The three angels' messages: An Adventist imperative

The year 1844 was an important one. The Millerites experienced the Great Disappointment, leading to a thorough restudy of the prophecies concerning the Second Advent. The increased understanding of the Scriptures that resulted from that study led to the establishment of the Seventh-day Adventist church. That same year, Charles Darwin completed a summary of his ideas on evolution by natural selection. He called it an abstract, but it was more like a small book. Darwin did not publish his "abstract" that year, however. Also in 1844, Robert Chambers anonymously published a book, Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation. This book boldly speculated about the possibility of evolutionary change over long ages of time. It has been said that this book had a greater impact on the public than Darwin's book had some 15 years later. The public reaction was so intense to Chambers' work that Darwin held off his for another 15 years.

The irony here is obvious: the birth of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, with its emphasis on the biblical six-day creation, coincided with the public presentation of evolutionary thinking. Was this a coincidence? I think not.

Seventh-day Adventists have seen themselves as commissioned to present a special message to the world, which we call "The Three Angels' Messages" of Revelation 14:6-12. Our purpose here is to explore the meaning of these messages and its relationship with the doctrine of Creation.

The First Angel

The context of Revelation 14 indicates an eschatological setting, sandwiched between the persecution presented in chapters 12 and 13 and the "harvest" of the end of chapter 14. Adventists understand the three angels' messages of Revelation 14 to represent the final movement preparing the world for Christ's second coming. Seventh-day Adventists expect to play an important role in proclaiming these messages. Hence, we need to understand what they say.

These three message follow one after another, and that's because there's an underlying link between them. One link is the doctrine of creation as recorded by Moses; another link is righteousness by faith . The church cannot successfully preach the three angels' messages without faith in the scriptural account of creation, which is foundational to these messages and key to our mission.

The first angel (Rev. 14:6) is described as having the "everlasting gospel." The gospel is the good news of salvation, which is needed because of man's fall. The creation story forms the basis for understanding that fall: "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned" (Rom. 5:12, NASB cf 1 Tim. 2:13-14).

The first angel's message consists of two parts. The first part is (paraphrased): "Fear God and give Him glory, because of judgment." This message was emphasized in early Adventist history, in the doctrines of the investigative and executive judgments. The second part is (again paraphrased): "Worship Him who created." In Hebrew writing, an idea was often expressed twice, using different words. This is a way of emphasizing a point. The first angel's message can be treated as such a parallelism:

Fear God because of judgment, and

Worship God because of creation.

To fear God is to reverence Him, and implies worship:

"Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name?

For You alone are holy;

For all the nations will come and worship before You,

For Your righteous acts have been revealed."

Revelation 15:4, NASB

Judgment is one of God's righteous acts. To many, the emphasis on judgment does not seem like good news. Why should we regard the coming judgment as "good news" (gospel)? And what is the relationship of creation and the good news? Let us consider these questions as we examine the parallelism in the text.

To "fear" God means to give Him reverence, or worship. This is the first part of the parallelism. God is worthy of worship because He is both Creator and Judge. "Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, . . . for You created all things . . .." (Rev. 4:11, NASB). Being Creator demonstrates God's authority and gives Him the right (responsibility?) to judge.

What is the parallelism between judgment and creation? Who is the Creator? Who is our Judge? It is Jesus, who created us, who will also be with us in the judgment. The good news (gospel) is that creation and redemption are linked in Jesus Christ. Jesus is our Creator (John 1:3), as well as our Advocate in the judgment (1 John 2:1). God has both created us and saved us through Jesus (Col. 1:13-17). Because of this relationship, the judgment is good news to the Christian.

Although strongly endorsed by the church, the creation part of the gospel angel's message has only recently begun to receive the attention given to the concept of judgment in the early history of our church. There was less need to emphasize God's creatorship because virtually all Christians accepted the biblical creation record, but this is no longer the case.

The biblical story of creation is that humans were created perfect, in the image of God. Due to their own wrong choice, they fell into sin. God could not merely excuse their sin and remain just, so instead, God Himself, in the person of Jesus Christ, came to earth to die in our place. Thus God could be just and the justifier of him who believes (Rom. 3:26). This means that salvation is by grace alone (Eph. 2:8).

