Dinosaurs In Literature, History and Art:
Faith Destroyed by "Mythical" Creatures in the Bible?....Page 69

"If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels."..Luke 9

Pterodactyl or Extinct Flying Dragon British Museum 1922 Rhamphorynchus

We came across this sad statement on the internet, some of which is excerpted below.

Apparently, this poor man was once a self confessed; “Bible believing Christian” but is now embarrassed to have been one, because of the numerous “absurdities” in the Bible that someone had brought to his attention.

Among the “absurdities” that caused him to lose his faith are; dragons, fiery dragons, cockatrices and unicorns.

He wrote:

…….”In Numbers 21:6 we find the lord of the Bible sending "fiery serpents" to torment the people. What a great guy this Bible god must be! It reads, "And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died." And God is love??? To date, there never has been "fiery serpents." And I don't think there ever will be.

In another case of the Bible god letting anger and hatred get the best of him is Jeremiah 8:17 - "For, behold, I will send serpents, cockatrices, among you, which will not be charmed, and they shall bite you, saith the Lord."

A cockatrice, pictured at right, is another mythological creature. It is supposed to be a serpent that can kill just by looking at someone. Guess what - they're not real. And neither is the Bible - thank God!.....

…….Probably the best known of all the mythical monsters that is found in the Bible is the dragon. There are 16 separate references to this mythological beast! And they're not only mentioned in a figurative way.

Malachi 1:3 states: "And I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness." Again, another mythological creature in a book of myth.

After these absurdities were brought to my attention I was even more embarrassed that at one time I was a Bible believing Christian. You can't be a Christian and still embrace your God-given reason.”

Our Response

Now, we know that Satan attacks the faith of Christians and in fact are warned to be on the look out for him because he prowls around as a roaring lion, seeking who he can devour. 1 Peter 5:8.

Unfortunately, this brother apparently made a quick meal for him. He’s not the first Christian to wonder about these things, but he has chosen to reject the Bible because of what he believes were mythological creatures and accepts one of the biggest myths ever created; evolution.

He has forsaken Christianity and the priesthood of believers on the word of the high priests of science and our hearts have to go out to him.

Spanish Flying Dragon The Year 1560 Left:This Spanish Dragon pendant is dated to circa 1560. The crest bears a Garnet cabochon. The Dragon is engraved on both sides and measures 52mm by 52mm. Supplied with a gold plated chain. Price £22.50. http://www.tudorjewels.com/ Right:Rhamphorynchus munsteri "Beak Snout" pterosaur Wingspan: 2 feet-35 feet Diet: Carnivore Habitat: Air and Land When: 230-144 Million Years Ago Special Features: Pterosaurs were the first vertebrates to soar through the skies! They lived at the same time as the dinosaurs but are now extinct. Rhamphorynchus had hollow bones and wings of skin to enable it to fly. The hollow bones made it as light as possible for flight. Its wings stretched from an extension of its fourth finger to its body. A recent discovery shows that Rhamphorynchus might have been covered with fur! Scientists are still trying to determine whether Rhamphorynchus flapped its wings to take off or if it could only glide from high cliffs and trees. Some features of Rhamphorynchus are similar to birds, which is of great interest to scientists"...Wikipedia

Because these concerns he has are central to some of the things we cover on this site, we thought we’d take a few moments to show our friend how he could have been tragically misled.

Now dragons are mentioned, are described and represented in the literature, history and art of virtually every ancient culture. Think about it a moment; is there anything in popular culture and science which might remind one of dragons?

Of course there is; the animals we’ve called dinosaurs since the mid-1800’s.. But because the enemies of God have so thoroughly brainwashed virtually everyone to believe that dinosaurs lived millions of years ago, the amazing similarity between dinosaurs and dragons never enters their minds.

The Bible first mentions “dragons” in Genesis Chapter 1: "So God created the Great Dragons" ...Genesis 1:21 The Latin Vulgate; 5th Century.

Depending on the translation, Chapter 1 says that God created the “great sea monsters”, “great dragons”, “great whales” or “great serpents”.

That word, tanniym is elsewhere translated in the Bible as “dragon”, serpent or even “jackal”, in various passages as translators down the years tried to figure out what creature was being discussed.

