Nephilim

Outside of Genesis 6, the only other time the word Nephilim appears in the Bible is with reference to the children of Anak. He was a man who lived in Hebron and was dispossessed by Caleb in the conquest of Canaan. His descendants were said to be giants. Thus, the Nephilim were human! This is in fact what Genesis 6 implies. It speaks about the giants at the time when the “sons of God” came into the “daughters of men” and AFTER. This is basically a huge hint to the reader that these giants ARE NOT the children of the angels, though that is exactly what other cultures and historical myths claimed.

• Numbers 13:33 – There we saw the giants [nāp̄îl: Nephilim] (the descendants of Anak came from the giants [nāp̄îl: Nephilim]); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”
• Deuteronomy 9:1-2 – “Hear, O Israel: You are to cross over the Jordan today, and go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than yourself, cities great and fortified up to heaven, a people great and tall, the descendants of the Anakim, whom you know, and of whom you heard it said, ‘Who can stand before the descendants of Anak?
• Joshua 15:13-14 – Now to Caleb the son of Jephunneh he gave a share among the children of Judah, according to the commandment of the Lord to Joshua, namely, Kirjath Arba, which is Hebron (Arba was the father of Anak). Caleb drove out the three sons of Anak from there: Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai, the children of Anak. 

These passages are the greatest witness to the fact that the Nephilim of Genesis 6 were gigantic humans living both at that time and when the Israelite spies saw them again in Canaan after the Flood. If the same unique term is being used to describe both groups, and the angels are nowhere mentioned with regard to the second appearing of the term, then it makes logical sense that the angels have nothing to do with them. By those who are desperate to link them to the offspring of the angels, there are several theories for explaining how the “re-emergence” of the Nephilim in the Canaan conquest narrative may have come to pass, but these all fail, and more importantly, they have no biblical support.

One such theory says that the seed of man was so corrupted by the angels having sex with women that there were no uncorrupted men left on earth, except for Noah and his family. Obviously, if this were true, then there is no way of getting the Nephilim seed, the angel/human hybrid DNA, onto the ark, because all the wicked people of the earth perished. To overcome this, some say that one of the wives of Noah’s sons must have had the corrupted genetics in her, meaning she was somehow a descendant of the grotesque sexual union of angels and women. Those who adopt this view usually suffer Ham’s wife to be bearer of this corrupted gene because all these giants, at least from the limited, geographic scope of the biblical texts, live around the land of Canaan, who was a son of Ham.

This massive assumption falls apart when one considers: 

• a) Just because the angels and women had children, it doesn’t follow that those children had children. Even conceding that human females and angels produced progeny, there is nothing that would suggest these could likewise do so. Every time that animals are mated who are of the same family, but a different species within it, they invariably produce genetic dead ends. Lions mated with leopards is a good example. They are both from the cat family, but they are not of the same species. Hence, their offspring generally cannot reproduce. Horses with donkeys is another great example. In other words, just because angels and humans were having kids, it does not logically follow that they could have or did have grandkids!
• b) Even if the genetic DNA of the fallen angels could get through the Flood by being present within Ham’s wife, then how is it that the Nephilim died out? The post-Flood race was obviously having children. If they were able to keep reproducing, then their genetic material would have continued in perpetuity, but that didn’t happen. They were already dying out when Israel arrived in the land, as we are told Og was the last of the Rephaim in the north (Deuteronomy 3:11). Israel merely finished the job that was already nearing its end.
• c) If this corrupted genetics of mankind was the impetus for why God sent the Flood in the first place, to protect the godly seed that would bring about the Messiah (so the story goes), do you really think He would allow this corruption on the ark? Not likely. And again, there is nothing in the biblical text to suggest that it was anything but the sin of man that brought about the judgment of the Flood. The sins of the angelic beings are incidental in the story unless you read the theology of Enoch and other texts into Genesis 6.

