In order to approach this topic we must understand how Science operates especially in the area of naming and categorization. This is important because the word “dinosaur” is a new word. “Dinosaur” was created by Richard Owen in 1841-1842. It was at this time that society did believe in Dinosaurs as we term them today rather they believed in ancient dragons; large lizards.
Dinosaur simply means: “Large Monstrous Lizards” as defined by Richard Owen
“Understand, no one, in all of world history, believed there were dinosaurs before 1842 (but) everyone believed in the historical evidence of dragons…because almost every single culture around the world has historical evidence of dragons.”
“The Myth of Dinosaurs the Reality of Dragons”, July 06, 2017 by Ben Armstrong https://wsau.com/blogs/ben-armstrong-blog/20344/the-myth-of-dinosaurs-the-reality-of-dragons/
We have to understand that 1841-1842 was when everything changed when naming and categorizing these large lizard creatures that used to be called “dragons”.
This is why the word “dinosaur” is not in the bible. BUT the word “dragon” or “leviathan” is in the bible. Even the word "behemoth" is found in scripture.
There are two words used in the bible to describe large creatures that both live on land and in the sea. The Hebrew word “Tannin” appears around 30 times in the Old Testament. This is what Genesis 1:20-21 uses to describe the sea “monsters” which God creates.
“Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens. God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves…” -Gen. 1:20-21.
This word “monster” is the Hebrew word “tannin” that we defined earlier. (Isaiah 27:1, Psalm 74:13, Deut. 32:33, Psalm 91:13)
Job 40:15-14 describes a Behemoth which comes from the word “behemot” which literally means “perhaps an extinct dinosaur, 1. A Diplodocus or Brachiosaurus.
“Behold now, [d]Behemoth, which I made [e]as well as you; He eats grass like an ox. 16 “Behold now, his strength in his loins And his power in the muscles of his belly. 17 “He bends his tail like a cedar; The sinews of his thighs are knit together. 18 “His bones are tubes of bronze; His [f]limbs are like bars of iron. –Job 40:15-18
“Who can open the doors of his face? Around his teeth there is terror. 15 “His [n]strong scales are his pride, Shut up as with a tight seal. 16 “One is so near to another That no air can come between them. 17 “They are joined one to another; They clasp each other and cannot be separated. 18 “His sneezes flash forth light, And his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning. 19 “Out of his mouth go burning torches; Sparks of fire leap forth. 20 “Out of his nostrils smoke goes forth As from a boiling pot and burning rushes. 21 “His breath kindles coals, And a flame goes forth from his mouth. 22 “In his neck lodges strength, And dismay leaps before him. 23 “The folds of his flesh are joined together, Firm on him and immovable. 24 “His heart is as hard as a stone, Even as hard as a lower millstone.
--Job 41:1, 15-24
The word “leviathan” is used in the bible around six times. (Job 41:1, Psalm 104:26) Job 41 even continues to tell of a leviathan creature that breathes fire and which is massive. It has strong outer armour and massive teeth.
What is really puzzling is that modern commentaries and theologians have said that the word “Behemoth” or “Leviathan” points not to a dragon or sea monster but rather something closer to a hippopotamus. But when you look at the description of the creature in Job it is clear that it these creatures are not hippos. Again, naming and categorization play a big part in this debate.
Dinosaur creatures such as giant reptiles, dragons, or massive sea creatures are in the bible. Modern theologians and scholars trying to misinterpret the language to try and fit evolutionary theories ideals when arguing these points. But what is clear is that these ancient writers were describing large creatures that resemble dragons or dinosaurs.
https://answersingenesis.org/dinosaurs/tannin-sea-serpent-dinosaur-snake-dragon-or-jackal/
Why does all of this matter? Because of the Scientific theory of evolution which tries to speak against the biblical truths found in God’s word.
Modern mainstream science teaches us that evolution is real. Dinosaurs and these large creatures were never in the same timeline as humans because humans evolved from primates. This speaks against the truth found in Genesis 1 when God created all beings at the same time or within the same pockets of time.
Many would say that humans and dinosaurs did not co-exist together—this would uphold the proof and idealogy of modern evolutionary theory. But accordin to scripture these “sea monsters” were created before humans meaning that humans and these sea monsters would be co-existing together.
Fossilization is also an extremely rare occurrence. Many living things die and do not become fossils.
“Fossilisation is so unlikely that scientists estimate that less one-tenth of 1% of all the animal species that have ever lived have become fossils. Far fewer of them have been found.” – BBC article
This same article also talks about the need for water when something gets fossilized.
“Obviously the first step is dying, but you can’t die just anywhere. Picking the perfect environment is key. Water is one important thing to consider. If you die in a dry environment, once you’ve been picked over by scavengers, your bones will probably weather away at the surface. Instead, most experts agree you need to get swiftly smothered in sand, mud and sediments – and the best places for that are lakes, floodplains and rivers, or the bottom of the sea.” –BBC Article
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20180215-how-does-fossilisation-happen
This directly correlates with answers in Genesis when they say that 95% of fossils that we find are marine fossils.
“95% of all fossils are shallow marine organisms, such as corals and shellfish.” – Answers in Genesis
There is no definitive proof that dinosaurs are super ancient and millions upon millions of years old. Many claim to use carbon dating when looking at the age of a bone but carbon dating is merely a guess (hypothesis) since it only goes back around 140 years for accurate readings.
Dinosaurs being in the bible proves that God created the world, that God is real and the king of the world and that The Bible is telling the truth especially in Genesis 1-6.
What is amazing about Job 40 is that God is reminding Job of His power; a power that is so great even the behemoth doesn’t stand a chance against God. This also shows us how much mainstream science does not like scripture and does not like God. This is also predicted many times in scripture, even Jesus says in Matthew 7 that many will hear the gospel but will still choose the wide road to destruction.
“Conclusion
Trying to reach a conclusion on exactly what a tannin was and where it lived requires an in-depth look at the original languages and sorting out two words that are often conflated. What should we make of tanninim? It appears that they are a group of serpentine creatures, rather than one specific type, with some living on land and some in the sea. They have often been called dragons, serpents, and monsters—even Leviathan! But did they include what we would call dinosaurs in retrospect, given that such terminology and current classification systems aren’t perfect and haven’t been around very long? Probably not, but it seems possible that some dinosaurs could be classified as the land-dwelling tanninim. Behemoth seems a more likely candidate for at least one type of dinosaur.
Concerning modern translations, the rapid disappearance of any mention of dragons from translations that appeared after the rise of evolutionary ideas is alarming. And it is a good teaching point—Christians need to be careful when permitting the Bible to be interpreted in light of man’s ideas, especially ideas like evolution. The Bible should be used to explain the world on its own terms.” –Answers in Genesis
(when looking at the two words tannin and tannim)
Bombardier Beetles (fire breathing beetles)
Dinosaurs in the bible YouTtube Video (depictions of dinosaurs or dragons in ancient culture)
Dinosaurs in Ancient Art (Secular video)
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