Dinosaurs

Genesis 1:25

And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

There are two distinct passages that might shed light on this subject. Both are in the book of Job. They speak of two great beasts. God details their power and strength. Behemoth (Job 40: 15-24) and Leviathan (Job 41: 1-34). The behemoth lived on land, and Leviathan was a water dweller. We won’t have time to study both today, but we will get an introduction from the behemoth.

Behemoth

Job 40 : 15 - 24

The first thing God says about the behemoth is that He created him along with Job. There are fascinating features of the behemoth that should not be ignored:

1. It eats grass (verse 15)

2. Its tail is likened to a cedar tree (verse 17)

3. Its bones and limbs are compared to bronze and iron (verse 18)

4. Only God can truly contend with it (verse 19)

After researching in great detail, a growing number of scholars believe the animal in Job 40 above has an uncanny resemblance to a sauropod dinosaur, not an elephant, rhino, or hippo, in part due to the tail. It’s interesting that God was telling Job of an existing animal that Job was familiar with. It was the same as with Leviathan in chapter 41, who could not be captured and made men tremble with fear.

When you couple that with other information like:

1. Dinosaurs found buried in swimming positions all over the world (perhaps drowning in a global flood?)

2. Ancient cave and grave art depicting animals that we recognize as dinosaurs

3. Alexander the Great’s scribes wrote about large beasts that they avoided by traveling around, instead of fighting

4. Dinosaur and humans remains both found in the same rock layers (suggesting they lived during the same time period)

An increasing number of scholars are coming to believe that dinosaurs might have coexisted with humans. Is that why we see them alongside humans in historical writings, as well as the fossil record in some cases?

Whether you agree with that or not, remember that we do not all have to agree on these issues. What we should agree on, however, is that the Bible is the word of God and that Jesus died and rose again. I hope that answers your question. If necessary at a later date, we might be able to take some time and look closer at Leviathan in Job chapter 41

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