Good Question!!
When you read through the Bible, you don’t find a single reference to dinosaurs. But, you do find some interesting verses that shed some light on where they came from and when they roamed the earth. Remember, though, that most of the “dinosaur skeletons” that “scientists” have assembled are made up of plaster of Paris, and not bones. So, there is a lot of “scientific” guesswork and speculation that goes into showing you what these creatures looked like. There was obviously something here, but not necessarily what the “scientists” have portrayed.
First, we need to see where the word dinosaur came from so that we can know what it means. The etymology of the word dinosaur is from two Greek words: deinos, meaning “terrible” and sauros, meaning “lizard” – these two words were then derived in modern Latin as “dinosaurus” which then became “dinosaur” in English in the mid 19th century. So, by definition, a dinosaur is a “terrible lizard.”
Second, we need to remember that dinosaurs are reptiles. The nature of reptiles is that they continue to grow as long as they live. Well, before Noah’s flood, men lived up to as much as 969 years old [Methuselah, Gen 5:27]. All of the generations before the flood lived around 900 years. So, the reptiles in those days before the flood lived much longer than they do today. Consequently, the “terrible lizards” were simply enormous reptiles.
Third, since men and “dinosaurs” lived at the same time prior to Noah’s flood, it is not surprising that there are “dinosaur” footprints and human footprints in the Paluxy River bed. It shouldn’t concern you that some people view this evidence as “proof” and others refute this evidence. Creationists and evolutionists always view the same “evidence” differently. They disagree about the “evidence” as much as prosecuting attorneys and defense attorneys disagree in the court of law. They come from two different viewpoints.
Fourth, the reason that we don’t have dinosaurs today, besides the possible extinction of some, is that reptiles don’t live as long as they used to live. The full age of man now is less than 120 years; most don’t live into their 80’s and 90’s. Likewise, reptiles don’t live nearly as long as they would have lived before the flood.
In conclusion, if you were going to try to locate the dinosaurs anywhere, the best place would be before Noah’s flood or perhaps in your backyard.
Hope this helps,
Pastor Bevans Welder