The judgment of humanity is closely linked with the creation story. Our accountability is based on the fact that at creation human beings were perfect. Without a fall from perfection, there is no accountability to God for sin, and no need of a Savior. Judgment will include accountability for the condition of the world (Rev. 11:18), a responsibility given at creation (Gen. 1:28). Creationists must be good stewards of the earth's resources.

The Second Angel

The second angel states (Rev. 14:8) that "Babylon is fallen." Why does the second message come only after the first message? Could rejection of the first message be the final step in the fall of Babylon? Babylon represents fallen world religions, including churches in Christendom that have fallen away from Christ. The church is impure. Fornication implies something is taking the place of Christ. The Scriptures often represent the relationship of Christ and the church as a marriage (cf Rev. 19:6-9, the marriage supper of the Lamb). The husband (Christ) is identified as the Creator in Isaiah 54:5. This text suggests that substitution with some other "creator" would be fornication. Any church that makes such a choice has fallen. The message of the second angel can be considered to be a response to the reaction of the Christian world to the message of the first angel regarding creation and judgment.

In the biblical story of creation, Adam and Eve were created perfect. Their fall introduced sin and death into this world. Jesus, as Creator and Judge, offered Himself as a substitutionary sacrifice for our salvation. Salvation is thus purely a matter of grace; thus, we can only accept it as a gift, or reject it.

What about other creation stories? Some have proposed that we as a race are improving through evolution. There was no Adam and Eve, no fall, and no substitutionary death. Jesus came to earth only to show us how to live. If we are impressed by His life, if we can imitate Him, and, if we work hard enough, we can qualify for salvation. Jesus did not take our place by His death, but gave us an example of how to earn salvation.

The Bible has bad news about this kind of gospel: no matter how hard you work, no matter how much your life resembles the life of Jesus, it is not enough. The kind of perfection is not good enough! There is no way for us to earn our own salvation. We do good works, not to become saved, but because we are already saved. Babylon is based on righteousness by works. Heaven is a gift of grace alone.

The Third Angel

The third angel's message (Rev. 14:9-12) is a warning: "Do not worship the beast or receive his mark." Those who disregard this warning will face judgment and punishment. Notice the word "worship," again linked with judgment. To worship the beast rather than God would be spiritual fornication. The mark of the beast is a sign of spiritual fornication and a spiritual fall. This fall comes as a result of rejection of the message of the first angel: worship God the Creator, and accept His offer to declare you "not guilty" in the judgment. Apparently, those who reject the first angel's message will unite to "mark" those who disagree with them. They will even resort to force to prevent anyone from accepting the message of the three angels.

We understand that the worship of the beast and the reception of his mark will involve controversy involving the seventh-day Sabbath. Observance of the seventh-day Sabbath is based on the biblical account of the six-day creation (Ex. 20:11). By observing the Sabbath, we witness and give evidence of our acceptance of the first angel's message: worship the Creator. By worshiping on Sabbath we witness that we accept the Bible as the ultimate authority. By worshiping on Sabbath we testify that we accept salvation by grace alone, based only on the merits of Jesus' substitutionary sacrifice.

Discrediting the creation story would remove the basis for observing the seventh-day Sabbath, and much more. What better way to destroy the seventh-day Sabbath than to discredit the six-day creation, the very basis for its observance? And what purpose for a judgment if there were no fall into sin? Without the doctrine of a six-day creation, the three angels' message loses its meaning.

The Three Angels' Messages: Righteousness by Faith Alone

The unified message of the three angels is righteousness by faith. Righteousness comes by faith in the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ. This death is necessary because God, in His justice, could not excuse the fall of our first parents, Adam and Eve. The Fall of Adam and Eve was the result of their own choice to believe the evidence of their senses rather than to believe the word of God. The term "Fall" implies a previous state that was better. Adam and Eve were not created through some process of gradual improvement, but they were created in a state of sinless perfection. The story of their creation is found in Genesis 1.

Some would urge us to accept another story of creation, one that is more in harmony with the ideas of leading scientists and theologians. It is unpopular to accept the words of an old book rather than the latest ideas in science. To those who urge us to abandon our faith in the six-day creation of Genesis, we should say--Tell me the story of Jesus and salvation. Does science have a story that includes Jesus and salvation? Only the Bible shows the way to salvation and the basis for that pathway.