Another position that attempts to account for the Nephilim’s reappearance post-Flood posits that a second incursion of angels took place. The only problem with this view is that it has zero support biblically. It doesn’t even have much extra-biblical support. 2 Peter and Jude tell us that God punished those angels who went down and committed sin before the Flood. Since the judgement against them was swift and extraordinary it seems highly unlikely that another group of angels would have come down and done a similar thing again. There is certainly nothing in the biblical texts to suggest that anything like a second angelic incursion occurred again after Genesis 6.

Yet another theory states that the Nephilim are in fact the angels themselves. This also falls apart because whoever the pre-flood Nephilim were, they got destroyed by the Flood. We know that those angels who sinned, were placed into Tartarus where they remain, hence, they certainly weren’t in the land of Canaan at the time of Israel’s coming, yet we know the Nephilim were there.

 One of the things that causes so many scholars to persistently glom onto the idea that the Nephilim are connected in some way to the fallen angels comes from the word itself and its assumed root. The Nephilim, from the singular (Nāp̄îl: nef-eel’), are said to relate to the fallen angels because of the root word from which nāp̄îl is said to derive in Hebrew, nāp̄al {naw-fal’}. This latter term means “to fall, as in death, or a deep sleep; to collapse; to fall prostrate; come from a higher position to a lower one.” With this assumption as a base, there are two passages that are specifically appealed to in associating the Nephilim to the angels of Genesis 6. One clearly connects nāp̄al to the fall of an angelic being from heaven (if it is accepted that an angelic being is being referenced), and the other, it is argued, connects it to dead spirits. 

• Isaiah 14:12 – “How you are fallen [nāp̄al] from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations!
• Ezekiel 32:27 – They do not lie with the mighty [gibôr] who are fallen [nāp̄al] of the uncircumcised, who have gone down to hell with their weapons of war; they have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquities will be on their bones, because of the terror of the mighty in the land of the living.

If Isaiah is identifying the fall of Satan following his rebellion against God, then yes, nāp̄al is directly pointing to the rebellious actions of an angelic being. I would contend that Isaiah 14 is a reference to the sins of the Devil, however, that does not mean that the Nephilim are related to the fallen angels, for it is not an established fact that nāp̄al is the actual root from which the word comes.

While it is true that a majority of scholars think this is so, there are those who disagree. These have shown that Nephilim, the plural form of nāp̄îl that we find used in the biblical texts, may derive from an ancient Aramaic word naphila, which means “giant”. This makes logical sense since “giants” [Greek: gigantes] is how the word Nephilim was translated by the compilers of the Greek Septuagint, and how it is specifically used to reference the tall races of the Anakim in Numbers 13, who are described as being large compared to other men. The context of Numbers 13, and the translation of the word by the scholars who composed the Septuagint strongly suggests that Nephilim is derived from another word connected to size, and not a state of being or action. If correct, this means that it is useless to appeal to the use of the Hebrew word nāp̄al in Isaiah 14, or in Ezekiel 32 as proof that the Nephilim are connected to fallen angels, or the dead, since Nephilim is likely not derived from that root at all. Add to this the fact that Jude’s Epistle indicates that the angels did not “fall” in what they had done but made a conscious choice to leave the heavenly dimension.

What then does the Bible say for certain? The Nephilim were a race of giants. After the Flood, they dwelt in the land of Canaan, and there, they are clearly regarded as human. The most logical thing to assume then, is that they were likewise humans in the pre-flood world. This is easy to explain when one considers first the differences between the pre-flood world and the post-flood world, and the concept of gigantism in genetics. The pre-flood world was filled with plants and animals that were far bigger than our current world. The fossil records show this to be true. Thus, it is likely that mankind was far taller and stronger on average than what we see today. This flies in the face of evolutionary theory, but that theory leaves much to be desired. Man has been progressively getting worse genetically, not better. Gigantism, which occurs even today, is abnormally large growth due to a surplus of growth hormones. It causes excessive growth in height, muscles, and organs. The most common cause, according to scientists, is a benign tumor of the pituitary gland. Finding a specific genetic cause for gigantism has proven to be difficult, but there is a connection.

