Nearly every major ancient culture has legends about giant reptiles. Dragons are found in the early literature of the English, Irish, Danish, Norse, Scandinavians, Germans, Greeks, Romans, Egyptians and Babylonians. Among the American Indians, legends of dragons flourished among the Crees, Algonquins, Onondagas, Ojibways, Hurons, Chinooks, Shoshones, and Eskimos. How would these civilizations, separated by continents, all come up with legends of giant reptile creatures if they did not really exist?
Job describes Leviathan: (some versions translate tannin to mean jackal or hippo, but as you read the following verse, do you really think it describes a hippo or a jackal?) Hebrew scholars confirm that the truest meaning of tannin is “sea or land monster”. Job is usually considered to be one of the oldest of the Bible books, thought to be written almost 3,000 years ago.
12 “I will not fail to speak of Leviathan’s limbs, its strength and its graceful form. … Who can penetrate its double coat of armor?... its mouth, ringed about with fearsome teeth? 15 Its back has[c] rows of shields. Its snorting throws out flashes of light; 19 Flames stream from its mouth; sparks of fire shoot out. 20 Smoke pours from its nostrils ...21 Its breath sets coals ablaze, and flames dart from its mouth. Its chest is hard as rock, When it rises up, the mighty are terrified; 26 The sword that reaches it has no effect,…” (Job 41: 12-26). Sure sounds like the classic Dark Ages dragon, don’t you think?
There are other Bible references to dragons, here are just a few:
Deuteronomy 32:33 “Their wine is the poison of dragons…”
Nehemiah 2:13 “And I went out by night by the gate of the valley, even before the dragon well, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem…”
Psalm 44:19 “Though thou hast broken us in the place of dragons…”
Psalm 74:13 “Thou brakest the heads of the dragons in the waters.”
Psalm 91:13 “ the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.”
Psalm 148:7 “Praise the Lord from the earth, ye dragons…”
Isaiah 27:1 “In that day the Lord with his great and strong sword shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.”
Isaiah 34:13 “And thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof: and it shall be an habitation of dragons”.
"Therefore I will wail and howl, I will go stripped and naked: I will make a wailing like the dragons,” Micah 1:8
"Therefore I will wail and howl, I will go stripped and naked: I will make a wailing like the dragons,” Micah 1:8
In the New Testament, "dragon" is used only as an analogy for Satan.
“And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems.” Revelation 12:3.
“the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast ; 4 they worshiped the dragon because he gave his authority to the beast.” Rev. 13:3
The Bible states that the dragon will deceive the whole world through miracles and smooth words."And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty." (Revelation 16:13-14)
“And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.” Rev. 20:1-3
