J ust about everyone has heard of the suffering of job in the old testament. How does the christian bible explain or account for fossil. Scientists have been able to reconstruct many of their skeletons, so we know much about how they may have looked. It is almost universally conceded by bible scholars that the historical background for the book of job is in the postflood period of the patriarchal era. Those who believe in an older age for the earth tend to agree. The book of job gives us a glimpse behind the veil that separates earthly life from the heavenly.
The bible mentions two dinosaurs by name and describes them in great detail. How does the christian bible explain or account for fossil evidence of cavemen and dinosaurs. Dinosaurs and the bible explores the historical, scriptural, and fossil evidence about dinosaurs, and shares what we can know after many years of thoughtful, careful research. Although these animals mentioned in the book of job cannot be. Ministry magazine what does the bible say about dinosaurs. Creation science and biblical interpretation, job 4041. The book mentions dinosaursnot by that name, but the description of the behemoth is certainly dinosaurlikeliving side by side with man job 40. In his second speech to job at the end of the book of job, the lord mentions two powerful and fearsome creatures, behemoth and leviathan. Ive been on the net studying dinosaurs in the bible and it appears that the kronosaurus leviathan is talked about in job 41, isiah 27. Dramatic pictures and accurate info about what the dinosaurs were really like. However, most bible scholars do not accept this explanation, and the words behemoth and leviathan are usually translated as hippopotamus and crocodile, respectively, and. The book of job is primarily about the afflictions of job. There were no meat eaters in the original creation.
It is almost universally conceded by bible scholars that the historical background for the. One talmudic tradition suggests moses as author since the land of uz 1. There is no direct reference to dinosaurs in the bible. If this is the right explanation, it seems strange that the word is used in the singular form. There was a class of very large animals which perished at the flood.
In the book of job, dinosaurlike creatures are mentioned and so they appear to have existed at the same time that adam and eve and their descendants existed. Following are examples of the overwhelming scientific evidence for the bible. Audio audio download options what does the bible say about dinosaurs. And the burial of millions of animals, plants, and marine life is explained quite. I attempt to clear that up by offering a different perspective than most people know today. The only dinosaurs mentioned in the bible are birds, which are mentioned frequently in various contexts. From the physical descriptions of some of the great creatures of the bible, it is easy to see where dinosaurs fit in. Behemoth and leviathan in the book of job creation ministries.
These passages are found in the book of job and they refer to creatures known as the behemoth. It is generally believed to have been written during the time of the early patriarchs, shortly after noahs flood. From a biblical perspective, the most likely explanation for the extinction of the dinosaurs is the worldwide flood described in genesis 6 and 7. Job explores the difficult question of gods relationship to. Soon after the flood mankind began to rapidly decrease in size, and in length of years. His breath kindleth coals, and a flame goeth out of his mouth. You might have heard someone say, they have the patience of job. In the book of job we see the word behemoth being used to describe the largest of the animals god made. Exactly in the same way that pandas, chimpanzees, llamas, kangaroos and penguins are explained in the bible. If behemoth was a dinosaur see earlier section, then a behemoth type must have been on the ark, because the lord used the behemoth as an illustration in teaching job. There are, however, alternative explanations for dragons. The bible says two of each land animal seven of some were brought onto the ark, which means that some dinosaurs made it onto the ark and after the flood, lived alongside humans, which we have evidence of in job. However, the name does occur in genesis 46 and ezekiel 14. This expression is used repeatedly to refer to inspired scripture.
I may surprise a few oldearth creationists by my conclusions with this one. This belief is held by gleason archer, in his book encyclopedia of bible difficulties, and by dr. Dinosaurs were created by god, possibly even taken onto the ark, but died thereafter. Some interpreters have taken these to be dinosaurs. The flood supports the idea of selective extinction since many dinosaurs survived the event because they were on the ark. Does the bible have any explanation for the dinosaurs. In addition to the foregoing, there is that context in the book of job regarding behemoth that must be taken into consideration. Bones and teeth from these mysterious creatures were first accurately identified in the early 1800s. The book implied the earth is round long before the advent of modern science job 22. The other two possible references to dinosaurs are in the book of job, which some commentaries state is the only old testament writing that possibly mentions these large reptiles willmingtons complete guide to bible knowledge old testament survey, etc. The book of job is often quoted at funerals and this is another misapplication of the scriptures and i will probably get into these verses later.
