Home Forums Miscellaneous Topics Christ at the Campfire Who/what were the giants of Genesis 6?

Anyone have any thoughts as to who these "Nephilim" were? And why were they so closely related to God's decision to flood the Earth?
Thanks

I'm just mostly glad they're gone. Beyond that it's mostly inspired speculation and a few curious passages and verses. If'n I were to give in to some of that inspired speculation and give consideration to those curious passages and verses, I'd say maybe God had dealt with their kind before in a similar fashion.

What do you think?

Big, bad guys. And they were there even after that. There are still some big, bad boys around today. Check out the front three for any NBA team. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

God's decision to flood the earth was due to the fact the imagination of the thoughts and intents of man's heart was only evil continually, and there was wickedness and violence on the planet. These giants, it seems, were the product of the sons of God and the daughters of men. And there was only one man alive in those days who was perfect in his generations -- Noah. He had not had his seed messed up, like the seed in Gen 3, and later in Gen 9, and later when Abraham took Hagar and messed up his seed, and Judah and Tamar, and on and on. The devil will get his skull crushed by the seed of the woman, and so throughout time, he has been trying to mess up the seed of the woman, hoping he will escape the curse of Gen 3.

So just who are the giants of Genesis 6?

Big, bad guys. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Or maybe RickyD is right, veiled and clouded as it may be. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

don't cha like a good mystery? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Yep, sure do. There are seven mysteries in the Bible, and some of 'em are real dandies.

- The mystery of godliness is a good one.
- The mystery of iniquity is another.
- The mystery of the indwelling Christ.
- The mystery of blindness in part to Israel.

The rest of the mystery, I'll leave to you to find out, otherwise it wouldn't be a mystery. Do you agree? (help me! that other thread has infected my brain. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />)

Every time this comes up, someone says they're fallen angels who mated with human women. I disagree. Jesus said that there is no marriage or giving in marriage in heaven and that men become as the angels. That tells me that angels are not capable of sex. Also, in the NT, men are called sons of God, as in God's creation.
I have no proof whatever, but I'm inclined to say that they're a race of very large, evil men. It's possible that they're the ancestors of Goliath's family, their genes having been preserved through one of the wives of Noah or his sons. We have no knowledge whatever of their lineage.

Dick

That's a very interesting aspect of the old to the new Testament. In the old, angels are called sons of God and in the new, we are.

Here are some scriptures to consider regarding the context the title is used in the OT:

Job 1:6

6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them.
KJV

Job 2:1
2:1 Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.
KJV

Job 38:3-7

3 Gird up now thy loins like a man; for I will demand of thee, and answer thou me.

4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.

5 Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?

6 Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;

7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
KJV

There are a few more in Genesis but they basically parallel the giants saga and that's what you are questioning.

Note how in the last verse talking about the sons of God, the Lord is recalling the day when ALL the sons of God rejoiced at His Creation.

Then look at the first two references to these sons in Job. Now we find them keeping some pretty bad company, with the fallen one himself. We know he has fallen because he is referred to as Satan (adversary), not Lucifer(morning star). And they are presenting themselves to the Lord. Like reporting to their parole officer, maybe? And we are not told in this instance they are all there, are we? So it would seem to me these were the fallen angels.

From those three verses I conclude that when the earth was created Lucifer had not yet fallen and all the angels were still faithful to God. After man was created some angels had joined with a then fallen Lucifer, who was now known as Satan. And that those fallen angels were called the sons of God, along with those angels who still served God.

Something to think about. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

RickyD,

Pretty astute theology lesson! Good job. I would suggest though, that Satan had fallen sometime prior to Genesis 6, since he appears in a fallen state at least in Genesis 3 in the garden, when he messed with sister Eve. That was likely not his first act as a fallen being. Maybe, and I am not trying to hijack this thread, that explains the without form and void of Genesis 1:2.

I also think that your interpretation of Lucifer as morning star may be off a little bit according to Isaiah 14:12 "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning ! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!"

Son of the morning I could buy. Morning star is a reference to Jesus Christ, unless you're reading an NIV. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> As far as I have been led to believe, Lucifer means "light bearer." Which is different than the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world -- Jesus Christ. Lucifer only carried light. He was not Light incarnate. Thank you Jesus!

Good job on the sons of God, though. I liked that!

Rock Chuck
We will never know the answer to this one until the day we sat at the foot of the thrown.

I have listened to several sides of this and have some points to make about the sons of God being demonic.

Genesis 6:1,2 Now it came about, when men began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose.

Now number one: the sons of men and the daughters are called by different names. If all were men would not they have been called the sons of men and the daughters of men?

Number two: These women, the daughters of men were not the first women, you would have thought the sons of men or men would have noticed them before. I know it did not take me long to notice a beautiful woman.

OT scripture calls demons the sons of God in other places.