Both history and myth speak to “races”, or at least families, of giants, as seen in the Bible. If this genetic mutation was present in the world, before and after the flood, and if these giants were mating with one another, this would tend to pass on these mutations within a family, and thus you could, theoretically, end up with “races” of giants! In the pre-Flood world, these giants might even be exceptionally tall, possibly 20 feet or more, especially if it is assumed that the average man was taller then as well. With the world rapidly changing after the flood, any re-appearance of gigantism in the genes, would tend to create anew these families of giants, but it would also not be long before they died off on their own. Without the necessary climate conditions to live long and healthy lives, this mutation would tend to self-eradicate, even to the point where later children from the giants ceased being giants themselves, and all that remained would be the stories of their ancestors before and after the flood. 

Another thing to consider, especially in the post-flood world, and the view I prefer, is that many of the later Nephilim, were simply genetic holdovers of average-sized men from the pre-Flood world! The Bible says men were still living incredibly long lifespans well into the post-Flood world, though they decreased rapidly until leveling out at our present-day averages. If these normal men were very large themselves, then they too, as well as their immediate offspring would also be much larger, and living longer than successive groups of people. It is quite plausible that they became sort of demi-gods themselves, due to their lineage, their long-life span, and their size, in relation to others around them.

 In all scenarios, whether in the ante-diluvian world or after, the Nephilim would be larger than everyone else around, and certainly would be considered particularly fearsome in the warlike conditions of both worlds. It is not much of a stretch to think that these giants, puffed up by their own size and strength, declared themselves gods, or appealed to a lineage from the angelic beings who had sinned against God, and thus set themselves against the true God. From all biblical evidence, this is what makes most sense, at least as it regards the Nephilim. However, these are not the only giants spoken of in the post-Flood Canaanite world. Let us turn now to what the Scriptures have to say about the Rephaim.

The Rephaim Giants

Another group of giants that was far more populous than the Nephilim, and one that seems to be directly connected to spiritual beings, was the Rephaim. Much of what was said about the Nephilim can certainly be said about the Rephaim as well, however, there is an additional layer with them that must be dealt with since this term is not only used as a proper noun for another race of giants in the land of Israel, but also of the dead. Because of this, many scholars think this is a link to either the fallen angels or their children. According to this argument, if the Rephaim were these fallen spirits, that many ancient, pagan texts speak of, then it follows that so were the Nephilim since the two terms are seemingly synonymous with one another in the OT. This logical conclusion is another of the major reasons that Genesis 6 is read to equate the Nephilim with the children of the fallen angels.   

