Dinosaurs in the Bible, Dragons

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Are dragons real or a myth?

Let’s take a look at dragons. The Bible refers to dragons as though they are real creatures. If the Bible classifies them as real then I also must classify them as real creatures.

Now, let’s take a closer look at these creatures. The Bible has the word “dragon” in 18 different verses and the word “dragons” in 16 verses.

We have a dragon well in Nehemiah 2:13
We have the place of dragons in Psalm 44:19
We have a den of dragons in Jeremiah 9:11
We have dragons in the water (references sagest the sea) Psalm 74:13, and Psalm 148:7
We have a dragon in the river, Ezekiel 29:3
We have dragons in the wilderness. Malachi 1:3

There is also a detailed description of a dragon.
1. A great red dragon, Revelation 12:3
2. Having seven heads, Revelation 12:3
3. Having ten horns, also Revelation 12:3
4. Having a tail, Revelation 12:4
5. Called a serpent, Revelation 12:9
6. Cast water from his mouth. Revelation 12:15

I will not argue that some of this description is symbolic. I am confident though, that God would not compare our greatest enemy to a myth.

Are dragons a myth? I dare to say no, but truly a great creature.
Not limited to land nor is it limited to water (the sea). Perhaps this dragon is more than one creature or type of creature.


Dragon sightings have been reported by reputable people such as:
1. Marco Polo in the 13th century
2. John of Damascus, an early church learned scholar
3. Athanasius Kircher in the 17th century
4. Alexander the Great during his conquest in India

What is this creature that all these men over the years have observed? The Encyclopedia Britannica (1949 edition) notes that dinosaurs were “astonishingly dragon like.”

Take a look at the Chinese zodiac. There are 12 animals or “signs”. All the animals are ones we are familiar with accept the dragon. Why would China use a mythical animal? Perhaps it is not mythical but a true animal. The Chinese word for dragon is “long”. It is interesting that the Chinese symbols for “dinosaur” (恐龙) break down into two symbols that mean “fear” (恐) and “dragon” (龙).

I will conclude this lesson with this statement. Maybe it is possible that before the term dinosaur was invented in the 1800s that these same "Dinosaurs" may have been described as "Dragons" by the early 13th and 17th century people, as well as in the Bible (Dinosaurs in the Bible).