Ask the Pastor

By Pastor Scott Denham of Harvest Fellowship, Shambaugh, IA

The Clarinda Herald Journal, publication date : 1/11/06

 

Dinosaurs and the Bible

 

Pastor Scott,

            “Where do the dinosaurs fit into the Bible?” --M family

            Dinosaurs are mentioned in the Scriptures, and natural history has confirmed their existence upon the earth. What makes the biblical accounts interesting is the reference to these large creatures existing within this era of man.

            Genesis  1:21 tell us, that God created the “tannym” sea monsters, on the 5th day of creation, and the “behemah” animals—which would include the land dinosaur—on the 6th day, at which time man was also created.

            Some suggest dinosaurs died out because of Noah’s flood. Two reasons this need not be. First because there would have been plenty of room on board for juvenile creatures, and the sea creatures would have survived the flood—and secondly because Men had knowledge of their activity.

            The most prominent mention of dinosaurs in the Bible is the term “sea monsters” or Leviathan for the large aquatic animals. They’re description follows that of the Plesiosaurus. [For further study, see Job 3:8; 41:1; Psa 74:14; 104:26; Isaiah 27:1] The “Behemoth” of Job 40:15 gives a wonderfully frightful description of a Tyrannosaurus-like creature.

            Looking beyond the scriptures to consider historical accounts, there are numerous incredible accounts of people—in times past—encountering large, terrible and ferocious beasts that defy identification with the animals we have today. The sheer numbers of eyewitness testimonies are worth a deeper look. For further information than I am able to present here, go to creationevidence.org, christiananswers.net/dinosaurs and icr.org.

            Many fair-minded people divide over the issue of dinosaurs in the era of man. Whatever we may ultimately conclude about this issue, this much is clear: neither dinosaurs nor men are the result of a blind evolutionary process; they are the handiwork of a wise and extraordinarily creative God—to whom (man at least) must give account.

       --Pastor Scott

To submit your question for Pastor Scott, you may write to: Ask The Pastor, PO Box 98, Shambaugh, IA 51651, or harvest@heartland.net,  and on the web at www.askpastorscott.com