S. Michael Houdmann Supporter Got Questions Ministries

As a background, please read our articles on "Who were the sons of God in Genesis 6:1-4?", and "Who were the Nephilim?" With the understanding that the sons of God were the fallen angels, and that ...

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July 01 2013 • 1 response • Vote Up • Share • Report

Steven Best Supporter Former mil intel analyst, chiropractor & Bible Teacher

The idea that demons are the disembodied spirits of the Nephilim, is a storyline echoed by the writings of many early church fathers as well as the Jewish historian, Josephus. Further corroboration is found in the apocryphal books of Enoch, Jubilees, Jasher; The Testimony of the 12 Patriarchs, and The Book of Giants. Copies of these books were found in the Dead Sea scrolls, suggesting they predate Christ and probably represent the common teaching of his day, and though they are not our infallible canon, they are important historical records, through which we can better understand Scripture and the demon phenomenon. 

For example, Jude 1:6 7 is better understood in light of Enoch 16 & Jubilees 4:22-5:7, which states that the Watchers defiled themselves with the daughters of men by taking wives, just like the children of men do, and from that union came forth the giants. This seduction also brought into the earth all manner of witchcraft and warfare, for which the Watchers were enchained and forced to watch their children destroy one another.

"And now, the giants, produced from the spirits and flesh, shall be called evil spirits upon the earth, and on the earth shall be their dwelling.… And the spirits of the giants afflict, oppress, destroy, attack, do battle, and work destruction and cause trouble: they take no food, but nevertheless hunger and thirst and cause offenses. … rise up against the children of men and against the women, because they had preceded from them." (Enoch 16) 

Many say this origin for the Nephilim is scripturally impossible, due to Mat 22:30; & Mk 12:25, but those verses are in complete agreement with Enoch 15:4-5. Their judgment was great BECAUSE they weren’t created for marriage, and this IS the source of demon spirits. Jubilees ch 10 adds the troubles they caused Noah's children after the flood, how he prayed for God to remove them, and how God gave relief by removing 90% of them. However, 10 % were allowed to remain in order to test the hearts of men, while Noah was taught to understand how the demons work their seduction as well as the healing of human diseases with herbs, which was written into a book.

This narrative is in the very books Jesus and His disciples studied, for Jesus and Jude quoted from Enoch (Jn 5:22; Mt 19: 28, 29; Mt 26:24; Lk 16:26; Jn 12:36, 14:2; Ju 14-15), while Peter obviously drew his themes from it. Early church fathers: Iranaeus, Clement, Origen, and Justin Martyr all referenced it, and Tertullian referred to it as "Holy Scripture." The Ethiopian Church added Enoch and Jubilees to its official canon in the 2nd century, while Josephus wrote about Jasher as an important historical record to the Jews. Jubilees was well known to early Christians as evidenced by the writings of Epiphanius, Justin Martyr, Origen, and others. Though considered an apocryphal text amongst Catholics and Protestants, like the books of Maccabees, they provide a wealth of historical information not included in our Scripture.

Every one of these texts supports or complements the narrative of Enoch chs 6-16, and perhaps more importantly, without it, our biblical text is left wanting and sometimes seems contradictory. For example, the idea that Jesus was casting out the spirits of fallen Angels from people, contradicts Scripture, which clearly states those angels are kept in eternal bonds, under darkness, until the judgment (II Pe 2:4; Ju 1:6-7). They are NOT free to roam around and possess human beings, as the RCC and other churches suggest. Neither were only some rebellious angels enchained, as others believe, for nowhere else in Scripture is Satan shown roaming around heaven or earth with other angels.

October 26 2016 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Marvin Reynolds Supporter Retired Chaplain U.S. Army Hospital

The answer in my opinion is 'no', they are not just the spirits of Naphilim or what we call Giants as recorded in scripture. 

These Demons MUST BE the spirits of those of Satan that occupied this world prior to Genesis 1:1. The Scripture give no description in any way about who these were, but they sure did know Christ when he appeared and sought to flee, which 1,000 did at the wild man tied to a grave. They fled and occupied animals that committed suicide over the cliff into the sea.

Now we know that we don't know, and can only guess who demons were and what their function was about prior to Adam and Eve.

October 09 2015 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

Len Thies Supporter Bible researcher and author

The Bible tells us that the rebel angels who rebelled with Lucifer were locked up in chains in Hell.

The Bible tells us that the "sons of God" in the Genesis 6 passage are "saved" men, not rebel angels who escaped being taken to Hell by God or that somehow escaped from Hell which was locked by God. 

There is a simple answer God gives us in Genesis 6:1-8 if you following God's reasoning: The mention of "man" was in Verse 1: "And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them." God did not say "saved" men or "sons of God" were multiplied on the face of the earth, but rather "men" "and daughters were born unto them". 

In Verse 2 we are given the problem God has with what's going on: "That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose." 

In Verse 3, God gives us His opinion: "And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years." Please notice that God is referring to "man" in this verse, not to angels or "saved men", just "man"!

Verse 4: "4 There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown."

The issue of "giants" is what causes the Bible student to wonder as to the overview of this passage, and, this is where the line of thinking by God gets garbled too often. Strong's Concordance gives "Nephilim" or "giants" as a definition of this Hebrew word, however, if you auger into the meaning, the Hebrew word means "excellent, noble or skillful" which, God is saying, some of these non-saved men were exceptional, but they did not worship the True God, and it makes no difference how exceptional they are if they are lost!

In Verses 5-7 God gives us His answer to the population of the earth: "5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. 7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them."

This passage is the result of what had happened to the line of Seth, which is the subject of Genesis 4-6, and its deterioration which resulted in a judgment by God, His first method of a RIF (Reduction In Force) of the evil people.

But, Praise God, He finds Noah!

February 11 2017 • 1 response • Vote Up • Share • Report