“The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men of old, the men of renown.”
Genesis 6:4
In all honesty, this may be the most confusing verse I’ve read in a very long time. I want you to read it again before I go on.
I’ve got a little footnote in my bible that these people were giants, and from an old NIV study bible I got the explanation that this Hebrew word literally means “fallen ones.” So, in a strict theological standpoint, the truth of this verse is quite simple: there were mighty, ancient men who were quite famous, but God was not partial to them because of their stature or strength. God’s view of them is clearly depicted by the next verse: “The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5). Although we are easily and superficially impressed by each other, God is concerned about our hearts. How incredible it would be if our minds were fully transformed to God’s on this matter!
But anyway, that isn’t the mystery of this verse to me. First of all, and quite superficially, how gigantic were these men? It’s like thinking about a species of animal that doesn’t exist anymore, or wondering what the serpent looked like with his feet in the Garden.
Second of all, what is most curious to me about this verse is located in this phrase: “the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them (which, I’m assuming were the Nephilim).” But it’s not the fact that the Nephilim were born that puzzles me; their conception puzzles me.
Correct me if I’m wrong you formally educated theologians, but my understanding of the phrase “sons of God” means brothers and sisters to Jesus via faith. In other words, the phrase “sons of God” is not used for humanity in general. And, if I’m looking at this verse, then I would have to assume that “sons of God” refers neither to humanity in general nor to children in God’s family through faith. Since this verse contrasts “sons of God” with “daughters of man,” and because their offspring are “superhumans,” I must conclude that “sons of God” refers to beings that are not human.
So what were they? Were they angels? Were they the fallen angels, therefore creating a fallen man? Is this foreshadowing the conception of Christ?
Unfortunately, this is about as far as I can go. The only other reference to the Nephilim that I know of in Scripture is in Numbers 13 when spies going came out of Canaan describing their men as Nephilim. So, I don’t think this mystery can be solved here and now.
What a strange verse though!
Lord, I pray that You would work even through the mysteries of Your word. I don’t understand what exactly is going on here, but I do realize that what I truly need You have expounded upon greatly in Your word. I pray that this mystery would create in me awe for You.
4 comments:
I'm going to have to get back with you on my thoughts...I am confused as well.
I agree. This verse is very confusing and mysterious. I did, however, hear a pretty interesting interpretation from R.C. Sproul.
He maintains that the "sons of God" were men in the line of Seth. This line would be the covenant people of God. The daughters of man were daughters in the line of Cain. Thus, the men from the line of Seth were intermarrying with the daughters from the line of Cain. Sproul argues that these were normal people, not angels or demons or anything else.
To be honest, I'm not sure how much water this explanation holds. It may be an effort to take the mystery out of a mysterious verse. It doesn't really explain why the men would be "men of renown" or be, as Kevin's Bible says, "giants". However, it is an interesting perspective to think of this text from. Maybe one of you has some more insight into this?
Ya, this one is confusing. I think our interpretation of this text, in some sense, comes down to our view on angels. Are angels embodied beings or disembodied spirits.
Personally, I find no evidence in scripture that angels are spirits only. I think the spiritual interpretation is born out of a gnostic view of material flesh. The Gnostics thought that the flesh was inherently evil and other from the person, ie. the soul. Therefore, sinless angels cannot be embodied. This is Platonic and Gnostic, this is not Christian.
If angels are embodied, then it is not a stretch to believe that fallen angels had sexual relations with these women. Still, I myself find this interpretation to be a bit strange, but so is R.C. Sproul's interpretation, so there you go.
Wow! I hadn't read this for a while and I have wondered about this question for years! In my British Literature class sophomore year, the prof explained that the Nephilim were one further reason to read the Bible as myth. I went home and read it, and sure enough, was as confused as ever. But, sure, why couldn't God make the fallen angels have sex? Gosh, I get so stuck in my tradition-laden thinking. I forget that God is, and always was, so way supernatural that we cannot fully comprehend! Thanks for all the info guys!
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