By Ken Ham
Dinosaurs are used more than almost anything else to indoctrinate children and adults in the idea of millions of years of [EVOLUTIONARY] earth history. However, the Bible gives us a framework for explaining dinosaurs in terms of thousands of years of history, and solving ht emystery of when they lived and what happened to them. Some key texts are Genesis 1:24-25 and Job 40:15-24.
Are Dinosaurs a Mystery?
Many think that the existence of dinosaurs and their demise is shrouded in such mystery that we may never know the truth about where they came from, when they lived, and what happened to them. However, dinosaurs are only a mystery if you accept the evolutionary story of their history.
According to evolutionists:
Dinosaurs first evolved around 235 million years ago1—long before man evolved. No human being ever lived with dinosaurs. Their history is recorded in the fossil layers on the earth, which were deposited over millions of years. They were so successful as a group of animals that they eventually “ruled” the earth.
Around 65 million years ago, something happened to change all of this—the dinosaurs disappeared. Most evolutionists believe some sort of cataclysmic event—such as an asteroid impact—killed them. But, many evolutionists claim that some dinosaurs evolved into birds, and thus they are not extinct, but are flying around us today!2 There is no mystery surrounding dinosaurs if you accept the Bible’s totally different account of dinosaur history.
According to the Bible:
Dinosaurs first existed around 6,000 years ago.3 God made the dinosaurs, along with the other land animals, on day six of the creation week (gen. 1:2025, 31). Adam and Eve were also made on day six—so dinosaurs lived at the same time as people, not separated by eons of time. Dinosaurs could not have died out before people appeared, because dinosaurs had not previously existed, and death, bloodshed, disease, and suffering are a result of Adam’s sin (Rom. 5:12,14, 1 Cor. 15:21-22).
Representatives of all the kinds of air-breathing land animals, including the dinosaur kinds, went on board Noah’s ark. All those left outside the ark died in the cataclysmic circumstances of the flood—many of their remains became fossils.
After the flood (around 4,500 years ago), the remnant of the land animals, including dinosaurs, came off the ark and lived in the present world, along with people. Because of sin, the judgments of the Curse and the flood have greatly changed the earth. Post-flood climatic change, lack of food, disease, and man’s activities caused many types of animals to become extinct. The dinosaurs, like many other creatures, died out. Why the big mystery about dinosaurs?
Why Such Different Views?
How can there be such totally different explanations for dinosaurs? Whether one is an evolutionist, or accepts the Bible’s account of history the evidence for dinosaurs is the same. All scientists have the same facts—they have the same world, the same fossils, the same living creatures, the same universe.
If the “facts” are the same, then how can the explanations be so different? The reason is that scientists have only the present—dinosaur fossils exist only in the present—but scientists are trying to connect the fossils in the present to the past. They ask, “What happened in history to bring dinosaurs into existence, wipe them out, and leave many of them fossilized?”4
The science that addresses such issues is known as historical or origins science, and it differs from the operational science that gives us cheap food, space exploration, electricity, and the like. Origins science deals with the past, which is not accessible to direct experimentation, whereas operations science deals with how the world works in the here and now, which of course is open to repeatable experiments. Because of difficulties in reconstructing the past, those who study fossils (paleontologists) have diverse views of dinosaurs.5
A paleontologist who believes the record in the Bible that claims to be the Word of God,6 will come to different conclusions from an atheist who rejects the Bible. Willful denial of God’s Word (2 Pet. 3:3-7) lies at the root of many disputes over “historical science”.
Many people think the Bible is just a book about religion or salvation. It is much more than this. The Bible is the History Book of the Universe and tells us the future destiny of the universe as well. It gives us an account of when time began; the events of history such as the entrance of sin and death into the world; the time when the whole surface of the globe was destroyed by water; the giving of different languages at the Tower of Babel; the account of the Son of God coming as man, His death and resurrection; and the new heaven and earth to come.
Ultimately there are only two ways of thinking: starting with the revelation from God (the Bible) as foundational to all thinking (biology, history, geology, etc.), resulting in a Christian world view; or, starting with man’s beliefs (for example, the evolutionary story) as foundational to all thinking, resulting in a secular world view.
Most Christians have been indoctrinated through the media and education system to think in a secular way. They tend to take secular thinking to the Bible, instead of using the Bible to build their thinking (Rom. 12:1-2, Eph. 4:20-24).
If one begins with an evolutionary view of history (for which there were no witnesses or written record), then this way of thinking will be used to explain the evidence that exists in the present (thus, the evolutionary explanation for dinosaurs above).
But if one begins with the biblical view of history from the written record of an eyewitness (God) to all events of history, then a totally different way of thinking based on this will be used to explain the same evidence (thus the biblical explanation as given above).
