the early Earth for humans was a long and highly complex process.

Our existence on Earth is also a preparation for a far better one. Continuing to study God’s creation and His Word helps us prepare for that time when we will exist outside of space-time. Read about it in Revelation 22:1–5.

Reference: Science News April 11, 2020, page 4.

November 1, 2019October 30, 2019

Dinosaurs and the Bible

Dinosaurs and the Bible The largest and best-funded apologetics organization in the world today is the Institute for Creation Research. They are strongly supported by fundamentalist Christian groups that have dispensational theologies. While they promote several denominational doctrines that aren’t supported by the Bible, and some of their science is not accurate, they do have a great deal of useful scientific data that supports the existence of God. However, they ran into a problem concerning “dinosaurs and the Bible.”

The most fundamental problem with the position of ICR is stated in these words from the November 2019 issue of their magazine Acts and Facts (page 4):

“Instead of attempting to harmonize the inerrant Word of God with a flimsy scientific model, Christians would do far better to simply take God’s Word at face value.”

The fact is that not all science is flimsy. Also, taking the Bible at face value when “face value” means a questionable interpretation of an inferior English translation. We have often dealt with dinosaurs and the Bible before. You can find some of our previous posts HERE and HERE.

There is no question but that those of us who believe in God and the Bible as His Word share common problems. In that same issue of Acts and Facts, Jayme Durant, the editor of the magazine, tells of trying to put up billboards in the Dallas area. They wanted to advertise the Discovery Center, a new multi-million dollar museum they have opened in the Dallas area. The billboards had their logo with the simple message “Dinosaurs and the Bible?” Two of the billboard companies would not allow ICR to display their message as long as they used the words “Bible” and “Dinosaur” together.

Here is the complete message of the sign owners:

“It’s controversial to have a statement that may challenge local beliefs. Saying ‘Dinosaurs and the Bible?’ may stir the pot in that area and cause problems for the sign in that area.”

Durant points out that “…making people think about something that might be outside their paradigm is apparently unacceptable by much of the American public.” Our society continues to show its bias and antagonism toward God and the Bible. Durant concludes her essay by writing, “You might be accused of stirring the pot. But that’s okay–your life is your billboard. And every day, you can choose the message you display.” We may not agree with ICR on dinosaurs and the Bible, but we certainly agree on that.
— John N. Clayton © 2019