Many have wondered about the origin of the dinosaurs and where they fit in the biblical story. The short answer is that much of the physical evidence on the earth points to these creatures having lived on earth before God created mankind.

The record of creation in Genesis 1 and 2, when the Bible introduces man and woman, is the re-creation of a previous world mysteriously destroyed. Because Scripture deals with the story of man and God's purpose for mankind, the Bible does not reveal many details about the earth before the creation of Adam and Eve—including dinosaurs. These chapters relate the origins of the world as we now know it, giving only a brief glimpse into the world that existed before Adam and Eve.

The original Hebrew wording of Genesis 1:1-2 indicates that a considerable time interval could have occurred between the events described in verse 1 and verse 2. See the sidebar "Earth's Age: Does the Bible Indicate a Time Interval Between the First and Second Verses of Genesis?" in our booklet Is the Bible True?

There is no conflict between biblical revelation and genuine science. We recognize that there is much scientific evidence that points to the earth probably being up to several billion years old. In other words, the physical evidence of the earth indicates it was quite old by the time God planted the Garden of Eden and created mankind in it. Therefore there is strong evidence that sometime between that initial creation and the creation of man approximately 6,000 years ago, the dinosaurs roamed the earth.