The three angel's message reveals Jesus as Creator, Advocate in judgment, and Redeemer. This is why the Genesis creation account is so important. Genesis presents the most detailed account given in Scripture of the creation of our world. The creation story is the basis for worship of God, the reason for His authority in judgment, and the contentious issue behind the mark of the beast. The creation record in Genesis is a unifying theme of the three angels' messages.

In view of the significance of creation and the flood to the three angels' messages at the end of time, it is sobering to consider Peter's warning of scoffers in the last days: "Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, 'Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.' For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men" (2 Peter 3:3-7, NASB).

According to Peter, scoffers will deny both creation and the flood. This is happening now, not only in the world but even within the church. The three angels' messages must be given, even in such an atmosphere of skepticism. When all the world has been reached, the end will come. And then the Creator will again exercise His power in creation, this time to restore that which was lost because of sin. "But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells" (2 Peter 3:13, NASB

L. James Gibson

The three angels' messages: An Adventist imperative

The year 1844 was an important one. The Millerites experienced the Great Disappointment, leading to a thorough restudy of the prophecies concerning the Second Advent. The increased understanding of the Scriptures that resulted from that study led to the establishment of the Seventh-day Adventist church. That same year, Charles Darwin completed a summary of his ideas on evolution by natural selection. He called it an abstract, but it was more like a small book. Darwin did not publish his "abstract" that year, however. Also in 1844, Robert Chambers anonymously published a book, Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation. This book boldly speculated about the possibility of evolutionary change over long ages of time. It has been said that this book had a greater impact on the public than Darwin's book had some 15 years later. The public reaction was so intense to Chambers' work that Darwin held off his for another 15 years.

The irony here is obvious: the birth of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, with its emphasis on the biblical six-day creation, coincided with the public presentation of evolutionary thinking. Was this a coincidence? I think not.

Seventh-day Adventists have seen themselves as commissioned to present a special message to the world, which we call "The Three Angels' Messages" of Revelation 14:6-12. Our purpose here is to explore the meaning of these messages and its relationship with the doctrine of Creation.

The First Angel

The context of Revelation 14 indicates an eschatological setting, sandwiched between the persecution presented in chapters 12 and 13 and the "harvest" of the end of chapter 14. Adventists understand the three angels' messages of Revelation 14 to represent the final movement preparing the world for Christ's second

THE BIBLICAL FLOOD

A six day creation method

Recent New Testament research by Jon Paulien, professor of New Testament,2 shows that the language of the last part of Revelation 14:7, “ ‘worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea’ ” (NASB), alludes to the language of the fourth commandment in Exodus 20:11.3 In part, the Revelation passage accomplishes this significant allusion by listing, in the same order, four of the identical terms that appear in the Exodus text. Paulien offers the following conclusion regarding the certainty of the allusion: “The cumulative evidence is so strong that an interpreter could conclude that there is no direct allusion to the Old Testament in Revelation that is more certain than the allusion to the fourth commandment in Rev. 14:7. When the author of Revelation describes God’s final appeal to the human race in the context of the end-time deception, he does so in terms of a call to worship the creator in the context of the fourth commandment.” 4

Building on Paulien’s conclusion, the present essay offers the diagram on the facing page to illustrate how the allusion also seems to endorse a literal, historical six-day Creation.

The diagram illustrates that by alluding to the full cosmological wording of Exodus 20:11, the allusion endorses the concept of a six-day Creation. While not rewriting a portion of Scripture, the dotted line in the diagram indicates the biblical source for the bracketed insertion of the important concept implied by the first four words of the allusion in Revelation 14:7. The messenger could have said simply, “worship your maker,” but that would not signal a six-day method of Creation. The critical need in the end time for the allusion to suggest the six-day method of Creation is addressed in the application section of the essay. However, the complete allusion suggests more than a concept of six-day Creation.

The biblical Flood

The allusion in Revelation 14:7 to Exodus 20:11 ends with a phrase of remarkable focus, “fountains of waters.” Do these words have some special significance? The hermeneutical key that can unlock the importance of this phrase seems to be its placement in a context and setting of judgment: “ ‘Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made . . . springs [fountains] of waters’ ” (Rev. 14:7, NASB). The immediate connection of the phrase “fountains of waters” to a judgment setting needs to be borne in mind continually throughout the following discussion.

The special uniqueness of the phrase helps to raise questions that lead to a deeper understanding of its meaning. Because the allusion in the Revelation passage begins and continues as an exact verbal paralleling of the language in Exodus 20:11, the allusion can be said to end with an unparallel, thus unexpected and surprising, phrase, “fountains of waters,” not found in the Old Testament passage. A central question confronting the interpreter seems to be: If Revelation 14:7c is a clear verbal parallel allusion to the Exodus passage, why doesn’t the angel messenger complete the allusion by using the expected phrase “and all that is in them” (NASB) found in Exodus 20:11? Why does the messenger break his method of paralleling by inserting the unparallel and specifically focused phrase “fountains of waters”?

The importance of the unparallel phrase “fountains of waters” is further heightened by noting that its departure in Revelation 14:7 from the wording in Exodus 20:11 stands in sharp contrast with a biblical pattern established and illustrated elsewhere in Scripture when individuals refer at some length to Exodus 20:11. For example, in the context of describing the goodness of God as the one who sets the prisoner free, David (like the first angel in Revelation 14) articulates the following words precisely as found in Exodus 20:11, “Who made heaven and earth, the sea” (NASB), but ends by stating the expected “and all that is in them” of the Exodus passage (Ps. 146:6, NASB). In a similar context, New Testament believers who express thanksgiving for the loving kindness of God displayed by His healing of the lame beggar mention the same portion of Exodus 20:11 and add the expected phrase “and all that is in them” (Acts 4:24) in the same manner as David. Again, when the healing of a lame man of Lystra reveals the power of God, Barnabas and Paul cite the same words of Exodus 20:11 and complete their reference to the Exodus passage with the expected “and all that is in them” (Acts 14:8, 15). Thus we discern a typical pattern used by biblical individuals when referring to or quoting Exodus 20:11. Evidently, they did not feel at liberty to deviate from the wording of the fourth commandment.

Remarkably, the allusion in Revelation 14:7 takes a different pathway.

The typical biblical pattern illustrated above is broken only in Revelation 14:7. Any scriptural parallel allusion or reference to Exodus 20:11 that starts with the words “Who made” and reaches the word “sea” and then continues never strays after that from the exact wording of Exodus except in Revelation 14:7c. Why? Is something theologically important being communicated? Is God, through the angel, signaling some relevant, theological truth(s) by means of a somewhat fluid allusion that otherwise would be lost if Exodus 20:11 were to be fully, exactly paralleled?

Most importantly, why in this end-time passage might God select the “fountains of waters” for special mention and not some other created item among “all that is in them”? The independent research of several scholars can, when placed together, contribute to a theologically and geologically significant response to these questions.

BRAIN AND MIND: A CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVE

INTRODUCTION

The human brain is one of the most fascinating objects that is likely to be studied in a General Psychology class. As students delve into the research of the structures and functions of the brain, it is inevitable that they are confronted with an array of critical issues–the consequences for individuals of damage to their brains, the implications for human freedom and dignity of brain and behavior control, and the responsibility of providing a conductive environment for people to develop adequately.

Beyond these considerations are philosophical questions revolving around the mind-brain relationship which challenge the Christian to consider the human brain from the standpoint of the human person, and the person from the standpoint of God's purposes.

I. BRAIN-MIND RELATIONSHIP

The basic question of the relationship between the mind and brain has intrigued scientists and psychologists for many years. Philosophers and scientists have debated this question for centuries. One of those who troubled by this problem was Rene Descartes. Three centuries ago he proposed a dualistic view in which he described the brain and mind as distinct substances. The mind took up no space but acted on the body through the brain's pineal gland (Cotman, 1990). Descartes was wrong about the pineal, but the debate he stimulated rages on. How does the nonmaterial mind influence the brain, and vice versa? How does the Christian view the brain or the mind?

