Does Tree Ring Dating Disprove the Bible?

Some people claim that tree ring dating can disprove the Bible. They claim trees are older than the date of the worldwide Flood about 4,400 years ago. However, this conclusion is reached on the assumption that a tree ring always represents one year of growth.

Many factors contribute to the number of rings produced in one year including drought, temperatures, dormancy, and climate changes. The study of these multifaceted conditions which greatly affect the number of tree growth rings is called dendrochronology. Unless you are researching all the influences, you are not truly verifying the dendrochronological study of what the tree rings represent! Investigate the facts “in person” with Eric Hovind on this Creation Byte.

“True science and Scripture agree!”

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Note: While most Creation scientists and conservative Bible scholars today put the date of the worldwide Flood close to 2348 BC or approximately 4400 years ago, there are some scholars who add several hundred years to this date, putting it at about 5050 years ago. This would still fit the scientific data we see from this Bristlecone Pine tree containing 5062 tree rings. Why do they add these years? Well, the Greek Septuagint, the Samaritan Pentateuch, and Flavius Josephus give an extra hundred years per generation from Shem’s son, Arphaxad, to Serug and 50 years to Nahor’s life before Terah was born. This adds an extra 650 years to the timeline, which can be seen on our Longevity Chart. Although it is not the predominant view held by creationists today, some good arguments have been raised to support the older date. Either view would account for the oldest tree in the world being between 4400 and 5050 years old! As always, true science and Scripture agree!