Monthly Archives: November 2013

Where Does Neanderthal Fit in the Bible ?

Answers to Questions, Bible/Science, DNA, Neanderthal

Neanderthal’s Biblical identity revealed: he is pre-flood man. The Bible is clear: shortly after the creation, man sinned and became extremely wicked, so wicked that God was sorry He had made man. Then, God caused a great flood, destroying all mankind with the exception of Noah and his family. We are not sure how many souls died in this global flood but suspect that it was many. A common question is, why is there no fossil evidence of those killed in the flood? There is fossil evidence of dinosaurs, mammoths, fish, vegetation, mosquitoes, and even raindrops, so why not evidence of the humans who died in the flood? The answer to this question is simple and right before us: there is fossil evidence of humans dying in the flood; these humans are referred to as Neanderthals; Neanderthal man meets the Biblical criteria for those who died in the flood very nicely.

There is no question that Neanderthal man lived on earth. Many partial skeletons have been found which have provided the scientific community with credible DNA sequences. These sequences reveal a small, but distinct genetic difference between the Neanderthal and modern man; this difference is approximately 1.3 percent in the mitochondrial DNA. If we examine the scriptures in Genesis and join them with the fossil and DNA evidence, we can explain this distinct genetic difference between Neanderthal and modern man.

Looking at the Biblical account of the flood, we find that there were sudden major changes to the environment and ecosystems. The entire earth was flooded which resulted in a change to the atmosphere which, in turn, resulted in a new ecosystem, no longer able to support huge dinosaurs with small nostrils and dragonflies with over 2-foot wingspans. Also, concerning humans, we know they lived much shorter lives after the flood as clearly documented in Genesis chapter 11. These physiological changes would require a genetic reset of DNA. This genetic reset, which was executed by God, Himself, explains the small but distinct genetic differences between modern man and those before the flood, whom we have concluded are Neanderthals. Neanderthal fossils reveal that Neanderthal had larger brains than modern man, better bone structure, stronger teeth, better bites (occlusion), fewer genetic mutations (disease), and longer lifespan. For references and Neanderthal DNA sequences, see Neanderthal’s Identity.

Accepting Neanderthal man as those living before the flood solves many mysteries such as the following: 

  1. How did Neanderthal go extinct?

Answer: He died in the flood.

  1. Why is there no evidence of pre-flood man?

Answer: There is much evidence of pre-flood man – Neanderthal.

  1. Why is Neanderthal genetically distinct from modern man?

Answer: Neanderthal had only the first genetic reset, but modern man has both the first and second genetic reset. See the technical paper Neanderthal’s Identity for details.

  1. Why do we have his (Neanderthal’s) genetic mutations, but he doesn’t have ours (modern man)?

Answer: He is our ancestor. Our mutations were developed after the flood, so we have both Neanderthal and modern mutations; he has only the pre-flood mutations.

  1. Why did Neanderthal not interbreed with modern man?

Answer: He couldn’t; Neanderthal and modern man were separated by the flood.

  1. Why are Neanderthal’s remains found in so many diverse locations?

Answer: The flood deposited them there.

  1. Why is Neanderthal physiologically and anatomically superior?

Answer: His DNA was closer to Adam’s.

  1. Where does Neanderthal fit in post-flood Bible genealogy?

Answer: He doesn’t. We know the DNA from the table of nations people (Genesis Chapter 10) and subsequent generations; none has the Neanderthal genetic signature.

References:

  1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2583069/
  2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5100745/

Update (11/6/2019)

Compared to present-day human DNA, Ancient human DNA is significantly closer to Neanderthals. Here is the technical paper https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4943878/

Update (9/19/2019)

Neanderthal had less hair on his back than many present-day humans. This is due to genetic marker rs4849721. This marker is shared by Neanderthal and present-day humans. If you have a T at this marker position, you probably have less back hair than average. Neanderthals have the T which means that they too probably had less back hair than the average present-day human. Hmmm, so much for the hairy ape-man ( Ref. https://www.snpedia.com/index.php/Neanderthal/ )

Update (9/19/2018)

We have found evidence that the Neanderthal DNA is 99.5 percent identical with present-day humans (Reference 1) and that Neanderthal DNA appears to fall inside the variation of present-day humans (Reference 2).

 

Here is a link to additional updates to our basic premise that Neanderthals are those who lived before the flood.

Where Does Neanderthal Fit in the Bible – Update

 

 

 

The Genetics of Sin Nature

DNA

The Bible talks about our “sinful nature,” “the flesh,” and “carnal man” all of which refer to an attribute found in all humans: a propensity to sin. So the question is: Is this propensity to sin in our DNA? The answer is yes, sin nature is hardwired in us and in our DNA. We are not forced to sin, but we have the tendency to sin. This is not a God given tendency, but rather a result of Adam eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden some 6000 years ago.

ducklings_smallLet’s start with some basic logic: consider a baby duck, a duckling. It knows how to break out of the egg, how to walk on two legs, how to swim, how to eat by itself, and how to peep, all immediately after hatching. These are what are referred to as instincts; they are hardwired into the duckling through DNA and are not acquired through learning. We know this because all ducklings have these instincts no matter if hatched by the hen or hatched in an incubator. Later in life the duckling will learn where to find water, where he is safe, and where the best feeding spots are. So, the mature duck has some behavior that is hardwired and some that is learned.

The hardwired memory in the brain is passed on from generation to generation through DNA; the learned memory is not. We do not know which sequences of the DNA store these instincts since our understanding of DNA is still very limited. However, if you take a duck egg shortly after it is laid and crack it open, look at it and know that something in it contains the instructions to generate duck instincts. Logically, it has to be the DNA code which contains all the information to build a duck and prepare him for survival. Without these instincts being transfered throught the DNA from generation to generation, the duckling would not even hatch.

So how about humans? Human infants also have hardwired instincts such as desire to suckle, the tendency to put everything in their mouths, communication through crying, etc. Later, these infants learn the danger of falling, what pleases others, tasty foods, language, and many other things. So, like the duckling, the human infant is born with some hardwired memory and then later supplements this hardwired memory with learned memory. The hardwired  memory, or instincts, of humans includes the sin nature. This sin nature is apparent in all children and especially evident when they start to talk.

After God finished the creation, He proclaimed that the entire creation was “very good,” and this included man’s hardwired memory, or basic human instincts. Then came the serpent who injected something (the first GMO – genetically modified organism) into man using the forbidden fruit; this fruit changed man’s DNA, man now had the “sinful nature;” he was “carnal” and driven by his “flesh.” We know that it happened quickly because Adam and Eve, immediately after committing the original sin, hid from God; they were afraid of Him and ashamed of their nakedness (Genesis 3: 9-11). This fear and shame could not have been learned in that no events occurred that would have caused them to “learn” to fear God or be ashamed.

Our hardwired, instinctive sin nature is part of our DNA and we have to deal with it. Paul struggled with his sin nature and expressed his frustrations in the book of Romans:

Romans 7:19  For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.

Romans 7:20  Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

Romans 7:21  So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. (ESV)

Once the sin nature is understood, it becomes evident why it is so important for parents to teach their children right from wrong. It is the “learned” portion of the brain that can combat the hardwired sin nature.

However, the only permanent solution for dealing with the sin nature is to get rid of it; and, we have the hope that someday, soon, our sin nature will be removed; and, it will; the trumpets will blow, the dead in Christ will meet us in the air and we will be changed: our sin nature will be gone; we will get our good, pure, original DNA and we will be free. We will be redeemed.