In order to set the record straight, lets examine this passage of scripture, and see what the possibilities are. Scholars, in studying jobs 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. Fossils of dinosaurs have been found all over the world, and their bones are displayed in museums for all to see. The book of job defends the character of a loving and righteous god in spite of earths obvious evils and injustices. According to biblical scholars, the book of job is the oldest book in the bible. Bible verses related to dinosaurs from the king james version kjv by relevance sort by book order job 40. In the book of job the bible talks about some of these magnificent creatures. Dinosaurs certainly did roam the earth in the ancient past.
Job pronounced jobe, was a rich farmer living in the land of uz, somewhere northeast of palestine. The bibles explanation for birds is that god created them either on day five of the creation week, or shortly after he created adam but befo. The second theory, put forth by modern bible scholars, is that leviathan represents a crocodile. The topic of dinosaurs in the bible is part of a larger ongoing debate within the christian community over the age of the earth, the proper interpretation of genesis, and how to interpret the physical evidences we find all around us. The exact location of uz is not known, however the most likely location was northeast of palestine in the land of aram modern syria.
A search for the word dragon in the king james version kjv of the bible produces 34 separate matches across 10 different books written between approximately 2000 bc and 90 ad. Job chapter 41 is obviously talking about a fire breathing dragon. Are dinosaurs described in the bible, in the book of job. The book of job is a highly controversial book of mostly confusing information. Watch our overview video on the book of job, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. Even though the word dinosaur is not used, scripture does indeed talk about them. Before long a variety of different dinosaurs were distinguished, and since then their remains have been found all around the world. Posts about book of job written by christopher r smith. The book of job is one of the most misunderstood books in the bible. If the different kinds of dinosaurs survived the flood, then they must have come off the ark and lived in the postflood world.
Because more and more scientific theories are being proven wrong, this is a good book to help explain the truth. There are many scientific facts mentioned in the bible that were not understood by man until centuries after the bible was written. Even more dramatic is the book of job, where the author describes the great land creature. Archer makes a good case for the crocodile, however. For many years youngearth creationists have pointed to the book of job, chapters 4041, as evidence that dinosaurs lived recently. If you want an explanation of dinos based on the creationist view of science, this is a good book. If this book were placed in its true chronological order in the bible, it would reside. Number one, the bible says that there was an animal called leviathan that could breathe out fire. The postdiluvian world is a very different world and such animals as dinosaurs were probably unable to adapt. But if the bible is correct when it talks about gods creation of the world and universe, then dinosaurs and people both lived on the earth at the same time. If we take extinct animals into consideration, a herbivorous dinosaur seems a more likely candidate. The book of job has been widely given the theme of patience and we see this mentioned in the new testament book of james.
Creation science and biblical interpretation, job 4041, dinosaurs. For many years young earth creation science believers have pointed to the book of job, chapters 4041, as evidence that dinosaurs lived recently. By jack kelley friday january 15th, 2010 about 1 minutes to read. Some bible scholars debate whether he was an actual person or legend, but job is mentioned as a historical figure by the prophet ezekial ezekial 14. Therefore, we shouldnt expect to see dinosaurs in the bible, but we should expect to see descriptions of dragons and other large creatures. Although job was unaware of the interaction between satan and god, job comes to the conclusion that god is just and good. Man also has typically played a major role in the extinction of a species. Although most of the book consists of the words of job and his friends, job himself was not the author. However, the initiator of the problems in jobs life and the cause of the problems are widely misinterpreted. It was an unblemished world, with adam and eve and animals including dinosaurs living in perfect harmony, eating only plants. The book of job, presumably written in the second millennium bc, details the.
Job is considered to be the oldest book of the bible. This summary of the book of job provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of job. Does the bible have anything specifically to say about dinosaurs. This great animal, called behemoth, is described as. The words that we see are behemoth, dragon, leviathan, and serpent, which can be a number of.
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