However, if one’s faith depends on knowing whether for instance in Genesis 1, God created the “great whales”, or the “great dragons”, it is weak indeed. Understand though that when the Holy Spirit “dictated” the scriptures, He knew what He had in mind.

Unicorns

Unicorns as mentioned in the Bible were not one horned flying horses, but simply some forgotten one horned animal. Unicorn comes from the Greek word; monoceros, meaning one horn.

The mystical qualities associated with the unicorn were invented later by men. The Bible simply describes a one-horned creature.

The Bible mentions frogs as well. Later, some thought that one might kiss a frog and have it turn into a prince. Rabbits or hares are mentioned in the Bible as well. Later some came to believe that their feet were lucky.

Hopefully those later mythical creations of man did not weaken the faith of those who might think that the Bible writers thought frogs could turn into princes or that they rubbed themselves with lucky rabbits feet.

Flying Dragons and Cockatrices

Look at the photo of the fossil above, right. The title given to this fossil at the British Museum was: "Fossil of Pterodactyl or Extinct Flying Dragon".

The photo (a black and white version)is from the 1922 book; “The Outline Of Science, A Plain Story Simply Told
Edited By J. Arthur Thomson Regius Professor Of Natural History In The University Of Aberdeen,”

The likeness of this fossil to for instance, classic medieval dragons, and Scandinavian wyvern representations is uncanny.

The pterodactyl had “batlike” wings which were extensions of their upper arms, two legs and a long tail for balance.

Many pterosaurs, like the one pictured here had a “flange” at the end of its tail. This flange has been much represented by ancient artists along with the other, aforementioned features.

These features are also those of cockatrices and basilisk. Do remember that there were hundreds of different kinds of pterosaurs-or “extinct flying dragons”.

Science says that pterosaurs and dinosaurs missed the age of man by at least 40 million years. On the other hand, ancient cultures, including ancient scientists and the Bible testify that dragons lived along with men.

It should not have been a surprise that the enemies of God disagree with the Bible, but who is correct? We’re quite sure that science does not believe that the Son of God rose from the dead, so that one need not have to point to “mystical creatures” in the Bible to see his weak faith attacked.

When one sees a fossil such as the one above, and reads the many accounts of dragons; large reptilian creatures just like dinosaurs, or the accounts of flying dragons; winged reptilian creatures just like pterosaurs, what does his reason and intellect tell him?

Is science correct or is the Bible and ancient history correct about dragons/dinosaurs?

The British Museum fossil has been identified or classified as a Rhamphorynchus. This creature’s wingspan ranged between 2 feet to 35 feet. Do you suppose that if men had actually seen one that descriptions of dragons might have resulted?

What does reason and intellect tell you? Did man draw dragons which were accurate representations of dinosaurs and pterosaurs even though they actually missed each other by 40 million years?

No doubt, man added mystical qualities and characteristics to dragons which the Bible did not do due to fear and lack of knowledge. Dragons or dinosaurs were simply animals created by God along with the other creatures.

13th/14th Century Pteranodon Pendant Left:Toy pteranodon from the 2000's. Right:13/14th Century Medieval Heraldic Horse Pendant in the shape of a "bird of prey" Note high head crest, and "fingers" outside wings, flared tail. Theinterestingshop.com. Pteranodons had wingspans of up to 30 feet.

As for fiery serpents, medieval scientists reported that these creatures had a type of bio-luminescence—they gave off a glow at night. On the other hand, like bombardier beetles, some may have been able to actually emit flame as eyewitnesses have claimed down through history.

Note the comparison here of a Spanish Dragon Pendant from the year 1560, with a drawing of Rhamphorynchus. What does reason and intellect tell you? Had they actually seen a live dragon/pterosaur?

God and Love

Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding....Proverbs 17:28

This young man in quoting from Numbers and from Jeremiah condemns the Lord for punishing the Jews in those two passages thinking that this proves God is not a God of Love.

Having been a former Bible believing Christian did he so soon forget; "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life"...John 3:16? ..Foolishness to the world but meat to an alledged "Bible believing Christian".

Does he not understand that for justice to exist that there must be reward--and punishment?

This young man is the clay who says to the potter; you did not make me! God punishes but not just for punishment sake, but rather just as a parent who loves his children corrects and punishes in order to save them. The result of God's punishment in Numbers and Jeremiah was repentance and through that some were saved.

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9

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