Roger Sperry, one of the foremost exponents of split-brain studies, advocates a "unifying view of mind and brain" in the 1977 American Psychologist. According to Sperry, the mind is an emergent property of brain activity. Once the mind has emerged, it assumes the dominant role of driving the brain (Popper and Eccles, 1977).

In recent years, neurobiologists have produced research that enhances our understanding of the human mind. Fischbach in an article published in the 1990 Scientific American, identifies the brain as "the organ of the mind." According to Fischbach, the brain, with its many specialized functions, is the central organ of the body. From the collective activity of all the brain regions emerges the most fascinating neurological phenomenon of all: the mind.

In agreement with Fischbach is Carla Shatz, professor of neurobiology at the University of California, Berkeley. She clearly asserts the fact that "the brain is the central organ that directs the intricate functions that make possible memory, vision, learning, thought, consciousness and other properties of the mind. . . In fact, during fetal development, the foundations of the mind are laid" (Shatz, 1990, p. 35).

For the Seventh-day Adventist Christian teacher, the brain is viewed as more than an anatomical organ. It is a marvelous organ created by God (Genesis 1). It is a complex organ that directs and interprets our sensations, thinking, reactions, evaluations, and helps us to discriminate right from wrong, good from bad.

Ellen White in her book, Education, confirms the power of the brain:

Our reasoning powers are given for use, and God desires them to be exercised. "Come now, and let us reason together" (Isa. 1:8). In reliance upon Him we have wisdom to "refuse the evil, and choose the good" (Isa. 7:15). (p. 231)

While the brain is a wonderful organ that directs the human functions, it should in no way be viewed as a mere machine. If we are nothing but machines, and if our brains are understood as clockwork toys, how can we be regarded as free agents?

To the Christian, the mind is understood as the sum total of all a person's conscious state which includes our thoughts, memories, feelings, and emotions. It is human mind that distinguishes the responsibility and uniqueness of the human person. Humanness demands creativity, the ability to think and act in totally new ways, to imagine new solutions and see things in novel forms. Hence, the mind distinguishes one person from another in the way the world is viewed, and analyzed. The brain allows a variety in how each person synthesizes ideas, argues an issue, or expresses a mood. However, when the brain is off, the mind is off!

In sum, the brain directs the millions of neurons that send different messages to various parts of the body. However, it is the human mind, that nonmaterial part, that takes these sensations and messages and expresses them in unique ways--different for each individual.

II. MARVELOUS POSSIBILITIES OF THE BRAIN

Storage and Retrieval

The brain is the structure that truly sets us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom. Together with the spinal cord, the brain forms the central nervous system that regulates our sensory, cognitive, emotional, physical, and motor abilities. The human nervous system is made up of networks of nerve cells that connect every distant bit of tissue with the ten billion nerve cells of the governing brain. Electric neural impulses travel along these pathways at speeds ranging from 200-300 miles per hour, leaping across narrow gaps between cells, relaying messages to and from the brain. This marvelous network system prompted Hippocrates in the 6th century B. C. to commit himself in no uncertain terms to the supremacy of the brain as the source of our intellectual powers. He wrote:

Man ought to know that from the brain and the brain only arise our pleasures, joys, laughter and jests as well as our sorrows, pains, grief and tears . . . . It is the same thing that makes us mad or delirious, inspires us with dread and fear, whether by night or be day, brings sleeplessness, inopportune mistakes, aimless anxieties, absent mindedness, and acts that are contrary to habit (Jones, 1981, p. 15).

Crick and Koch, in their study of visual awareness, admit that the structural variety of neurons in the brain indicates a marvelous organ with the capacity to store, retrieve, use and express information, as well as to experience emotion and control movement (Crick & Koch, 1990).

What does the Bible say about dinosaurs?

Some years ago, after I had lectured to Adventist university students and young professionals, a pastor approached me and asked, “Could you please talk to my wife and convince her that dinosaurs really did exist?”

This request was not a joke. The pastor’s wife was a school teacher and she refused to teach her students that dinosaurs had ever existed. Right away, I realized that behind her denial of dinosaurs was a struggle to understand the mystery that perplexes some and fascinates others: how do we explain the past existence (and extinction) of dinosaurs within a biblical context?

Unfortunately, this denial of the existence of dinosaurs has become more widespread than we would like to admit, even taking into account our scientific society with highly advanced research in all fields, including geology and paleontology. These specific sciences seem out of place in our schools and colleges and are hardly considered by our Adventist youth when choosing a profession. As a Christian and a paleontologist, I must daily face the widespread notion of a biological evolution involving millions of years, and I can understand that some people fear becoming involved in a philosophy that may prove to be contradictory to Scripture.

However, it is possible to study fossils, rocks, and evolution without renouncing our faith. If we are to appreciate the beauty and mystery of earth’s Creation and subsequent history, a great deal depends on how and what our teachers and pastors transmit in our schools and churches. In this article, I outline ways for students, teachers, parents, and pastors to productively think about the place of dinosaurs within a biblical paradigm in a faith-affirming way.

The museum dinosaur

If you have ever visited a natural history museum, you probably saw spectacular and massive dinosaur skeletons. In other places, you can see animated reproductions of dinosaurs which, in the case of television documentaries, seem to be alive and real. When viewing these animations, the visitor should take into account several details.

First of all, we should accept that dinosaurs did exist for a period of time on earth and that, in certain places, they seemed to be numerous. Paleontologists have found evidence of their existence in sediments on every continent, including Antarctica. This evidence includes bones, eggs, nests, and footprints. These dinosaur footprints and tracks are abundant and cannot positively be associated with any other creature except what we now call dinosaurs.

Secondly, we should be aware that skeletons found in museums are typically not actual bones, but rather replicas. The original bones are too valuable and delicate to be exposed to the general public, and therefore, are usually stored in safe places within the museum. Furthermore, “complete” skeletons in museums are often assembled from replicas of bones from various specimens, which, on occasions, come from very distant places. This does not mean the skeletons are just cobbled together. Paleontologists are able to piece together the body architecture of dinosaurs even though they might not have all the skeleton elements of the same creature, and thus, the replicas we see in museums are reasonably trustworthy. Some nearly complete specimens unearthed, including the Tyrannosaurus rex, are exhibited in Chicago’s Field Museum. The animations seen on television, however, are much more speculative, especially regarding skin color, physiology, behavior, and so forth.

Dinosaurs disappeared

In the geologic column, dinosaur remains appear in rock layers that paleontologists call Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous. These layers of sedimentary rock, stacked one on top of the other, show specific characteristics, including those of certain fossil species such as mollusks, reptiles, fish, dinosaurs, and microscopic organisms (diatoms and algae, among others) that once filled the oceans. Some paleontologists believe that dinosaurs, as well as other groups of animals and plants, suddenly disappeared as a consequence of a gigantic meteorite impact 65 million years ago. Others doubt this model for a variety of reasons.

Most creationist scientists believe that dinosaurs disappeared, together with other species, during the worldwide Flood described in the book of Genesis. This scenario could include meteorite activity resulting in gigantic tsunamis, volcanic activity, and the emission of carbon dioxide, sulphides, and other chemicals harmful to plants and animals. Therefore, the idea of a meteorite impacting the earth is not necessarily incompatible with the biblical model of the Flood.

In spite of a lack of consensus among scientists about what made dinosaurs disappear, the media and pseudoscientific press have decided that the meteor impact theory is the only valid explanation. This is far from reality. Dinosaurs did disappear, but we do not know exactly when or why. However, the possibility of their extinction during the Genesis Flood (with or without the associated impact) can be viewed as a plausible scientific hypothesis and deserves consideration.

Dinosaurs and human beings

Much has been written and argued regarding certain evidence that supposedly shows dinosaur and human remains together. The evidence includes what are interpreted to be human footsteps together with dinosaur footprints, as well as prehistoric pictures in caves and on pottery where human figures appear together with exceptional creatures very similar to current reconstructions of these giant reptiles. However, rigorous scientific study has shown that these features have been misinterpreted.

Let us analyze, for example, the alleged “human” and dinosaur prints found in the riverbed of the Paluxy River in Texas. A few decades ago, some enthusiastic scientists proclaimed that this was sure evidence against the theory of evolution and proof for the occurrence of a worldwide Flood. Intrigued by these statements, more than one evolutionist and creationist scientist studied in detail the marks found on the rocks. In that particular place, the riverbed and bank have many marks due to water erosion. We can tell the true dinosaur tracks from the pseudoprints due to the marks left on the rocks from the circulating water. With a little imagination, we can make out prints similar to those of almost any animal.

