Who And What Were The Nephilim?
Christian groups often disagree about the existence of the Nephilim. Who exactly were the Nephilim? This is a fascinating topic to theologians and scholars. Take a look at the different points of view listed below to find out what has been said in the past about this topic.
The Fallen Ones, The Giants
Got Questions' interpretation of the Nephilim was that they are the offspring of sexual relations between the sons of God and daughters of men in Genesis 6:1–4. The identity of the “sons of God” has been debated for a long time. According to Got Questions’ article, the “sons of God” were fallen angels who mated with human females. The Nephilim were the result of these unions.
Hebraic and other legends claim that the Nephilims were giants and super-heroes who committed evil acts. It is likely that their powerful size and strength is a result of a mixture of demonic "DNA" and human genetics. The article also talked about Russell Crowe's film "Noah” in which the fallen angels were encased in rock. Their only mention in the Bible is that they were “heroes of old, men of renown” Genesis 6:4.
Learn more about the Nephilims and what prevents the demons from producing more Nephilim today here.
Nephilim Were Descendants of Seth
In an article from Christian Standard Bible, one of their views of the Nephilim is that they are godly men. It is possible they are descendants of Seth, one of Adam and Eve's other children, who had offspring with sinful and non-God-worshiping women.
The story follows right after Cain goes wandering. The evil offspring of Cain begin mixing with the people who still believe in God. This would help explain Genesis 6:3 - “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.” Then Genesis 6:5- “The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.”
Hence, it's possible that it’s referring to the Nephilims as the "sons of God" since they were called “heroes of old,” implying that they were once good.
Read the full article written by Brandon D.Smith here.
Nephilim Were Offspring of Fallen Men
Edward Antonio listed 4 different theories about the identity of the Nephilim. One of the ideas claims that the “sons of God” were religious men who married ungodly women. They are just common men and weren’t Seth’s descendants. This union produced the Nephilim, a group of offspring that perished.
There’s still a debate about this theory because of the confusion with the term Nephilim which means and is related to the verb "to fall." In Hebrew it is translated as “naphal.”
On the other hand, the theory is supported by the fact that it is aligned with Scripture both pre-flood and post-flood. This means that before the flood, these offspring were "fallen men.” Then after the flood destroyed everyone except the family of Noah, the Nephilim still appeared (Numbers 13:33). This implies that the Nephilim are just fallen men.
Read his various theories of the Nephilim here.
Fallen Angels Overtook Men
In this theory published by Answers in Genesis, the “sons of God” were Men overtaken by fallen angels or demons. According to this view, the offspring are not hybrids but were born as human beings. Obviously, some of the arguments against angels being sons of God apply here as well.
Satan or demons can possess men. Satan can easily influence or overcome men as he did to Judas in Luke 22:3. People have often been possessed by demons, as shown in Mark 5:15.
Could someone who has been possessed by demons and/or fallen angels be called a son of God? Several people in the gospel were overtaken by demons, but they were never granted the title of sons of God. Similarly, other biblical passages do not mention people who have been overcome by evil spirits or demons as sons of God.
Check the summary of the Nephilim’s identity below:
Fallen angels - The Nephilim are the offspring of Satan and/or his fallen angels bred with human females.
Sethite - From Adam to Seth, down to Noah, were the godly descendants of God. The Nephilim were the fallen children who worshipped false gods.
Fallen men - Godly men (sons of God) united with ungodly wives, and their descendants are called Nephilim who sought after the false gods, disobeyed God, and turned away from God.
Fallen angels overtook men - Fallen angels and/or Satan possessed men and led them to breed with women.
The Nephilim and the Great Flood
Christian scholars believe that the Nephilim were one of the primary causes of the great flood in Noah's time. Following the mention of the Nephilim in Genesis 6:5-7:
“The LORD saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. The LORD was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. So the LORD said, ‘I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth—men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air—for I am grieved that I have made them.”
In His fury, God flooded the entire world, destroying everyone and everything except Noah, his family, and the animals on the ark. It was speculated that all died including the Nephilim. While the great flood in Genesis caused the death of the Nephilim in that time period, there is speculation that the demons bred with humans afterwards, too. How did this happen? Read the article in Crosswalk.com. You’ll also find the additional commentary and questions answered by James Emery White about this topic.