Posted on August 15, 2012
Delegating Dragons
Have you ever wondered why we find so many fairytales and legends involving ferocious dragons in historical literature all around the world? Not only do we find these medieval tales of knights and dragons, like the Beowulf manuscript, but we also find depictions of creatures in ancient artwork all over the world that seem to match the descriptions of dragons fairly well. Just take a look at how dragon-drenched Asian art and architecture are! We are also told in the book of Job about a creature that Job calls “behemoth” that eats grass like an ox, has a tail like a cedar tree, has bones like bars of iron, and cannot be killed easily with a sword (see Job 40:15-24). Job also mentions a creature called Leviathan (see Job 41) and there are several other instances where the Bible mentions dragons (e.g., Isaiah 51:9, Psalm 91:13, Isaiah 27:1, Jeremiah 51:34, and Ezekiel 29:3) and dragon-like creatures. Now scientists also find fossils of some eccentric, extinct, large reptiles that must have looked a lot like the dragons we see depicted in ancient art and literature, although primarily all we have from these strange creatures is their fossilized bones. These strange creatures were given the name “dinosaur”, meaning “terrible lizard”, by Sir Richard Owen in 1841.
Dragons are dinosaurs. Dinosaur and dragon are just two different terms for the same creature. However, I am not saying that everything in those ancient legends about dragons are necessarily true, because people usually dramatize an exciting event at least a little bit and others have likely added to and left out information from the original accounts. Dinosaurs were created on Day 6 of creation week, which was the same day that God created Adam and Eve. Of course, this inevitably means that dinosaurs and people must have lived together; how else would we get all these ancient tales and depictions of dragons? Just imagine 595 year old Noah going out to cut more wood for the ark and suddenly dropping all of his tools and running home as fast as he could because a T-Rex was chasing him. No wonder ancient literature and art are so full of tales of dragons, knights, and damsels in distress!
As a creationist myself, I wholeheartedly believe that dinosaurs and humans coexisted on the earth. My question comes in with the dragons–were they simply an exaggerated view of dinosaurs, or could it be that there really were dinosaur/dragons that flew and/or breathed fire? The leviathan mentioned in Job 41 is reported to breathe smoke, sparks, and flames (verses 18-21), and though I’ve heard that this could just be poetic language, I sometimes have to wonder…
Thanks Elizabeth! It’s alswys encouraging to hear from other creationists!
I have to disagree. I don’t think the biblical account of creation should be taken literally. Most scientists date dinosaurs to millions of years ago. And from what little I know of the evidence, I would tend to agree with them. It’s not 100% certain, but I think it is far more plausible than a probably allegorical story from 1 religious text out of the hundreds on the planet. No disrespect intended.
Thank you for your comment, even though you don’t agree with me. I respect your opinions because I believe that we are all made in the image of God and that you are so special to Him that He gave His life for your ransom. It was the belief our Founding Fathers had in creation that gives you the freedom to openly believe in evolution (see my post, “Formed for Freedom”). I would like to point out that just because the majority of scientists believe in evolution does not make it true. Keep in mind that America would not have been discovered by Columbus if he had followed the majority of scientists of his day. Scientists are people, and people will make mistakes. However, there are many scientists who are creationists who work with organizations like the Institute for Creation Research (http://www.icr.org/), Answers in Genesis (http://www.answersingenesis.org/), or on their own in their field. Here is a website where you can find a list of a few scientists out there who are also creationists http://creationevangelismtools.org/creation-scientists/ if you are interested. As for the Bible being just “1 religious text out of the hundreds on the planet” take a look at Who the Author is; God. I would far rather believe someone who claims to be the infallible Witness of our origins and claims to be part of it than a bunch of scientist who I know make mistakes. One of my biggest problems with evolution is explaining what exactly it was that “banged” and where it came from. Matter and energy can change forms, but where did they originally come from? Also, laws of logic (or laws of anything for that matter) make no sense outside of Biblical creation. Where did logic come from, if not from God? It is illogical to use logic under evolutionary assumptions. It would be impossible to do science if we strictly followed the logical conclusions of evolution because trusting our senses, memory, ability to come to reasonable conclusions, and that nature follows certain laws is illogical if you assume evolution is true. I hope this has been helpful and I encourage you to explore this topic more; it could impact your life for eternity.