When Did They Live?
Evolutionists claim dinosaurs lived millions of years ago. But it is important to realize that when they dig up a dinosaur bone, it does not have a label attached showing its date! Evolutionists obtain their dates by indirect dating methods that other scientists question, and there is much evidence against the millions of years.7
Does God tell us when He made Tyrannosaurus rex? Many would say no. But the Bible states that God made all things in six normal days. He made the land animals, including dinosaurs, on day six (Gen. 1:24-25), so they date from around 6,000 years ago—the approximate date of creation obtained by adding up the years in the Bible.8 So, if T. rex was a land animal, and God made all the land animals on day six, then God made T. rex on day six!
Does the Bible Mention Dinosaurs?
Some people think that because the word “dinosaur” is not found in the King James Version of the Bible or other translations, the Bible does not mention dinosaurs.
However, it was not until 1841 that the word “dinosaur” was invented.9 Sir Richard Owen, a famous British anatomist and first superintendent of the British museum (and a staunch anti-Darwinist), on viewing the bones of Iguanodon and Megalosaurus, realized these represented a unique group of reptiles that had not yet been classified. He coined the term “dinosaur” from Greek words meaning “terrible lizard”.10
Thus, one would not expect to find the word “dinosaur” in the King James Bible—the word did not exist when the translation was done.
Why Does It Matter?
Although dinosaurs are fascinating, some readers may say, “Why are dinosaurs such a big deal? Surely there are many more important issues to deal with in today’s world such as: abortion, family breakdown, racism, promiscuity, dishonesty, homosexual behavior, and so on. In fact, we should be telling people about the gospel of Jesus Christ, not worrying about side issues like dinosaurs!”
Actually the evolutionist teachings on dinosaurs that pervade society do have a great bearing on why many will not listen to the gospel. Many people believe that since the evolutionary story of dinosaurs shows that the Bible can’t be trusted—starting with its very first book—then the Bible can’t be trusted about what it also teaches about salvation. In addition, a lack of belief in Biblical authority has meant that the absolute standards presented in Scripture don’t have to be followed, and thus, why the social problems mentioned above abound today.
(excerpt from The Answers Book; Master Books, Inc., 28th Printing, August 2003)
Ken Ham is the president of the apologetics ministry of Answers in Genesis, which is building a large Creation Museum near the Cincinnati Airport. Ken is the host of the daily radio program “Answers…with Ken Ham” (heard on more than 600 stations) and has become a much-in-demand conference speaker. He is one of the editors and writers for Creation magazine and has authored several books on the accuracy and authority of the Bible. Ken and his wife Molly have homeschooled each of their five children.
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1 - J.R. Horner and D. Lessem, The Complete T. rex (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1993), p. 18. M.A. Norell, E.S. Gaffney, and L. Dingus, Discovering Dinosaurs in the American Museum of Natural History (New York: Nevraumont Publ. Co. Inc., 1995), p. 17
2 - D.T. Gish, Evolution: the Fossils Still Say No! (El Cajon, CA: Instituet for Creation Research, 1995), p. 129ff Norell et al,. Discovering Dinosaurs in the American Museum of Natural History, p. 2
3 - J.D. Morris, The Young Earth (Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 1994). H.M> Morris, The Genesis Record (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker book House, 1976), p. 42-46. on the bilblical chronology, see James Ussher, The Later Part of the Annals of the World, E. Tyler for F. Crook and G. Bedell, London, 1658.
4 - M. Benton, Dinosaurs: An A-Z Guide ( New York: Derrydale Books, 1988), p. 10-11.
5 - Ibid. D. Lambert and the Diagram Group, The Dinosaur Data Book (New York: Avon Books, 1990), p. 10-35. Norell et al,. Discovering Dinosaurs in the American Museum of Natural History, p. 62-69. V.L. Sharpton and P.D. Ward, editors, Global Catastrophes in Earth History, The Geological Society of America, Special Paper 247, 1990.
6 - Psalm 78:5; 2 Timothy 3:14-17; and 2 Peter 1:19-21. God, who inspired the writing, has always existed, is perfect, and never lies (Titus 1:2).
7 - Morris, The Young Earth, p. 51-67.
8 - Morris, The Genesis Record, p. 4-6. Ussher, The Later Part of the Annals of the World
9 - D. Dixon, B. Cox, G.J.G. Savage, and B. Gardiner, The Macmillan Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals (New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1988), p. 92. R.M. Grigg, “Dinosaurs and Dragons: Stamping on the Legends!” Creation, 1990, 14(3):11.
10 - D. Norman, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs (London: Salamander Books Limited, 1985), p.8.
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