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CHAPTER SIXTEEN
LIFE FLOURISHES IN THE
SEA AND AIR
While life had yet to appear on the land, the seas literally teemed with all manner of life
by 530 million years ago. The extinct trilobites were the most prevalent species of sea life
that existed at that time. Primitive clams and snails had also appeared.19 By 520 million
years ago, vertebrates made their appearance.20 Jawless fish soon followed by the Ordovician
Period - about 500 million years ago.21 Jawed fish would appear by 460 million years ago.22
Around 400 million years ago, larger marine creatures such as sharks followed them.23
Amphibians would venture onto the dry land during the Devonian Period (between 412 and
354 million years ago24).25 The Mesozoic Era - or the "Age of Dinosaurs" (250 million to
65 million years ago) - saw the rise of giant marine creatures such as the Ichthyosaurs,
Plesiosaurs, Mosasaurs, and crocodiles.26
In the air, flying insects were the first to appear, about 300 million years ago.27
The reptilian Pterosaurs traversed the skies during the "Age of Dinosaurs," while birds
finally appeared some 150 million years ago. By the time the first bird took to the air,
the creatures of the seas had increased in number - under God's blessing - and filled the
waters. Soon, the birds flourished and filled the air.
When the dinosaurs went extinct, some sixty-five million years ago, all of God's
commands for the Fifth Day had been fulfilled. The seas were literally teeming with life
and the birds were the kings of the air.
While the Biblical text focuses on marine animals and flying creatures, it should
not be assumed that no animal life appeared on the land during that time. Birds, in fact,
are generally terrestrial creatures, and many do not spend a great deal of time near bodies
of water. This is also true of the flying insects. The author was certainly aware that not
all of God's creations of the Fifth Day spent their time in the water or in the air.
Consequently, by naming flying creatures, the author was acknowledging that some land animals
were created on this day. There are many Biblical scholars that believe life did not appear on
the land until the Sixth Day. The creation of flying creatures certainly refutes that
conviction.
The Fifth Day spanned at least 400 million years, and was a time of tremendous change
in the life that inhabited our planet. Single-celled and simple organisms had dominated life
on the Earth for nearly three billion years. But on the Fifth Day, the seas were filled with
an abundance of large, multicellular creatures. The barren land gave rise to great forests,
amphibians, insects, dinosaurs, and reptiles. The skies were filled as flying insects,
Pterosaurs, and birds soared above the land and sea below, traversing great distances.
The Biblical record of the Fifth Day may or may not include the creation of the
dinosaurs, insects, or certain types of reptiles. Amphibians, animals capable of flight,
and the ancestors of much of the sea life that still exists today, were created during this
day, as the Bible records. Late-arriving animals such as the bats and the Cetaceans (which
includes whales and porpoises) do present some problems for the Biblical record. These mammals
appeared after the demise of the dinosaurs, and it is debatable whether to include their
creation with other flying creatures and marine animals.
Most scholars will acknowledge that the Biblical record for this day is certainly
incomplete from a scientific perspective. Yet, what the Bible does reveal in no way
contradicts the scientific evidence. The Biblical recording of a pivotal scientific event
like the Cambrian Explosion only enhances its credibility.
From the perspective of what the Bible has recorded on the Fifth Creation Day - and
not what it has excluded - the events of this day are in complete agreement with the
scientific record.
NOTES:
19. Allison R. Palmer, "Cambrian", McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology,
8th Edition, 1997, Vol.3, p.186
20. Carl Zimmer, "Breathe Before You Bite," Discover, March 1996, p.34
21. Tom Waters, "First Fish," Discover, January 1997, p.59
22. Carl Zimmer, "Breathe Before You Bite," Discover, March 1996, p.34
23. Victor G. Springer and Joy P. Gold, Sharks in Question: The Smithsonian Answer Book
(Washington D.C., London: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1989), p.30
24. J.G. Johnson and P.H. Heckel, "Devonian", McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology, 8th Ed., 1997, Vol.5, p.192
25. Alfred S. Romer and Everett C. Olson, "Amphibia", McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology, 8th Ed., 1997, Vol.1, p.582
26. Alan J. Charig, "Reptilia", McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology, 8th Ed., 1997, Vol.15, p.422
27. Frank M. Carpenter, "Insecta", McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology, 8th Ed., 1997, Vol.9, p.236
(These are selected paragraphs within this chapter. This is not the entire chapter.)
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