• Genesis 14:5-6 – In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings that were with him came and attacked the Rephaim in Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the Emim in Shaveh Kiriathaim, and the Horites in their mountain of Seir, as far as El Paran, which is by the wilderness.
• Deuteronomy 2:9-12 – Then the Lord said to me, ‘Do not harass Moab, nor contend with them in battle, for I will not give you any of their land as a possession, because I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as a possession.’” (The Emim had dwelt there in times past, a people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. They were also regarded as giants [Rᵊp̄ā’îm], like the Anakim, but the Moabites call them Emim. The Horites formerly dwelt in Seir, but the descendants of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them from before them, and dwelt in their place, just as Israel did to the land of their possession which the Lord gave them.
• Deuteronomy 2:19-22 – And when you come near the people of Ammon, do not harass them or meddle with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to the descendants of Lot as a possession.’” (That was also regarded as a land of giants [Rᵊp̄ā’îm]; giants [Rᵊp̄ā’îm] formerly dwelt there. But the Ammonites call them Zamzummim, a people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. But the Lord destroyed them before them, and they dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, just as He had done for the descendants of Esau, who dwelt in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites from before them. They dispossessed them and dwelt in their place, even to this day.
• Deuteronomy 3:8-11 – “And at that time we took the land from the hand of the two kings of the Amorites who were on this side of the Jordan, from the River Arnon to Mount Hermon (the Sidonians call Hermon Sirion, and the Amorites call it Senir), all the cities of the plain, all Gilead, and all Bashan, as far as Salcah and Edrei, cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan. “For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of the giants [Rᵊp̄ā’îm]. Indeed, his bedstead was an iron bedstead. (Is it not in Rabbah of the people of Ammon?) Nine cubits is its length and four cubits its width, according to the standard cubit.
• Joshua 15:8 – And the border went up by the Valley of the Son of Hinnom to the southern slope of the Jebusite city (which is Jerusalem). The border went up to the top of the mountain that lies before the Valley of Hinnom westward, which is at the end of the Valley of Rephaim
• Joshua 17:15 – So Joshua answered them, “If you are a great people, then go up to the forest country and clear a place for yourself there in the land of the Perizzites and the giants [Rᵊp̄ā’îm], since the mountains of Ephraim are too confined for you.” – (Ephraim, Manasseh)
• Joshua 18:16 – Then the border came down to the end of the mountain that lies before the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, which is in the Valley of the Rephaim on the north, descended to the Valley of Hinnom, to the side of the Jebusite city on the south, and descended to En Rogel. –(Benjamin)
• 2 Samuel 5:18 – The Philistines also went and deployed themselves in the Valley of Rephaim.
• 2 Samuel 20:15-22 – When the Philistines were at war again with Israel, David and his servants with him went down and fought against the Philistines; and David grew faint. Then Ishbi-Benob, who was one of the sons of the giant [Rᵊp̄ā’îm], the weight of whose bronze spear was three hundred shekels, who was bearing a new sword, thought he could kill David. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid and struck the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, “You shall go out no more with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.” Now it happened afterward that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob. Then Sibbechai the Hushathite killed Saph, who was one of the sons of the giant [Rᵊp̄ā’îm]. Again, there was war at Gob with the Philistines, where Elhanan the son of Jaare-Oregim the Bethlehemite killed the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. Yet again there was war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also was born to the giant [Rᵊp̄ā’îm]. So, when he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea, David’s brother, killed him. These four were born to the giant [Rᵊp̄ā’îm] in Gath and fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants. – (Goliath was the fifth)

From the previous passages it is shown that the Rephaim: were known by other names like the Zamzummim by the Ammonites, the Emim by the Moabites, and the Horites by the Edomites (Deuteronomy 2); was a name used specifically of the Philistine giants (2 Samuel 20), who were not Canaanite peoples; was a stand-alone name for “giant”; were not a “race”, as in a unique ethnic group, rather these giants existed among many different people groups, and were separated only by the fact that they were uncommon in their size, since they are so widespread; had a valley named after them based on the placement of the quintessential Rephaim, the children of Anak, otherwise known as Nephilim (Joshua 15,17,18; Numbers 13); and warred against many other people aside from the children of Israel (Genesis 14, Deuteronomy 2). 

Though many argue for some sort of special spiritual significance to the fact that the Rephaim were living around the land of Israel, there is nothing from the texts that suggests this is true, or that it should be true. Some think that these giants were stationed around Israel to keep out the children of God, as a part of a larger, Satanic plot to keep God’s people out of God’s Promised Land. This falls apart on many levels when examined, but for this discussion it is provably wrong because it presupposes a unique connection between the Rephaim, and demonic entities engaged in a cosmic war with the Lord’s people and conjectures a similarly unique relationship between these giants and the land of Canaan because of this. 

A cursory reading of ancient Babylonian or Greek records shows this latter point is obviously not true. The former position exists because Rephaim is used interchangeably with Nephilim when discussing the Anakim. However, that argument has already been largely disproven because it is almost entirely based on the alleged link of the Nephilim with the rebellion of the fallen angels in Genesis 6. 

It appears then that Rephaim was merely a term applied to people who were specifically taller than others, no matter what ethnic grouping they were a part of, and they did not refer to a particularly evil “race” of people. Evidence for this is that the people of Israel are said to have driven out seven nations in their conquest. The Rephaim are not on this list.  But we know they were in the land.   