I do not understand the mechanics behind how this may have happened but I think demons came to earth and �took� women, the daughters of man and produced another strain of being. This is what brought on the flood to preserved Adam�s line. This could have been the plan of Satan to destroy the line of Jesus that was to come and �Crush the head� of Satan.

Again, I do not know if this is the way it was or not but id does make some sence when you think about it.

Just one old mans opinion.

Scott,

Kinda what RickyD had intimated, and I alluded to as well. You mean there is some agreement here?? WOW!

I am sure it is an accident! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Everyone has opinions. My oppinion is that it was those who took their flinstone vitamins regularly. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

I agree. It couldn't have been the angles. But you must admit it makes for good stories. After the fall of man the perfect creation became marred. Perhaps genetic defects, or demonically posessed individuals.

And demons are what??? -- maybe fallen angels? ? ? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I haven't had time to read every post here so If I'm repetitive here forgive me.

This is a very interesting part of Scripture, Gen 6:1,2 and it is the traditional Rabbinical thought that indeed angels left their first estate, came among women and bore "hybrids" called the Nephilim. Every ancient culture has stories and myths about these giants and it is thought that Greek mythology had it's origins here.

This is the interpretation of The Testimony of the Twelve Patriarchs and the Book of Enoch which are non-canonical books but very interesting. There is other strong evidence in the O.T. manuscripts which were translated into Greek - the Septuagent - under Ptolemy about 275 Years B.C.; in this Greek, "angels" was the word for what is now the "Sons of God" and in the Hebrew the "Sons of God" was Bene Haelohim which refers to "direct creation" of God which in context give strong credence to angels. You will note if you want to that in Job 1:6, 2:1, and 38:7 and in the N.T., Luke 20:36, the "Sons of God" is used to clearly mean angels.

Nephilim means "fallen ones", nephal to fall, be cast down, to fall away, to desert.

Now interestingly, in Gen 6:9, the word "perfect" - in reference to Noah - means without blemish, sound, healthful, unimpaired. Many theologians take this to mean that his DNA was untainted by this line.

In Biblical Demonology, Merrill Unger, a renowned evangelical theologian holds to this view - angels coming down to women.
Check out Jude 6 and 7 to read of their punishment; also 2 Peter 2:4,5.

Now the real question. Why do so many of main line churches, protestant and Catholic teach this is - "The Sons of Seth" - the line of Seth, the so-called righteous line. In the 5th century, Celsius the Apostate claimed Christianity was "too spooky" and adopted this "line of Seth" line. If IIRC this was held by Augustine also who tended to allegorize and spiritualize scripture. The Reformers did a good job of rediscovering and promoting salvation by faith through grace but completely overlooked some of these issues including prophecy. Therefore, this is now not taught in the seminaries nor therefore held by the masses.

Don't form beliefs on what is comfortable or on how you feel. The facts must be based on the Scriptures, the original Hebrew and Greek texts and taken in context with other referencing scriptures. There is much more about angels, the fallen and those in the heavenly realm, and about the nephilim and this story that could be told. I for one now hold to this view

Interesting and good information, and not only because it agrees with my belief in principle. Thanks

Here's where the morning star reference for Lucifer came from:

heylel

OT:1966 heylel (hay-lale'); from OT:1984 (in the sense of brightness); the morning-star:


KJV - lucifer (the king of Babylon).


(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright � 1994, 2003 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

I would reject that information just on the fact that Lucifer has no light of his own, and a star does. Jesus Christ is called the bright and morning star, so Lucifer cannot be the same, or you have a devil with the same name as the Saviour. Kinda doesn't fit in theologically. The brightness I can see in his early days before the fall when all his pipes and tabrets were going strong, and when every precious stone was his covering, but now he is the prince of darkness and the ruler of the darkness of this world. That has nothing to do with the Jesus Christ I know. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I have a reference that says that 'morning star' is a title given to the kings of Babylon. Lucifer was regarded as being one of them.
Jesus called himself that in Rev. Satan is known for his attempts to duplicate the things of God and this is just one more of his attempts.

Dick

Bro Shootist consider that when you look at that last verse outta Job I posted we see God telling Job that when the earth was created the morning stars rejoiced. So there are more than one morning star. Now Jesus is THE and perfectly BRIGHT morning star, that all the morning stars look to as them perfected, just like we, His sons of God see Christ as us perfected. Jesus always sets the standard of operation in all of our attributes and behaviors, I see no reason why He wouldn'g do so for all of heaven, too. I believe God is using this category for all the created beings we see mentioned throughout scripture that are not mere angels.

Not to slight the angels. I love mine but they do have some issues with me. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" /> But these other heavenly beings are always mentioned with different attributes and duties and often names. Lucifer was one and I believe the chief of that group and all other heavenly creations under Christ. Lucifer may not have been the only one out of the morning star category that fell, either. We do see some powerful fallen spirits mentioned, like the prince of babylon that resisted God's angel sent to Daniel. These are interesting topics. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />