Dinosaurs in the Bible

Myth or Misconception

What does the Bible say about dinosaurs? Are there dinosaurs in the Bible? (Taken from "Got Questions Ministries - Copyright 2002 and 2010.)

"The topic of dinosaurs in the Bible is part of a larger debate within the Christian community over the age of the earth, the proper interpretation of Genesis and how to interpret the physical evidence we find all around us. Those who believe in the older age for the earth tend to agree that the Bible does not mention dinosaurs, because according to their paradigm (example or model), dinosaurs died out millions of years before the first man ever walked the earth. The men who wrote the Bible could not have seen living dinosaurs.
Those who believe in a younger age for the earth tend to agree that the Bible does mention dinosaurs, though it never actually uses the word "dinosaur". Instead it uses the Hebrew word tanniyn, which is translated a few different ways in our English Bibles. Sometimes it's "sea-monster", and sometimes it's "serpent". It is most commonly translated "dragon". The tanniyns appear to have been some sort of giant reptile. These creatures are mentioned nearly thirty times in the Old Testament and were found both on land and in the water.
So, are there dinosaurs in the Bible? The matter is far from settled. It depends on how you interpret the available evidence and how you view the world around you. If dinosaurs and man co-existed, what happened to the dinosaurs? While the Bible does not discuss the issue, dinosaurs likely died out sometime after the flood due to a combination of dramatic environmental shifts and the fact that they were hunted to extinction by man".

(note) I have read about, and even seen on television, safaris where there was organized hunts for elephants, hippopotamus and lions in Africa and even the buffalo in America but I don't believe I have ever heard of a dinosaur hunt. From all information found it would appear that, before the flood in Noah's time, both man and animals lived longer and in the case of animals probably also grew larger. Could that not mean that what would have been a monster before the flood would be somewhat less intimidating afterwards? On that note, then what about the "Komodo Dragon" which is a large species of lizard found in the Indonesian Islands. A member of the "Monitor Lizard" family, it is the largest living species of lizard, growing to an average length of 6.6 to 9.8 feet long and weighing around 150 pounds. Their pictures look much like a small dinosaur or rather the pictures we see that are to represent dinosaurs. Also there has recently been found a spectacular new species of "Monitor Lizard" living in previously unexplored forest in the Philippine Islands. They measure about 6.5 feet long and are covered in bright yellow spots and eats fruits, unlike the Komodo Dragon which eats meat. I believe that either of those lizards would seen fearsome to me if I met them while armed only with a club.

(Back to my last posting) There are some who claim that the "Man" tracks found along side the "dinosaur " tracks in the Paluxy River Bed near Glen Rose, Texas were not really made by man but are partial dinosaur tracks. (It must have been deformed in some way). The next question should be; how high were those overhanging shale formations? Could a dinosaur have walked under them?

There are several more questions concerning the age of this planet upon which we are privileged to live and are responsible for the upkeep of but they are for another time. Until then, stay tuned - William