The Bible and the Supernatural: The Nephilim — the Fallen Ones
The Nephilim
Habitat suitability models of the two Homo species and their potential contact and interbreeding zones in southwest Asia and southeast Europe. (Guran et al., Scientific Reports, 2024)
As a child attending bible school, I often hear about the story of David and Goliath.[1] How David, a small, average shepherd boy, defeated a tall and mighty warrior. From the perspective of a child, this was a fascinating story. However, as I grew up, the story became more unusual and seemingly a myth than reality. Goliath was estimated to be over 9 feet tall. The more I dug into biblical history, the more I found that he was the descendant of a tall and mighty race called the Anakin, the descendant of Anak. Anak was also a giant and a descendant of King Og, the last remaining member of a race called the Rephaim.[2] His iron bed was stated in the bible as 14 feet, 6 feet wide.
There is much more to say about Goliath and his ancestors, but I have been curious about giants on Earth for many years. Many questions come to mind, including:
· Who were the Nephilim?
· How did they survive the biblical flood?
· Why did God send Israel to wipe them out?
· What threat were the descendants of Nephilim to humankind?
· Where is the archeological evidence of these unusual giants?
· Lacking any evidence, does this indicate the bible narrative is a total myth?
· Does any of Nephilim’s DNA exist in the world today?
These questions are essential as they are the foundation of the entire biblical narrative; to state that they are only myths places significant doubt on the history of the children of Israel and weakens the credibility of the whole biblical narrative. For that reason, I am troubled and seek to rectify this conflict. Throughout this writing, I’ve included aspects of Nephilim’s origins and their impact on early humankind. That the Nephilim were the prodigy of fallen angelic-like beings called “Watchers.” Who, in defiance of the most high God, defiled human women to create hybrids. These hybrids were said to be much taller than average humans, stronger, and savage. They also had knowledge of arcane arts from heavenly places, which were given to them by their watcher parents. They represent a contamination of the human DNA and bloodline, and they taught humankind evils such as warfare, human/animal sacrifice, and cannibalism. Mostly, they were profanity to God and the holy angels, and they had to be eliminated for God’s plan for humankind to work.
As I delve into the resources available on these giants, I find myself drawing parallels with modern phenomena such as Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) or Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP), as they are now commonly known. Specifically, the enigmatic cases of alien abductions reported worldwide. However, my quest is for more than mere associations but for concrete scientific connections that could validate the existence of Nephilim and their descendants.
Any attempt to find evidence on the internet is daunting, as it is rife with misinformation and subjective claims. Among the odd photos of very tall, slim human skeletons, there is a lack of robust evidence that could substantiate the existence of massive giants. Much like the claims of UAP abductions, the evidence is primarily subjective. However, the reality of UFOs (UAPs) is gradually transitioning from the realm of fantasy to the early stages of reality, with increasing military confirmations. What was once considered laughable is now becoming increasingly plausible.[3] Recent reports have indicated UAP sightings over Ukraine, a nation in conflict with the Russian Republic. and a focal spot of global unrest. Could these sightings be angels?
I’m reminded that science is a continuously changing field. As discoveries occur, old theories are dropped or adapted. Tomorrow’s science will likely be much different than what we now believe to be fact. This indicates that we should not rest entirely on today’s scientific conclusions as “fact,” as all science is theory until proven otherwise. As I paraphrase the late Dr. Albert Einstein — all observations are relative.
The Nephilim are first introduced in the biblical narrative in Genesis, the sixth chapter, just before the flood. This passage is one of the most mysterious in the bible and extremely short, with little detail. The more detailed accounts are found outside the Bible’s canon in the Jewish Apocrypha. I’ve covered much of the process over time. How specific ancient texts were eliminated from our current bible, but many were in the past considered canon and familiar to Jewish scholars. Even today, some Christian sects consider some of the eliminated text as canon, including the Roman Catholic Church and the Coptic Ethiopian Churches. I have often quoted in this writing from one specific text called the book of Enoch. This book has a detailed storyline on the origins of Nephilim, their impact on humankind, and God’s judgment for their elimination. Others, such as the books of Jubilees, the Testament of Moses, and others, contribute to this tale. Without Apocrypha, there would be practically no knowledge of the Watchers’ fall or Nephilim’s origins.
