There are many running theories about dinosaurs and their relation to Bible. A general understanding of the most popular range from:

1. Dinosaurs are merely made up to support the theory of evolution.

2. Dinosaurs were animals that had become corrupted, weren't taken into the ark, and died in the flood.

3. Dinosaurs were created by God, possibly even taken onto the ark, but died thereafter.

Those who have collected dinosaur remains in the Midwest plains of Canada and the United States or in the Colorado Plateau region have no lingering doubt concerning their reality. Thousands of specimens have been found and excavated, thereby debunking Theory 1. However, simply because we acknowledge the existence of dinosaurs does not mean we must accept that it took millions of years for their appearance/disappearance.

Theory 2 comes from those who see the dinosaur bones, but feel there is no direct Biblical supporting evidence for their creation.

Theory 3, is one that is rather plausible and even supported by Scripture.

In Creation, there are many creatures that were not mentioned by name that do exist. When thinking of dinosaurs, most first thoughts are of gargantuan, ferocious lizards. It makes it hard to believe that God would create something so monstrous for the Garden of Eden.

Actually, the fossil remains indicate that they were indeed a highly diversified group, ranging in size from that of a rabbit to tremendous beasts 20 feet high, 85 feet long, and weighing up to 50 tons. It appears that some were relatively light-footed and had bipedal locomotion, while others were quadrupedal and moved about in a slow and cumbersome manner. Some were carnivores and others herbivores. Certain types were well suited for aquatic habitat while others remained on land. However, overall most dinosuars were relatively the size of humans.

Not only that, something to be considered is that humans at the time of Adam up until Noah lived hundreds of years. Adam died at 930 years, Methuselah died at 969, Noah lived 950 years. With such longevitity, isn't only logical to believe that mankind grew larger and taller? True, it might not be the size of a 20-foot dinosaur, but perhaps proportional to how one experiences the grandiose size of a blue whale compared to the modern average human.

What about the large ferocious teeth? How would a "T-Rex" fit into the picture of paradise? If one can imagine a lion in heaven eating grass like a cow, perhaps a Tyrannosaurs Rex in the Garden of Eden is no longer a stretch of the imagination.

Isaiah 11:6-7 shares this picture of heaven:

    " The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, 

      The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, 

      The calf and the young lion and the fatling together; 

      And a little child shall lead them. 

      The cow and the bear shall graze; 

      Their young ones shall lie down together; 

      And the lion shall eat straw like the ox. "

      

Predators of our world today were not predators at the start of Creation. Lions used to eat straw and wolves didn't eat lambs. It was not until sin came in and corrupted animals, bringing in death, predation, and "survival of the fittest." Is it also possible that dinosaurs once were peaceful creatures?

Now that we can say there is the possibility for God to have created dinosaurs, are dinosaurs mentioned in the Bible?

There has been much discussion on the topic specifically involving verses in Job 40-41. Job is considered to be the oldest book of the Bible. Scholars in studying Job's longevity (he lived up to 140 years), descriptions of his wealth and household believe he was most likely alive after the time of Noah, but before the time of Abraham.

Job 40:15-24 speaks of a "behemoth." No one is really sure what it is, but read its description.

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.

20 Surely the mountains yield food for him, and all the beasts of the field play there.  

21 He lies under the lotus trees, in a covert of reeds and marsh.

22 The lotus trees cover him with their shade; the willows by the brook surround him.

23 Indeed the river may rage, yet he is not disturbed; he is confident, though the Jordan gushes into his mouth,

24 Though he takes it in his eyes, or one pierces his nose with a snare."

The way the "behemoth" is described, doesn't it almost sound like a dinosaur? Perhaps one of the sauropods? Some will argue these verses are referring to the hippopotamus or elephant. However, they run into the problem of explaning vs 17, since the tails of both animals are...well, far from looking like a cedar tree (let along moving like one). Their tails more resemble switches.

In Job 41:1-2,7,12-32, the "Leviathan" is another creature described that has been hard to find a modern equivalent.

 1"Can you draw out Leviathan with a hook, or snare his tongue with a line which you lower? 

 2 Can you put a reed through his nose, or pierce his jaw with a hook?...  

 7 Can you fill his skin with harpoons, or his head with fishing spears?...

 12 "I will not conceal his limbs, his mighty power, or his graceful proportions.

 13 Who can remove his outer coat? Who can approach him with a double bridle?

 14 Who can open the doors of his face, with his terrible teeth all around?

 15 His rows of scales are his pride, shut up tightly as with a seal;

 16 One is so near another that no air can come between them;

 17 They are joined one to another, they stick together and cannot be parted.

 18 His sneezings flash forth light, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.

 19 Out of his mouth go burning lights; sparks of fire shoot out.

 20 Smoke goes out of his nostrils, as from a boiling pot and burning rushes.

 21 His breath kindles coals, and a flame goes out of his mouth.

 22 Strength dwells in his neck, and sorrow dances before him.

 23 The folds of his flesh are joined together; they are firm on him and cannot be moved.

 24 His heart is as hard as stone, even as hard as the lower millstone.

 25 When he raises himself up, the mighty are afraid; because of his crashings they are beside themselves.

 26 Though the sword reaches him, it cannot avail; nor does spear, dart, or javelin.

 27 He regards iron as straw, and bronze as rotten wood.

 28 The arrow cannot make him flee; slingstones become like stubble to him.

 29Darts are regarded as straw; he laughs at the threat of javelins.

 30 His undersides are like sharp potsherds; he spreads pointed marks in the mire.

 31 He makes the deep boil like a pot; he makes the sea like a pot of ointment.

 32 He leaves a shining wake behind him; one would think the deep had white hair.

Some have translated the Leviathan to be a "crocodile," because of the large number currently present in the region. However, the crocodile pales in comparison to the description given to the Leviathan. Do crocodiles really raise themselves? Aren't the underbellies of crocodiles smooth rather than "sharp potsherds?" Does the crocodile really move fast enough and graceful enough to leave a "shining wake"? Other verses also mention the Leviathan the Bible furthering the concept that dinosaurs were alive with humans: Psalms 74:14, 104:25-26, Is 27:1.

The sudden extinction of the dinosaurs, as shown by the geological record, is a mystery that evolutionary paleontologists have considerable difficulty explaining. What happened to wipe out the dinosaurs so quickly? A change of temperature? A change in the plants? Blasts of heat from a meteor? Mammals eating dinosaur eggs? A change in oxygen concentration? Over-specialization? Senility? All these have been offered as explanations by evolutionary scientists. The dominant theory at present is that a large object from space hit Earth and blasted up so much dust that the sun was obscured for months. Plants and animals died. However there are problems with this theory. If this happened, why was the extinction selective? Why did some plants and animals, including some more fragile than dinosaurs, not become extinct?

From a biblical perspective, the most likely explanation for the extinction of the dinosaurs is the worldwide Flood described in Genesis 6 and 7. Soon after the flood mankind began to rapidly decrease in size, and in length of years. There was a class of very large animals which perished at the flood. God knew that the strength of man would decrease, and these mammoth animals could not be controlled by feeble man.

Ironically enough, by trusting the Bible, Christians have no need to "explain away" dinosaurs and do mental gymnastics to try and disprove their existence. The Bible even leaves the door open for Christians to discover dinosaurs alive today. Should a dinosaur ever be discovered today roaming around deep in some jungle, it would not really affect our understanding of the Bible or our faith. On the other hand for evolutionists - or those of the belief of creation and dinosaurs evolved and lived millions of years ago - would have to restructure their entire system if a dinosaur appeared alive on the today's scene.

Both evolutionists and creationists use evidence to support their theories, but when dealing with pre-history, it is difficult to come up with "proofs." No one was present as observer when life began, and neither model of origins can be reproduced in laboratory experiments. There is much evidence that Creation is a correct understanding of origins, but the belief that Creation took place in six literal days is based primarily on Scripture. Here are some evidence from Scripture to support this view:

1.  The Hebrew word for day, yom, as in English, is used both for a literal, twenty-four-hour day and also for an indefinite period of time, such as in the expression "For the day of the Lord is at hand” (Joel 1:15). However, the word, yom, always means a twenty-four-hour literal day when it is used with a numeral—day one, day two, first day, second day, etc. There are no exceptions to this rule. In the Genesis Creation account, yom is used with a numeral, indicating that it intends the reader to understand that these are literal days of twenty-four hours.

2.  When the Israelites were wandering in the wilderness, God supplied food—manna—every morning. They were to gather only enough for one day’s use. Anything more than that would spoil by the next morning. However, on Friday, they were to gather twice the usual amount of manna, because none would be available Sabbath (Saturday) morning. When they gathered extra manna on Friday for use on Saturday, the extra manna did not spoil (see Exodus 16:11-26). This illustrates that the weekly Sabbath, marking each cycle of seven literal days, continued to be a memorial of Creation week. Thus the weekly cycle is evidence that the days of Creation were literal days of twenty-four hours.

3.  As a unit of time, the week has no basis in the natural movements of earth, moon, or sun as do the day, the month, and the year. Other than the week of creation as described in Genesis, there seems to be no basis for the week as a unit of time. This, too, argues that the Creation week in Genesis was a week of seven literal days.

4.  God set aside the seventh day of Creation week as a holy rest day. The Israelites kept the Sabbath in the wilderness and continued to observe in the time of Christ (see Luke 4:16; 23:55, 56) and in the time of Paul (see Acts 17:2). Orthodox Jews continue to observe the seventh-day Sabbath even today. The changes made to the calendar from time to time through the centuries has not affected the weekly cycle of seven days. The integrity of the weekly cycle continues and is an evidence for Creation week being composed of seven literal days.

5.  The view that each day of the Genesis Creation account is actually an extremely long period of time—rather than literal days of twenty-four hours—causes problems. For example, Genesis says that plants were created on the third day (see Genesis 1:11-13) and that sunlight was created on the fourth day (see verses 14-19). If the third day is actually a long period of time, how could plants have existed without sunlight? Likewise, many plants require insects for pollination. How could these plants have survived and reproduced without insects which were not created until the sixth day (see Genesis 1:24, 25)—if these days were actually long periods of time?

6.  The fourth commandment (Exodus 20:8-11) clearly links the seventh day (the Sabbath) with the weekly cycle.  The word "remember" at the beginning of this commandment cannot have meaning if the days were long eons of time (much longer than human lifespans).  The admonition concerning days of labor and day of rest would also be meaningless.

7.  The wording of the creation account in the first two chapters of Genesis is best understood as meaning literal days. Such expressions as "day and night,” "evening and morning,” "light and darkness” can hardly be understood as indefinite periods of time.

There are two aspects of evolution—minor change (microevolution) and major change (macroevolution). Microevolution is clearly a feature of living organisms as seen in the numerous breeds of dogs or the different varieties of roses, etc. Plants and animals can clearly be bred to develop various characteristics. This is microevolution.

On the other hand, macroevolution—major changes between species—cannot be clearly demonstrated. Evolutionists present various lines of evidence for macroevolution, but careful examination often reveals that the evidence is weak, subject to alternate interpretations, or incorrect. Microevolution is a fact; macroevolution is not a proven fact.  Yet it is macroevolution that is required for the theory of evolution to account for the origin of life. Some evolutionists have called evolution a fact without distinguishing between these two aspects of evolution. Scientists are still looking for a satisfactory mechanism that can produce the kinds of changes needed to evolve plants and animals from simple organisms to complex ones (macroevolution).

One must be knowledgeable regarding the evidence for both Creation and evolution in order to determine which view has the stronger evidence. If one looks at the evidence for both positions carefully and impartially, we believe he or she will conclude that the evidence for Creation by an Intelligent Being is clearly the stronger.

Is it possible to believe in evolution and still be a Christian? If being a Christian means believing that the Bible is the authentic, trustworthy Word of God and that Christ is our Creator and Savior, the answer is "No.” One cannot believe these things and also believe in evolution as the explanation for the origin of life on our earth as we know it.

Some theologians have attempted to reconcile the biblical Creation story with the evolutionary explanation for the origin of life. But to do so requires interpreting the six days of creation in Genesis as long, indefinite periods of time rather than six literal, twenty-four hour days as the text indicates. Such an interpretation of Scripture cannot be supported by sound principles of Bible study. In many ways evolution and Christianity are not compatible. Here are some points to consider.

1. The Creation narrative. The Creation narrative in the first two chapters of Genesis, the first book of the Bible, clearly indicates that the work of creation was done in six, twenty-four-hour days. Evolution directly contradicts this and denies God’s creative power. Just as Christ performed miracles instantaneously while He was here on earth, so also He did His work of creation instantaneously during Creation week. The Bible says, "By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. . . . For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast” (Psalm 33:6, 9, NKJV). God says, "I have made the earth, and created man on it. I—My hands—stretched out the heavens, and all their host I have commanded” (Isaiah 45:12, NKJV). One cannot believe these verses and also believe in evolution.

2. The week of seven days. If life developed gradually over millions of years, there would be no explanation for the weekly cycle. The day, month, and year are based on natural movements of the earth, moon, and sun. But there is no astronomical basis for the seven-day week. It had its origin at Creation when God made the earth and everything on it in six days—and rested on the seventh day.

If we look carefully at the biblical creation account, it is very difficult to come to any other conclusion but that Moses, the author, intended to describe literal, twenty-four-hour days. The Hebrew word, yom, has the same meaning as our English word day. In both languages the word can refer to literal days or it can refer to longer periods of time. For example, we may use expressions such as "the day of our forefathers.” However, in Hebrew, if a numeral accompanies the word yom, it always means a literal day. There are no exceptions. In the Creation account, yom is associated with day one, day two, day three, etc. Moses also makes use of the following expressions: evening and morning (see Genesis 1:5, 8, 13, etc.), light and darkness (see Genesis 1:5), night and day (see Genesis 1:5). He could hardly have made it more clear that he was referring to literal days.

If each day in the Creation account is actually a long period of time, plants would have been created long before insects, since plants were created on the third day and insects were created on the fifth day. Yet many plants cannot survive without the pollination provided by insects.

The clear intent of the biblical account is that each day of Creation week was a twenty-four-hour day. If not, then the basis of the fourth commandment is wrong. The fourth commandment (see Exodus 20:8-11) says that the Sabbath is based on the Creation week when God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh day and blessed it. Evolution does not allow for a Sabbath that celebrates a Creator God who created our world in one week. Theistic evolution, the belief that God created through the process of evolution, has no reason for a weekly memorial of Creation.

 

3. Creation is the basis for the equality of all humans. If the theory of progressive evolution from lower life forms to humans is true, there could be a biological basis for considering some human races inferior and others superior, because some races would have advanced further up the evolutionary scale than others. America’s founding fathers said that all men are created equal—and they were right. All human beings are equal. All are children of God. All have the same origin. Racial intolerance has no basis for those who believe in Creation. Those who believe in evolution have reason to believe that some races are more highly developed than others.

 

4. Origin of sin and death. The idea of gradual evolutionary development of living things until humans finally appear makes it difficult to understand sin and the origin of evil. The fossil record gives much evidence of death, disease, predation, and cruelty—all supposedly taking place eons of time before Adam and Eve evolved and sinned. Yet the Bible clearly tells us that God said everything He created was "good” or "very good” (see Genesis 1:10, 12, 18, 25, 31, etc.). The Bible teaches that sin originated in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve disobeyed God (see Genesis 3) and that death is the result of sin. But if parasites, predators, disease, and death occurred before the creation of Adam and Eve (as the theory of evolution requires), then death would be part of God’s original plan.

5. Salvation. The theory of evolution raises questions concerning the purpose for Jesus’ death on the cross. The Bible says that death is the penalty of sin (see Genesis 3:3, 4, 19; Romans 6:23). Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for sin that we should have paid. If the Creation narrative, including the origin of sin, is only myth or allegory, what is sin? And was Jesus’ death necessary? Scripture calls death an "enemy” (1 Corinthians 15:26, NKJV), and the whole plan of salvation was designed to eliminate death and bring humans back to God’s original plan of eternal life.

Furthermore, if evolution involves the gradual, continuing improvement of the human race, the atonement of Jesus is quite unnecessary. Given enough time, undesirable characteristics, physical weaknesses, social unrest etc. will be eliminated. Even disease and dying could be overcome. History fails to support such improvements. The Bible clearly indicates that mankind’s nature is basically evil. Only through the power of God can human beings have a future of hope.

 

6. World-wide flood. Evolution makes no allowance for a world-wide flood. The concept of uniformity that has dominated evolutionary thought declares that the present is the key to the past. In other words, the gradual processes of nature that we currently see slowly eroding seashores, reducing the height of mountains, and shaping the course of rivers, etc. happened in the past at the same rates we see today. Thus there is no need for a universal flood as described in the Bible. Yet Jesus clearly accepted Noah and the flood as historical fact (see Matthew 24:37-39).

7. Bible authors believed in Creation narrative. Many of the authors of both Old Testament and New Testament clearly accepted the creation account as accurate history: David (Psalm 33:6, 9), Nehemiah (Nehemiah 9:6), Isaiah (Isaiah 45:18), and Paul (Colossians 1:15-17). Jesus, Himself, accepts creation as a literal historical event. Referring to the creation of Adam and Eve, He said, "He which made them at the beginning, ‘made them male and female’ ” (Matthew 19:4, NKJV). The expression "at the beginning” is the same expression used in the first three verses of Genesis, the first book of the Bible. If each day of creation were a long, indefinite period of time, the creation of humans, occurring as it did at the end of the sixth day of Creation, would not have been at the beginning of creation, but after six long eons of time.

8. Credibility of God’s Word. If the Creation narrative is only an allegory, what about other parts of the Bible such as the translation of Elijah to heaven, Jonah and the big fish, and the miracles and resurrection of Jesus? If we dismiss the accuracy of the biblical Creation account, we are free to dismiss other parts of Scripture and thus become the judge of what is or is not true in spite of what Jesus and the Bible authors say.

9. The second coming. The creation of earth and human life some six thousand years ago—rather than millions of years in the past—makes believable the soon second coming of Christ as promised in the Bible. If the Creation narrative is only an allegory, what about Jesus’ promise to come again (see John 14:1-3)? If a spark of life was created millions of years ago and organisms evolved over those many years, what is to keep us from thinking that Jesus’ promise of His return is also just an allegory?

10. Free will. Carried to its logical conclusion, evolution—the undirected, random evolving of living things—eliminates the power of the human will. Darwin, himself, came to the conclusion that free will is an illusion. If evolution is true, then it means that all our choices are merely actions or behaviors determined by our genes or our surrounding environment and are conditioned by past choices—either successful or otherwise. Such a view eliminates the power of choice. But God gave humans free will with the power to choose. Adam and Eve could choose to obey God or not to obey Him. God want His human creation to worship, love, and obey Him because they want to—not because they must. Humans are not robots.

The Bible says that God created this world perfect in the beginning, but that since the entrance of sin, it has become more and more degenerate (see Genesis, chapters 1-3). This is completely opposed to the evolutionary idea that the world is evolving and progressing upward. Jesus has promised to come again and restore this world to its original perfection (see Revelation 21:1-5). God does not require the slow process of evolution and the cruel method of "survival of the fittest” to create. When we look at the flowers, the birds, the trees, etc., we see the evidences of a great Creator God who loves us and created these things for our happiness.

Much more could be said to show that the theory of evolution is incompatible with the Bible and with the beliefs of a Christian that are based on the Bible. Evolution is based on "survival of the fittest” and the reign of tooth and claw. Christians are persons who understand that God is both their Creator and their Savior. They believe that God is eager for as many of His children to be saved as possible. They believe He will return soon as He promised to bring an end to the tragedy and sorrow and evil that exist in the world today.