• Deuteronomy 7:1-2 – “When the Lord your God brings you into the land which you go to possess and has cast out many nations before you, the Hittites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than you, and when the Lord your God delivers them over to you, you shall conquer them and utterly destroy them. You shall make no covenant with them nor show mercy to them.
• Acts 13:19 – And when He had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, He distributed their land to them by allotment.

The Rephaim were not a distinct nation that Israel dispossessed. Nevertheless, they were part of those who were specifically mentioned as being in the land promised to Abraham. 

• Genesis 15:18-21 – On the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying: “To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates— the Kenites, the Kenezzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.

When syncing the list of seven nations that are specifically conquered by the nation of Israel with the promise made to Abraham in Genesis 15, which includes the Rephaim, there is an inexact match. Abraham’s promise contains ten names, not seven, but six of the names find an exact match in Deuteronomy 7 – the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, and the Jebusites. The odd man out is the Hivites. In their place, Genesis 15 lists: the Kenites, the Kenezzites, the Kadmonites, and the Rephaim. Obviously, these cannot be four other nations, because Israel is said to have specifically conquered seven. What is most likely then, is that these are four groupings of people that can either be subsumed under the Hivites or can be included with some or all of the other explicitly mentioned nations.

The Mighty Men of Old 

In the Genesis 6 story we are told that the children that resulted from the sons of God engaging in sexual relations with women were called “mighty men”. 

• Genesis 6:4 – There were giants [Nephilim] on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God [bene ha’elohim] came into the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men [gibôr] who were of old, men of renown. 

From this text, in most English versions, it is not clear that the mighty men are referring to the Nephilim. Contextually, it is thought by most people to be referencing the “children” of the angels. It has already been conclusively demonstrated that these were not the Nephilim. However, in this passage, the gibôrim is thought by many scholars to reference the Nephilim, thus presumably making a connection between all three parties in the text: the Nephilim, the children of the bene ha’elohim, and the gibôrim. This simplistic view of Genesis 6:4 is seemingly re-enforced somewhat by the fact that the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, specifically uses the word gigantes for both the Nephilim at the beginning of the verse and the later gibôrim. Why did they do this? Because it is not clear in context, and scholars are divided on who the gibôrim at the end of the verse are referring to: the Nephilim or the children of the bene ha’elohim. Are they referencing the Nephilim themselves, or the progeny of the sons of God? The authors of the Septuagint obviously connected them to Nephilim, though this is not clear from the text. However, just because these translators did this, that does not mean that this must be true. It matters little in the end, because it is certain, from Scripture, that the Nephilim did not come from the sons of God. This confusion of the text will be further examined a little later when we look at the Septuagint reference to giants in other parts of Scripture, but for now, let us look at the use of gibôr in Scripture.  

The specific Hebrew word that translates as “mighty men” in Gensis 6 is gibôr or gibôrim in the plural. It appears in many places in the Bible. It is an adjective that can stand alone as a proper noun and is often used to describe men of great deeds, achievements, or strength. It is also used by God.   

• Genesis 10:8,9 – Cush begot Nimrod; he began to be a mighty one [gibôr] on the earth. He was a mighty [gibôr] hunter before the Lord; therefore, it is said, “Like Nimrod the mighty [gibôr] hunter before the Lord.”
• Deuteronomy 10:17 – For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty [gibôr] and awesome, who shows no partiality nor takes a bribe.
• Joshua 1:14 – Your wives, your little ones, and your livestock shall remain in the land which Moses gave you on this side of the Jordan. But you shall pass before your brethren armed, all your mighty men [gibôr] of valor, and help them…
• Joshua 6:2 – And the Lord said to Joshua: “See! I have given Jericho into your hand, its king, and the mighty men [gibôr] of valor.
• Joshua 10:1,2,7 – Now it came to pass when Adoni-Zedek king of Jerusalem heard how Joshua had taken Ai and had utterly destroyed it—as he had done to Jericho and its king, so he had done to Ai and its king—and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were among them, that they feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all its men were mighty [gibôr]… So, Joshua ascended from Gilgal, he and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men [gibôr] of valor.

There are 158 times this term appears in the OT, and as these few examples show, the phrase can be used to describe the Lord, His servants, and those opposed to Him. It is not an exclusive term for wickedness, nor a phrase used to describe demonic power, which some people have suggested because of its descriptive use of the children of the angels in Genesis 6 and its application to Nimrod. This is not valid though. The fact the Bible says the half-human, half-angel children were “men of renown” is likely done because they in some way did great deeds.

The ancient pagan myths of the Grecians, Babylonians, and Egyptians, the people, around which the epics of Gilgamesh, Hercules, and Osiris are formed, likely existed, did incredible feats, and they perished in the Flood of Noah. Though the Gilgamesh story is historically set in the post-flood world, as Gilgamesh is said to have visited the survivor of the flood, the texts claim that Gilgamesh descended from the gods, though existing after the Great Deluge, thus clearly connecting him to the angelic liaison with human women. So, it is possible that he is a post-Flood person falsely boasting a divine heritage that connected him to heroes of the pre-Flood world. Whatever the case, he was most definitely an ancient example of a gibôr. 

After the flood, in the biblical texts, the term is used of Nimrod because of the mighty things he in fact did. Some Christian scholars think he might even be the inspiration for Gilgamesh. According to Scripture, Nimrod is very likely the mastermind of the tower of Babel, and the founder of what became the Assyrian empire. To be certain, he was a rebel against God. The Tower of Babel was a direct attempt by the people to avoid doing what God had told them to do: fill the earth and subdue it. This happened in the third generation from the Flood, and hence was far enough removed from that event to experience just how different the post-diluvian world was from its predecessor. It is likely that Noah and his sons told their children, not only about the Flood, but recalled to them how beautiful and different the world before had been. The earth that had perished was a perfect place, climate wise. Not so this new one. With so many harsh areas beyond the Fertile Crescent area, which is where those who came out the ark found themselves, it is likely the people decided the wisest course was to simply refuse to spread out any further into the unknown.

As a hunter, Nimrod probably went out hunting, and discovered just how rugged and dangerous the wider world was. He may have conveyed these things to the people around him and struck upon a novel idea for securing people’s safety, that would of course give him power. He is very likely the one who came up with the idea of building the tower in the plain as a marker that could be seen by all around, a beacon of the new, urban lifestyle he would implement, in direct violation of what God had told them to do. There are many who try to read something even more nefarious and mystical into the text, and thus they attach such importance to the use of the term gibôr here. However, there is no reason to do this, and the text is very self-defining, contextually, as to what was being done, and why God intervened. Nimrod’s deeds were indeed mighty, and he used his strength and abilities against the Lord, but there is simply no reason to think he was unique in this, though it is likely he was the first rebel of this stature in the post-Flood world.

Goliath of Gath is said to have been a gibôr for the Philistines. 

• 1 Samuel 17:51 – Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. And when the Philistines saw that their champion [gibôr] was dead, they fled.

Goliath was a member of the Rephaim among the Philistines, as has already been shown. Yet, his connection to being a gibôrim here has to do with his deeds, and nothing to do with his being a Rephaim. Its descriptive use here is no different than when used for any average-sized men who did exploits. In other words, gibôr is not a synonym for the Rephaim, and has no provable, direct connection whatsoever to the Nephilim.

There are two Scriptures that those who connect the term gibôr to the giants cling to in support of their theological position that they are the children of the fallen angels. The first is found in Isaiah 13. 

• Isaiah 13:3 – I have commanded My sanctified ones; I have also called My mighty ones [gibôr] for My anger — those who rejoice in My exaltation.”

