Should Christians Believe in Dinosaurs? Is This Belief Consistent with Scripture?

While I don’t know every Christian’s opinion about dinosaurs, I would say that some don’t believe in dinosaurs for two reasons: 1) the Bible mentions only two dinosaur-like creatures of which there is no trace today (and they may have been fictitious), and 2) the existence of dinosaurs doesn’t agree with their belief about creation.

The two creatures in question are the Behemoth and Leviathan. The first is mentioned in Job 40 when Job was “contending “ with the Lord and God was proving His sovereignty over all things. “Look at Behemoth, which I made along with you and which feeds on grass like an ox. What strength it has in its loins, what power in the muscles of its belly! Its tail sways like a cedar; the sinews of its thighs are close-knit. Its bones are tubes of bronze, its limbs like rods of iron” (Job 40:15-18). Even though we don’t call any creature today by this name, one can see how there might be another animal that it is close to in description (hippopotamus or rhinoceros perhaps?)

Then there is the Leviathan which is mentioned in Psalm 74:13-14 in speaking of God: “It was you who split open the sea by your power; you broke the heads of the monster in the waters. It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan and gave it as food to the creatures of the desert.” And again in Psalm 104:25-26: “There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number–living things both large and small. There the ships go to and fro, and the leviathan, which you formed to frolic there.” Was this just a mythical creature written about to prove a point about God’s strength? 

Christians who question the existence of Leviathan and Behemoth may extrapolate to believe that since these are the only two large, strange creatures mentioned in the Bible, there were no dinosaurs. The Bible would have mentioned others, right? Not necessarily. We don’t have a list anywhere, including in the list of all the animals in Noah’s ark, of all the creatures that God created. 

Also, if a Christian believes in a literal six days of creation, they clash with archeologists who say that dinosaurs lived hundreds of millions of years ago– much earlier than humans who God created on the sixth day. Then we have to contend with 2 Peter 3:8 where Peter writes, “with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.” So, was it a literal six days? God only knows, but for those Christians who believe the Bible is inerrant, they take this number literally. 

The organization Answers in Genesis claims that the earth is only 6,000 years old. They say the method used to date dinosaur fossils and other geologic finds is based on faulty radiometric data (in use since 1905). They believe that radiocarbon dating is more accurate and supports the young earth theory when fossils and rocks are tested.   

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I contend that learning about dinosaurs does not contradict faith in God or in Scripture. As my pastor mentioned to me when I told him I was writing on this topic, the Bible does not exist to talk about the age of the earth or about all of the creatures on it. It exists to teach people about God’s love and desire to have an eternal redemptive relationship with humans through His son’s sacrifice. 

Just think of all that we don’t know about the universe and the bottom of the oceans. Isn’t it possible that God created these creatures and the fossils that have been found support that fact? Will we no longer believe in God if we learn that it’s possible that six days wasn’t a literal six days? 

Could it be that dinosaurs are part of God’s intelligent design for the earth, and that science and the Bible can coexist? We must remember when the Bible was written and that God did not choose to reveal everything to humans on many subjects. Can we allow any room for question? And if we have such questions, does that necessarily mean that we doubt God? I would argue that God is not afraid of our inquiries, and the Holy Spirit will lead us into all truth. 

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Just like the Bible doesn’t tell us the name of every single creature that God placed on earth, it doesn’t tell us that we need to believe in dinosaurs. Again, is there a space where we can believe in the inerrancy of the Bible and also believe that there were huge creatures that no longer exist? 

We can’t possibly understand everything that has happened since the creation of the world since we have a finite amount of information in the Bible (whether we believe in a young or old earth). A better way to approach the subject is to consider God as the magnificent creator of a universe designed perfectly to sustain life (especially human life). Meditating on this and worshiping God for His amazing gifts and grace should overshadow any debate about whether there was a Stegosaurus roaming the earth at one time (as fossils lead us to believe). The Bible calls us to fix our eyes on Jesus, “the author and perfecter of our faith” who died for our sins so that we would never be separated from God. Belief in dinosaurs need not undermine that most important fact in all of history which forms the core of Christian doctrine.

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Science, especially the fields of archeology and geology, play a significant role in trying to piece together information about dinosaurs. Those who rely on radiometric data, and fossils that have been found around the world, have no problem believing in and teaching others about dinosaurs. They rely on the geologic age of surrounding rock to determine fossil age.

There is no one way that scientists who consider themselves Christian approach the study of prehistoric life. I go to church with a professor of geology at a major Christian college who has a deep history of travel to study archeological sites, and is especially interested in geology and how it affects our world today. He discusses different theories about the age of the earth in his classes, sharing what he sees within geologic history. 

Richard Carlson, former visiting professor at Fuller Theological Seminary wrote, “We must not set up our children for confusion and disillusionment when they hear the scientific story from high school teachers and college professors. I have told my children that it is highly likely that dinosaurs lived on our Earth millions of years ago, went extinct over 60 million years ago, and are a wonderful part of God’s marvelous creation.”

Other Christian scientists, like the Answers in Genesis folks, believe that we have a young earth and that dinosaurs were created on the sixth day of creation with all other animals and died out. Since we don’t have a definitive answer in the Bible, we look to see if God has left us clues as to what He created and for what purpose.

In her article, “What Does the Bible Say About Dinosaurs?”, Hope Bolinger says, “Their existence leaves an indelible mark on the geological record, their fossilized remains testifying to a time long past. As Christians, we are reminded of the vastness of God's creation, stretching far beyond our comprehension.” 

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One could follow the theory purported by Answers in Genesis: that on the sixth day, dinosaurs were among the creatures that Adam was called to name. At some point, perhaps during the flood, God chose not to include these creatures on the ark and they were wiped out. If we are taking the six days of creation at face value, this could possibly make sense.

It’s difficult to try to conjecture because God could have created these creatures at any time. Maybe at some point He continued with His creation in another part of the earth outside the garden of Eden. This could have been when humans were on the earth or before. Maybe each day of creation was millions of years in God’s timing. We truly don’t know. We do know that God can do absolutely anything, and He hasn’t explained everything to us (just look at the fact that we are still discovering creatures that we’ve never seen before). God creates because it pleases Him to do so; therefore, if He wanted to make dinosaurs at some point, whether the earth is old or young, He could do so.

Fossils are the remains or impressions of an organism preserved in petrified form. At times, archeologists have found the bones of entire creatures intact, at other times they’ve had to piece them together from different locations. It’s hard to deny their existence. But it makes more sense that they have to work together somehow because we have our belief in the truth of the Bible and we have evidence of creatures who no longer exist. 

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Belief in the existence of dinosaurs at one point in history can draw a Christian to even greater awe and worship. It enhances our view of God’s sovereignty over everything on earth, His power and His creativity. It’s the same with anything else we might learn about nature: new galaxies discovered, animals in the wild that have never been seen by a human, etc. 

Perhaps we can all take more time to “stop and smell the roses,” to really look at God’s creation and let it bring us closer to His heart. Let us marvel at everything from the smallest insect, to a newborn baby, to the heavens above us. He is the master creator, and He hasn’t stopped bringing things into being that display His glory to the world.

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