Many a thesis and dissertation, not to mention books, have been
written on Gen. 6:1-4 and the meaning of the Sons of God. Therefore, this
post will keep the issue somewhat brief and hopefully serve to peak people’s
interest to do their own studying on this difficult passage. After
spending about fifteen hours restudying all the issues my view has been
adjusted or adapted but not outright changed.
Genesis 6:1-4 (NASB)
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.
3 Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not strive
with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless his days shall be one
hundred and twenty years.”
4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days,
and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men, and
they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of
renown.
Here are the three main views:
1) Sons of God as Human Rulers - This view
was created in the late 2nd Century
AD by Rabbis and is only held by a few Christians and therefore will not be
covered. Most agree that this position is too weak to be seriously
considered.
2) Sons of God as Godly Descendants of Seth - This view was
created by Augustine (who is known for promoting the Allegorical approach to
biblical interpretation) in the 4th Century AD and is the primary
alternative to the popular view.
Significant Weaknesses- First, nowhere in the ot are Sethites identified as the sons of
God. Second, this view forces two divergent meanings on the Hebrew word ʾadam in Gen 6:1–2: the term would have to
mean “mankind” in Gen 6:1, but a specific group of humans—the Cainites—in Gen
6:2. Additionally, this view implies that all the women of Cain’s line
were ungodly, whereas all the men of Seth’s line were godly. While this
might be averted by noting that no law existed prohibiting intermarriage of any
kind prior to the great flood, this would in turn undermine the entire premise
of the view. Also, since only Noah and his family were considered godly
in the days of the flood, we can presume that the vast majority of Seth’s
descendants were far from godly; Seth had more than one descendant (Gen 5:7).
Lastly, the daughters born in the previous chapter of Genesis were born
to Seth’s line, not Cain’s—the precise opposite of what this explanation
requires.
3) Sons of God as Divine Beings (Fallen Angels, aka Demons) - The
popular/ dominant view today was held by both Jews and Christians until the
above mentioned dates and has resurged in popularity in the last hundred or so
years. This view will be discussed in more detail below. (Even though a view is
popular and dominant that does not mean it is accurate and therefore needs to
be challenged and held up to what the Bible says)
Extra biblical Issues:
The position of the Sons of God as Divine Beings appears in early
Jewish works that comment on the stories of Genesis (1 Enoch 6; Jubilees 5),
the Septuagint, Philo (De Gigant 2:358), Josephus (Ant. 1.31), and the Dead Sea
Scrolls (1QapGen 2:1; CD 2:17–19); as well as the works of early Christian
scholars such as Justin, Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, and
Origen. The extra biblical arguments are not enough to prove or disprove
but are fascinating in that the Early Church held to the Divine position and
that is noteworthy. The Septuagint (Greek translation of Hebrew Old Testament) and Apocrypha (Non-canonical Intertestamental Writings) need to be mentioned
because in some instances they are held as authoritative or true in their
representations (I am not saying that they are 100% accurate in everything or
anything, but in holding to the inerrancy and authority of Scripture then the
stories mentioned must be held to as true, such as Jude talking about Satan and
Michael fighting over Moses’ body in Jude 9 which is a story from the
Apocrypha). Also, approximately 2/3 of the New Testament quotes of the
Old Testament are from the Septuagint.
Biblical Issues: (How does Scripture Interpret Scripture?)
Old Testament:
· The Hebrew phrase Sons of God appears three other times, all in
Job (1:6, 2:1, and 38:7) and they represent Angels in the heavenly court.
· In Daniel 3:25 the phrase Son of God is found but it is in Aramaic
(actually the whole passage is) but it refers to either God as a Theonomy or
more likely the Pre-incarnate Christ ministering to those in the fiery furnace,
either way the emphasis is on a “Divine Being.”
· Therefore, the standard usage of Sons of God means Divine Being(s)
in the Old Testament instances and is only really disputed in the Genesis
passage.
New Testament: In following the hermeneutical principle of the New
Testament shedding light or further explaining the Old Testament, the two
passages which refer to Genesis 6:1-4 are extremely important.
2nd Peter
2:4-11 (NASB)
4 For if
God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell (Greek
Tartarus) and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment;
5 and did
not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness,
with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;
6 and if He condemned the cities of Sodom
and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an
example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter;
7 and if He rescued righteous Lot,
oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men
8 (for by
what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among
them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after
day by their lawless deeds),
9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the
godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day
of judgment,
10 and especially those
who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise
authority.
Daring, self-willed, they do not tremble when they revile angelic
majesties,
11 whereas angels who are
greater in might and power do not bring a reviling judgment against them before
the Lord.
Jude 6-7 (NASB)
6 And
angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their proper abode, He
has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day,
7 just as
Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, since they in the same way as
these indulged in gross immorality and went after strange (or different or
other) flesh, are exhibited as an example in undergoing the punishment of
eternal fire.
Why are these two texts important? Both are promoting the
incident of Genesis 6 and not the initial fall of Satan and his angels (which
became demons), there are many reasons why but are way to in-depth for any
worthwhile discussion in this blog. Two quick examples are both contain
references to other Genesis accounts and in the era of the NT Demons were being
cast out of people and thus all were not locked up in the initial casting out of
Heaven.
Coinciding Question:
What do we know about Angels and Demons?
Angels are to worship the Lord, minister, protect, judge, etc.
Demons posses,
oppress, promote false religion, do Satan’s will, etc.
Concluding Argument:
Therefore, I believe that some fallen angels (demons) left their proper abode and furthermore possessed
men who married women and had offspring. This interpretation fits very well into
both of the two main views introduced above. The defining argument of the
Godly line of men is that the context of the passage focuses on mankind and how
wicked it has become, which is a valid point. But strictly holding to the Godly line has serious
flaws as shown above. The next view of Divine Beings makes better sense
of the Hebrew language, cross references found in both OT and NT, and (less
significantly) fits within the historical view. But if it were strictly
fallen angels, in spirit form, that came down and took wives there are serious
problems of procreation and the context/ meaning of the passage.
Finally, I believe that the overall point of Genesis 6 is as
follows and I will quote MacArthur who says it best: “Now what causes God to
step in and destroy all of humanity? Well the first four verses tell us
that the wickedness of man had reached such proportion that they had engaged
themselves in demonic relationships. Not only did they not seek God, not
only did they not endeavor to know God, but they pursued demons. And
that's what we find in these opening four verses.”
I have attached a link to a sermon, with text transcript, by John
MacArthur. Additionally, I only discovered this message after doing hours of research but do feel that his
points are the most biblically valid and solve many more problems than they
create.
May the Lord Bless and Keep You!