Every English translation of this passage that is in popular use has a similar thought to the NKJV used here. Either “mighty ones”, “might men” or “warriors”, is used to convey the meaning of the text. There is a radical departure from this in the Brenton translation of the Greek Septuagint of this passage. The Septuagint scholars translated the Hebrew gibôrim here as gigantes, or “giants”. This tracks with what was done with the word gibôr in Genesis 6, by the Septuagint translators. However, it is not readily apparent why they would have done this in Isaiah since most often the word is translated as dynatos. This is precisely how gibôr is translated in 1 Samuel 17 when referencing Goliath! There seems to be little justification for the translation in Isaiah 13 by the Septuagint authors. As such, the vast majority of scholars reject this translation, opting for more familiar translations of the term gibôr. Adding to the confusion, the Septuagint again translates gibôr as gigantes in Ezekiel 32. 

• Ezekiel 32:27 – They do not lie with the mighty [gibôr] who are fallen of the uncircumcised, who have gone down to hell [šᵊ’ôl] with their weapons of war; they have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquities will be on their bones, because of the terror of the mighty [gibôr] in the land of the living.

The context here is talking about the judgment against Pharoah of Egypt. When his end comes, he is said to join Assyria and Elam in Sheol. These were other nations whom God destroyed before them.

There is nothing in the immediate context of either passage that hints at people of gigantic stature being in view. There are not the underlying Hebrew terms that are clearly associated with such people either, whether Nāp̄îl, or Rᵊp̄ā’îm. As with Isaiah 13, the story is specifically about historic nations. Isaiah is speaking of the coming destruction of Babylon. The band of warriors that have been set apart for this purpose by God, as described in verse 3, are identified only a few verses later as the Medes in verse 17. Many say that, since the phrase “the day of the Lord” is used, that this must be an eschatological prophecy, and thus an appeal to a coming re-appearance of the giants is what is in mind. Perhaps, that was the mindset of the Septuagint translators, and why they chose to translate the Hebrew in the Greek in the way they did, injecting “giants” into the text where they do not actually appear. Likewise, since Ezekiel is talking about the dead in šᵊ’ôl, the producers of the Septuagint might have been associating their judgment with that of evil giants who had gone before. Giants such as Goliath. 

Whatever the case, there is certainly no reason to accept this reading of the word gibôr in Isaiah 13, or Ezekiel 32, simply because the Septuagint renders it so, as it is only marginally supported in the given contexts and is decidedly unsupported anywhere else in Scripture. And there is certainly no reason to think that it is a reference to the children of the bene ha’elohim even if Nephilim are in view! So, then why did the Septuagint writers translate Genesis 6:4 the way they did, connecting the gibôrim with the Nephilim? I believe the confusion is not with the Septuagint, but with those who are forcing their theology upon the text and using the Septuagint to do it! Let us consider the Brenton English translation of the verse from the Greek Septuagint: 

• Genesis 6:4 – Now the giants were upon the earth in those days; and after that when the sons of God were wont to go in to the daughters of men, they bore children to them, those were the giants of old, the men of renown.

You will note that “children” is italicized. This is because it’s not in the original Greek! In both the Greek and Hebrew there is no noun for what is translated as “children”. Why not? If you ask me, it’s because whatever was born by the unholy, and unauthorized union of angel and woman, didn’t make it to maturity! In all the discussions around this text, everyone seems to assume that whatever was being given birth to by the women, actually went on to live and thrive. The passage doesn’t say that, in either of the original texts! This, in my opinion, is why the Septuagint connected the gibôrim to the Nephilim: that’s what text demands! There are no children that actually survived birth. Thus, to get the supposed link between the bene ha’elohim and the Nephilim, you have to assume the “children”, that are not actually there are being referred to by the term gibôrim and in the verse. It is clear, the authors of the Septuagint thought the gibôrim referenced the Nephilim, the giants, because the “children” of the bene ha’elohim are an aside in the text, and the supposed biological application of the term gibôrim is thus decidedly forced. 

From what the Bible tells us, it can firmly be asserted that gibôr is not a biological term. Those who are designated as such are not described in this way because of any kind of genetic relationship to the angelic beings of Gensis 6, nor the giants of old, nor is it a term used exclusively for men of large, physical stature. The use of the word throughout Scripture has to do with specific deeds rather than lineage. Therefore, any appeal to it to establish a genealogical link to the giants of the Bible and or the fallen angels is wholly unfounded.