Nephilim ∙∙

Nephilim ∙∙

The Nephilim were on the earth in those days (and also after this) when the sons of God were having sexual relations with the daughters of man, who gave birth to their children. They were the mighty heroes of old, the famous men. – Genesis 6:4

Numbers 13:33 There also we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak are part of the Nephilim), and we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.

Numbers 13:33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.

Numbers 13:25-33

 25 After exploring the land for forty days, the men returned

 26 to Moses, Aaron, and the whole Israel community at Kadesh in Paran’s wilderness. They reported to the entire community what they had seen and showed them the fruit they had taken from the land.

 27 This was their report to Moses: We entered the land you sent us to explore, and it is indeed a bountiful country – a land flowing with milk and honey. Here is the kind of fruit it produces.

 28 But the people living there are powerful, and their towns are large and fortified. We even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak!

 30 But Caleb tried to quiet the people as they stood before Moses. Let’s go at once to take the land, he said. We can certainly conquer it!

 31 But the other men who had explored the land with him disagreed. We can’t go up against them! They are stronger than we are!

 32 So they spread this bad report about the land among the Israelites: The land we traveled through and explored will devour anyone who goes to live there. All the people we saw were huge.

 33 We even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak. Next to them, we felt like grasshoppers, and that’s what they thought, too!

Greek and Roman mythology, along with folklore from the Ancient Near East, feature stories of beings who were part human, part divine, such as Hercules and the Titans like Cyclops and Atlas. Hercules stands out as the most prominent Greek hero, known for his extraordinary strength as the son of Zeus and Alcmene, making him a demigod.

Have giants indeed existed on Earth? Some translations of the Old Testament suggest this possibility. Enter the Nephilim. Who were they, and where did they originate? Could they be the legendary giants of ancient lore? The term “Nephilim” appears only twice in the Old Testament, in Genesis 6:4 and Numbers 13:33. Although the exact meaning is unclear, Nephilim were described as large, powerful, and aggressive men, with the name meaning “rebels” or “fallen ones.”

In Hebrew, the word used is “Nephilim,” which has been transliterated into English the same way. When the Old Testament was translated into Greek as the Septuagint, “Nephilim” became “gigantes,” giving rise to the English word “giants.” In the King James Version, “Nephilim” is translated as “giants,” a term still used in many modern translations of Genesis 6:4 and Numbers 13:33.

However, the Scriptures do not label them as giants in the modern sense. What do the Scriptures actually say?

Genesis 6:4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and afterward, when the sons of God had sexual relations with the daughters of men, and they gave birth to the children. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.

According to Genesis 6:4, the Nephilim became mighty, fierce, and violent warriors. They were well-known and famous in the antediluvian world.

Moses sent 12 spies into Canaan on a reconnaissance mission to find out if it was indeed a land flowing with milk and honey, how well it was fortified, and what kind of people lived there (Numbers 13:33). The Scriptures state that Nephilim were present. It adds a detail that is not present in Genesis 6:4. Further, they were large men. The spies declared that compared to the Nephilim, they were as tiny as grasshoppers in their own sight (Numbers 13:33). Could this fearful exaggeration be a rationalization to attempt to halt the invasion of Canaan?

The most famous of the Nephilim was Goliath of Gath, a Philistine, who was six cubits and a span, that is, about 9 feet 9 inches in height (1 Samuel 17:4).

If all human life on earth was destroyed except for Noah and those that accompanied him on the ark, the Nephilim were part of the human gene pool of the humans that survived. They were the descendants of Adam and Eve.

In modern times, very tall humans are frequently seen on basketball teams. Many are over seven feet tall. In addition, there are real giants among us in modern times. Many of whom are 8-9 feet tall. In childhood, their pituitary gland makes too much growth hormone (somatotropin), producing gigantism.

REFLECT & PRAY

Grasping the meaning of the Scriptures can be challenging, yet we delve into them not because they are simple but because they are complex.

Father, thank You for the gift of reasoning and the presence of the Holy Spirit within us, guiding us to comprehend the vastness and depth of Your magnificent Word (Ephesians 3:18).

INSIGHT

The Golden Rule of Interpretation states: “When the plain sense of Scripture makes common sense, give it no other sense.” To understand the Scriptures, we must allow them to express their own meaning within their intended context, employing a literal, grammatical, and historical approach. This method seeks to uncover what the text meant to the original writer or speaker and to its initial audience.

Applying the Golden Rule of Interpretation to Genesis 6:1-4 involves examining the genealogies of Seth and Cain outlined in Genesis 4. Seth’s lineage is noted for its piety (Genesis 4:25-26, Genesis 5), whereas Cain’s descendants are characterized by their lack of godliness (Genesis 4:11-15).

Genesis 6:1-4

 1 Now it came about when men began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them,

 2 that the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose.

 4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God had sexual relations, the daughters of men, and they gave birth to the children. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.

Without incorporating concepts from other Scriptural texts or Jewish and Christian traditions, the simplest, most straightforward interpretation is that the “sons of God” represent the godly lineage of Seth. At the same time, the “daughters of men” refer to the ungodly lineage of Cain. These groups intermarried, resulting in some of their descendants being Nephilim.

The world quickly became filled with wickedness and immorality. Consequently, God chose Noah, a righteous man, to save pairs of animals and eight human beings from the impending global flood.

Genesis 6:1-4 makes no mention of fallen angels. Additionally, Genesis 1 states that living beings reproduce “after their kind.” If, as some propose, fallen angels turned into human males, married human females, and bore children, the question arises: where did the genetic material originate for such offspring?

The noncanonical Apocrypha from the intertestamental period presents a different perspective. In Sirach 16:7 (also known as Ecclesiasticus), the “ancient giants” are depicted as rebellious beings deserving of divine retribution. Wisdom 14:6 (also known as the Wisdom of Solomon)and Baruch 3:26-28 go further, suggesting these giants were eradicated by the Flood.

If so, the Nephilim mentioned later were not direct descendants but rather shared the same name as their predecessors. However, they were equally fearsome. The Israelite spies admitted, “We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them” (Numbers 13:33).

Scripture can often be perplexing, leaving us puzzled. Even the apostle Peter experienced such challenges.

2 Peter 3:15-16

 15 This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him

 16 speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted his letters to mean something quite different, just as they do with other parts of Scripture. And this will result in their destruction.

It is incumbent upon each child of the King to study and research for themselves and find the best resources to help them better understand the Word of God. The King James Version puts it like this.

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman who must not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

This reflection is a bit different, but it comes in response to a question I was asked.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯9-04-2

© Dr. H 2024