Laboratory studies have been done also. If a print is authentic, we would expect to see the layers of sediment in the rock depressed under the print, from the weight of the animal. To test for this characteristic deformation, the scientists cut the print crosswise and observed that no such deformation was present. They concluded that the shape was not a real human footprint but instead the result of erosion, either by nature or by a human forger. Later studies showed that certain “prints” and drawings had been deliberately placed by fanatic defenders of the human-dinosaur coexistence idea. This kind of unfortunate forgery may have been produced by those who are overeager to present irrefutable evidence to support their belief in Creation and the Flood; others may do it simply to exploit believers in some way or to make money.

On other occasions, disbelievers in the biblical account of history were the ones to take advantage of the naïveté of these fanatics to create false proof and, thus, cause mockery and rejection among the academic world. Faking fossils and other “evidence” harms the true research among creationist scientists; most of these researchers have learned to be careful in the accuracy of their statements.

Dinosaurs and the Bible

The story of Creation in Genesis 1 tells of a God who created sea life as well as birds on the fifth day and the rest of the animals on the sixth day.

Although reptiles are listed among the animals created, dinosaurs are not specifically mentioned. This should not surprise us, because in Moses’ day (the author of the book of Genesis), the word dinosaur did not exist, nor was he under the obligation to specifically mention them; he didn’t mention numerous other groups of animals as well. For example, Genesis does not mention beetles, sharks, starfish, moss, algae, or any number of other groups of organisms.

The fact that, in the Bible, dinosaurs were not mentioned by name does not prove that God did not create them; nor does the strange appearance that they have in museum replicas. Currently, there are many animals just as strange in appearance as dinosaurs—consider deep-sea anglerfish, platypuses, and kangaroos—and they don’t draw that much attention. Some people believe that dinosaurs appeared as the result of the curse after Adam’s and Eve’s sin, but the Bible does not shed any light on this, nor does it explicitly identify which animals changed as a result of sin and about what kind of changes these might have been.

Most creationist scientists believe that dinosaurs disappeared during or shortly after the Genesis Flood. Again, the Bible does not give us a clue regarding the fate of these animals. The fact that dinosaurs disappeared during a worldwide catastrophe that we call the Flood is a hypothesis that we should seriously consider but only through scientific research, and that’s because of the silence in the Bible on the matter. The demonstration of this hypothesis should come from geological and paleontological data, not by forcing the Bible to say what it does not say.

Last of all, there are people who think dinosaurs survived after the Flood and disappeared a short while later because they could not adjust to a new environment. This is also a possibility, since some dinosaurs could have been inside the ark, then disappeared during the postdiluvian colonization. The Bible mentions two strange creatures, behemoth (Job 40:15–18) and leviathan (Job 41:1), which some interpret as possible examples of postdiluvian dinosaurs. However, most Bible scholars do not accept this explanation, and the words behemoth and leviathan are usually translated as “hippopotamus” and “crocodile,” respectively, and therefore, are not related to dinosaurs.

Dinosaurs and Ellen White

The term dinosaur was first used by the British zoologist, Richard Owen, in 1842, to name a group of reptile fossils then recently discovered. The use of the term spread as new discoveries took place throughout Europe and North America. Around the time Ellen White wrote her first statements on Creation, the Flood, science, and faith (in 1864), the term dinosaur had already found its way into scientific books and newspapers. However, Ellen White never used this term or any other similar word referring to these extinct reptiles.

In a brief declaration in 1864, she wrote, “Every species of animal which God had created were preserved in the ark. The confused species which God did not create, which were the result of amalgamation, were destroyed by the flood.”1 This has become a favorite statement for some Adventists who believe it explains fossils with intermediate characteristics2 and other extinct organisms, including dinosaurs. Many people read into these words what we know as genetic engineering, indicating that in prediluvian times people practiced crossbreeding, including animals and human beings, resulting in strange biological hybrid forms.

However, this interpretation presents various problems. The first rises from the difficulty of defining what Ellen White meant by “amalgamation.” Thorough studies on this statement have not shed a definitive answer, and we conclude that we do not know exactly what the prophet wanted to say in her statement.

A second problem arises in the application of “amalgamation” to real cases in the fossil record. If “amalgamation” meant “hybrid,” how could we recognize them among fossils or among modern day plants and animals? How could we determine which species are hybrid before the Flood, if they actually existed at all? Some have answered this question by saying that hybrid species did not survive the Flood, precisely because God didn’t want them to. But this sort of reasoning is a circular fallacy because the criteria we use to differentiate hybrids (extinction) is precisely the same as we use to define what we would like to differentiate (hybrids). In other words, amalgamations explain their own disappearance, and their disappearance defines what they are.

After the previous statement, she goes on by saying that “since the flood there has been amalgamation of man and beast, as may be seen in the almost endless varieties of species of animals.”3 In the first place, it is important to emphasize that Ellen White says amalgamations of and not between man and animals, as some have chosen to read. Secondly, if amalgamation means intermediate forms, hybrids or strange-engineered creatures, what are the criteria to recognize them? If these were formed after the Flood, they likely became fossils, and others would have survived up to now. How can we differentiate one from the other fossils and living organisms that are not the result of hybrids? Ellen White gives us no clues on that issue.

Further on, in the same text, Ellen White states that she was “shown that very large, powerful animals existed before the flood, which do not now exist.”4 In another text, she states that “[t]here were a class of very large animals which perished at the flood. God knew that the strength of man would decrease, and these mammoth animals could not be controlled by feeble man.”5

This statement, among others, regarding life before the Flood suggests that the prophet was referring to the existence of a wide variety of animals that did not survive in the ark. However, we are not sure of the meaning of this statement; we do not know what these “very large, powerful animals” were. However, her statements are not really far off from the scientific description of dinosaurs. Biologically speaking, they are somehow confusing, not only because some of them are gigantic, but also their body parts (legs, neck, tail, brain, and so forth) are, in some cases, out of proportion. Even paleontologists do not agree on whether the dinosaurs were warm or cold-blooded.

The truth is that many people have struggled to find in Ellen White’s statements support for the idea that dinosaurs were not created by God, but rather the result of hybrids before the Flood, and thus, condemned to disappear in the worldwide catastrophe. This might be a possibility, but, after a thorough study of her writings, we find no unequivocal support for such conclusions. We do not know for sure what Ellen White wanted to express, and we should wait until we reach a better understanding of her statements.

Conclusion

Scripture does not mention the existence of dinosaurs—at least not as we now understand them—neither before nor after the Genesis Flood. Ellen White also does not mention them, and we are not sure of the meaning of her statements regarding “large animals.” Neither the Bible nor Ellen White say why they do not mention them. This is very important, since the fact that the Bible probably does not mention dinosaurs is not evidence that they never existed. What we cannot explain does not necessarily lack existence, but is simply another matter, among others, about which the Bible says nothing and that provides potentially fascinating questions for us to study using the fossil record and other data.

We should teach our students and church members that dinosaurs did exist. We have clear evidence: we have dinosaur bones, teeth, eggs, footprints, and even impressions of their skin. Furthermore, at some point in history they disappeared. Their extinction could have taken place before, during, or after the Genesis Flood. Like the rest of the fossils, the origin and disappearance of dinosaurs are wrapped in mystery. For this reason, they require careful and rigorous study, something Christians with the interest and talent should be encouraged to do. Dinosaurs do not challenge or compromise our faith in the Bible’s teachings.

1. Ellen G. White, Spiritual Gifts, vol. 3 (Battle Creek, MI: Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association, 1864), 75.

2. Intermediate fossils, also known as transition fossils, are those which, according to the theory of evolution, show mixed characteristics between two groups of animals or plants that are considered consecutive in time. An example of this is reptiles that look like mammals, which are considered as an intermediate step in evolution from the first towards the second. These transition fossils are the source of much debate among scientists.

3. White, 75; emphasis added.

4. Ibid., 92.

5. White, Spiritual Gifts, vol. 4a (Battle Creek, MI: Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association, 1864), 121.