Genesis 6 - Part 2 - Demons, Giants, Vampires And Your Marriage Series

Genesis 6:1-5 speaks of giants. But where they demonic, angelic beings of giant size?

1. My child towers above me, and what are those things growing out of his back?

Witchcraft and demonic figures like vampires are being popularized today as being very acceptable. The movies "Twilight" and "New Moon", not to mention the Harry Potter series, have captured the minds of this generation of young people. We have tried to sanitise demons by putting them in love stories, and Harry Potter is seen as a good witch. Kids know more and more about the practices of actual witches and demons through these movies and less about what the Bible has to say about them. Does Genesis 6 speak about a demonic lovestory?

Genesis 6:1-4 says "When men began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. Then the LORD said, "My Spirit will not contend with man forever, for he is mortal; his days will be a hundred and twenty years. The Nephilim were on the earth in those days-and also afterward-when the sons of God went to the daughters of men and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown."

Now in my last message I said some people see that the "sons of God" mentioned in this passage refer to fallen angels or demons. They say "how could their children be Nephilim (giants) if there was not some supernatural union happening here?"

Here’s where I run into a problem. If the "Sons of God" are just the Godly line of Seth and the "daughters of men" are the unbelieving line of Cain, like I suggested, then why is it that they have children who are giants (Nephilim is often translated as giants)?

Obviously if "the Sons of God" were angels then they were acting out of line, so they must have been fallen angels (demons) who followed Satan in the rebellion (I won’t get into the rebellion)

So let me get into this by asking a few questions which I throw out there for you to respond to, not because I have any particular answers. Questions often help us to look at the issues.

Why aren’t the "daughters of God" not mentioned? Does this indicate that angels are only sons? All angels mentioned in the Bible are males, but male in what way?

It’s obviously possible for angels to take on human form since they appeared to Abraham as men and even ate with him. So if they appear as men, and all angels are male somehow, then is it possible for an angel to go one step further and marry women and father children? That’s what I am struggling to understand.

Jesus seemed to indicate that angels don’t marry by saying,

"For when the dead (humans) rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage. In this respect they will be like the angels in heaven." (Matthew 22:30)

It seems clear God doesn’t intend his angels to marry or have sexual relationships. This doesn’t indicate that angels weren’t able to marry them, only that it wasn’t His will for the Godly angels to marry. If they are all male in some way, then they couldn’t marry in heaven anyway, unless they were able to come to earth and marry human women. Marrying an angel is what everyone woman dreams of. Well maybe not every woman.

So it’s not God’s will for Godly angels to marry, but what about the fallen angels who clearly go against God’s will? Were the angels who were cast out of heaven able to have sexual relations with women and have children? And why would God allow such relationships even if they were possible? And does it still happen today?

I’m just throwing out these questions out for anyone who wants to interpret this passage as meaning angels, because to me it unnecessarily complicates the interpretation by thinking of the "sons of God" as meaning fallen angels. But you decide. Much more intelligent scholars and theologians and Pastors than me think that this does refer to angels.

And I’ve run out of time to consider this in too much detail but let me encourage you always to grapple with the weird things in God’s Word as well as the easy things and you seek to find how this applies to us.

2. I’ll never call my child a little devil again!...

As I said we have tried to sanitise Witchcraft and demons and associated demonic figures like vampires by putting them in love stories, but does Genesis 6 speak about a demonic lovestory too?

Genesis 6:1-4 says "When men began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the SONS OF GOD saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. Then the LORD said, "My Spirit will not contend with man forever, for he is mortal; his days will be a hundred and twenty years." The Nephilim were on the earth in those days-and also afterward-when the sons of God went to the daughters of men and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown."