Biblical Inquiries: Does the Bible Speak of a Dinosaur in the Book of Job?

By - Pastor Daniel C. Inghram, National Capital Bible Church

Adapted from: Job 40:15-24, Lesson 46, November 4, 2020

As we study the book of Job, we read in chapter 40 the descriptions of many creatures. Some of these creatures have names and descriptions that we recognize today. However, one of those creatures is very unusual and in many English translations is called “behemoth.” Theologians have identified this creature in different ways. A few believe that this creature is a dinosaur. 

Is this possible? Let’s take a deeper dive into our knowledge about the Bible and dinosaurs.

The book of Job predates the term dinosaur.
The book of Job was probably written 3,000 years prior to the coining of the word “dinosaur,” therefore, the word would not be found in the book of Job. However, the word “behemoth” is found in the book of Job, which is a transliteration, not a translation. Why a transliteration? Because the translators did not how to interpret it. 

The absence of “dinosaur” in the Bible is a factor of timing.
The word “dinosaur” was coined in 1841 by an Englishman named Sir Richard Owen. He realized that certain bones he found were different from any other group of animals he had previously studied, and they needed a special name. Owen invented the word “dinosaur,” which means “terrible lizard” to describe these bones. Since the name was not coined until 1841, it is not found in our early English Bibles, which were translated prior to 1841. In fact, the word “dinosaur” did not come into common use until the 1900s. Therefore, just because the word “dinosaur” is not found in these Bible translations does not mean there is no such creature. 

A biblical “behemoth” could be a dinosaur.
Since dinosaurs are a particular type of creature that includes both enormous and small animals it is possible that the biblical “behemoth” refers to a dinosaur.

We have physical evidence of dinosaurs. 
We know that dinosaurs once existed on earth because we find their bones in many places. Since we have this physical evidence and we know God created all things (Col 1:16), then God must have created the dinosaurs.

Based on our biblical knowledge of creation, the dinosaurs would have been created during the restoration week.
Dinosaurs were created by God during the creation or restoration week. The reason I use the word “restoration” is because Genesis 1:1-2 informs us that God created the heavens/space and earth and then it “became without form and void, and darkness was on the face of the deep [water]” (NKJV). God then took what was without form, void, and dark, and in six 24-hour days spoke into existence what is described in Genesis chapters 1-2. 

Incidentally, some people think that the six days of creation were not ordinary days as we know them but were long periods of time. This is incorrect. The Hebrew word for “day” (yom) always means an ordinary day when used with the words “evening” or “morning,” or used with a number. When you read Genesis chapter 1, you will see that the word “day” is used with “evening,” “morning,” and the number for each of the six days. This means that the days of creation were ordinary, 24-hour days as we know them today. They were not long periods of time or millions of years (Ex 20:11).

The biblical interpretation of creation contradicts the idea of evolution.
The creation/restoration week was approximately 6,000 years ago. What occurred during creation week refutes the evolution process and denies that it took billions of years for the extreme complexity of life to occur.

Dinosaurs could be included in the Genesis record of “cattle.”
On day six, God created “the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth” (Gen 1:24-25). The word translated “cattle” in Genesis 1:24 is the Hebrew word “behemoth.” The word “cattle” covers a sweeping category of land animals. Since the dinosaur was a land animal it fits in the category of “cattle, creeping thing, and beast of the earth.” 

People lived at the same time as dinosaurs.
Also, on day six God created the first two people, man and woman. Therefore, we can say with absolute certainty that people lived at the same time as dinosaurs.
 
Fossils support the notion that dinosaurs were on earth at the time of the flood.
The fossil record we have today preserved many dinosaur bones. Since the majority of all fossils were formed during the time of the Flood, we can conclude that dinosaurs were roaming the earth at the time of the Flood.

Noah’s ark would have held dinosaurs.  
Noah was commanded by God to take “every living thing of all flesh” into the ark (Gen 6:19-22) and this would have included dinosaurs. 

Dinosaurs on Noah’s ark could have been average size. 
How did Noah get the dinosaurs on the ark? The dinosaurs Noah took on the ark were not necessarily large. Considering the fossil skeletons found around the world, the average sized dinosaur was that of a small pony or sheep. It is also possible for large dinosaurs like behemoth that God provided adolescent animals to Noah. Their growth to a larger size would have occurred after they departed the ark.

Thanks to Noah’s ark, dinosaurs survived the Flood.
Since Noah took dinosaurs on the ark, they must have lived on the earth after the Flood. How long they survived we cannot say, but we have evidence of their post-Flood existence. 

• First, descriptions of dragons, sea monsters (Lock Ness Monster), and astonishing animals exist in many annals of history. Kings, knights, and other men are reported to have killed dragons, etc. Many of these beasts may have been killed just to prove courage, virility, and love for fair maidens. (Ham, Ken. Dinosaurs of Eden. Arkansas: Master Books, 2001. p. 35. All subsequent page references refer to this book.)

• Second, primitive rock carvings and paintings depicting dinosaurs exist in different parts of the world (p. 36).

• Third, there are reports from different parts of the world of large beasts that actually may be living dinosaurs (p. 37). As these elusive animals are discovered, they help us to understand that dinosaurs may have survived for many years after the Flood to Job’s day and maybe even to our own.

• Fourth, the biblical evidence: the descriptions of the “behemoth” in Job chapter 40 fit no current animal today—not a crocodile, elephant, hippopotamus, or rhinoceros. So, it is possible the Bible is describing what we would categorize as a dinosaur (p. 38).

• Fifth, evidence that dinosaurs lived fairly recently comes from finds of fresh dinosaur bones that contain soft marrow and red blood cells (pp. 38-39).

Why don’t we see many, if any, dinosaurs today? 

• First, the fall of man, the effects of sin, the curse on the entire earth, and the Flood all caused havoc on the earth. Living conditions changed dramatically. Famines, floods, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and diseases all took their toll on the animal population.

• Second, God told Noah after the Flood that mankind could eat animals for food. Therefore, mankind could hunt, kill, and eat dinosaurs.

• Third, the animals developed ferocity toward other animals and humans. Some animals did not survive as well as others.

Over time, many animal species have gone extinct.
Hundreds upon hundreds of species of animals have disappeared off the face of the earth. These animals, such as the Dodo Bird, the Tasmanian Wolf, the Woolly Mammoth, and the dinosaurs apparently were not able to survive the changing conditions.

Conclusion: The possibility that the creature transliterated “behemoth” in Job chapter 40 is a dinosaur is viable. We might not be able to say conclusively that God is describing a dinosaur in this passage, but for many theologians and creation scientists the characteristics of the behemoth fits a dinosaur the best.

This post was written by Pastor Daniel Inghram of National Capital Bible Church. If you have questions about this post or Christianity in general, please contact us today!