The Biblical Old Testament narrative builds on the Nephilim’s reality, the biblical flood, and their mysterious survival. The early Israelites’ misadventures involved the Nephilim descendants that interbred with certain tribes of humanity, such as the Canaanites and the Philistines. Different branches of the Nephilim continued, such as the Anakim, Emim, Horim, Zamzummim, and the Rephaim.[4]
One prominent biblical scholar and historian explores the story of the Nephilim and their impact on humankind in his book “The Unseen Realm.” Dr. Heiser delves into the supernatural aspects of the biblical narrative, describing the angelic rebellion and the first invasion of these rebels on Earth. He suggests that Mount Hermon, which borders the nations of Lebanon and Syria today, was the location of these renegade entries into reality. According to his studies, nearly all the biblical narrative begins with this invasion.
The annals of biblical history have been an effort to eradicate their influence. Glenn Marx further expanded Heisner’s work in his book Roots of the Kingdom.[5] Marx argues that the Nephilim gene not only played a role in early history but continues to do so while slowly diluting humanity’s genetic background. He even cites many great wars, such as the Roman invasion of France and Germany under Julius Caesar, as a war against giants within the clans of the Gauls and Celtic people. The berserker characteristics of these peoples nearly defeated the Roman legions, given their great brute strength and uncontrollable rage in battle.
Marx’s narrative becomes slightly exaggerated when he suggests that the Nephilim’s roots can be found in North America among Native American Burial Mounds. He does not explain how the Nephilim reached North America other than whether Native Americans from Siberia carried the Nephilim gene when crossing the Siberia-Alaska land bridge.
He also concludes that one or two of the wives of the three sons of Noah had Nephilim genes in their bloodline, which is why remnants of Nephilim survived the biblical flood.
While it is plausible that the wives of Noah’s sons might have carried genes of the Nephilim as the human populations before the flood became extensively contaminated by their interbreeding with them, the biblical narrative indicates that Noah and his sons were of pure human genetics accounting for their survival.
God’s wrath during the flood was a strike to eliminate the Nephilim influence. Genesis 6 indicates Nephilim existed in the world before and after the flood. Nothing is said in scripture about how they continued afterward. From what little we can glean from scripture, their fathers — the Watchers — were defeated by the holy angels and cast into the bottomless pit in Tartarus (Hades).[6]
Still, the question remains: if Nephilim existed, where would their unique enlarged skeletons be? A recent Jerusalem Post article[7] claims that a documentary describing the evidence of giants in Northern Israel will be released. A faith-based organization produces the docu-series, the Inspiration Network, as a four-session, one-hour production. The producers claim there is much documented archaeological evidence to substantiate their conclusions. They claim their purpose is not to sensationalize the discovery and to focus their search on the Golan Heights area of Israel.
From what I can determine, most of their evidence consists of rock formations and ancient burial mounds, but no giant skeletons. Further research indicates that many faith-based groups claim they have discovered skeletal evidence, but the official archeological statement is that no such giant skeletons have been found.
As I mentioned earlier, science is fluid, and future findings may reveal evidence, but there isn’t any evidence to date. At least, publicly available information is scarce.
Lacking reliable evidence, the case for Nephilim seems non-existent, further weakening the biblical foundation; however, it isn’t as simple as it looks. The pivot between scientific evidence and biblical narrative is not clear-cut. For example: ancient languages do not always have a modern English word translation. This has been a major confounder for the variety of bible translations now in circulation. Historical perspectives and scientific methods are also used to determine the age of artifacts. Radioisotope dating has been criticized for assuming that past conditions correlate mathematically with current conditions. Newer studies on radio isotopic dating have revealed possible overestimations of the age of samples.[8] This brings us to a series of new questions:
· Are there other interpretations for the term “giant” as listed in the bible?
· Are there other fossils of giant humanoid beings that co-existed with humans
· Is there evidence for interbreeding between humans and large humanoid creatures?
· Were these humanoid creatures intelligent and capable of influencing modern humans?
· Could these humanoid beings be the biblical Nephilim?
· Neanderthals died relatively suddenly; could this be connected to the biblical flood?
There is evidence of a humanoid being that successfully answers the six questions. They are known in the science community as the Neanderthals.
The history of paleontology and archaeological discoveries of ancient hominids continue to advance. Earlier, the first skeletal fragments of Neanderthals were classified as sub-human primates with less intelligence and more primitive features compared to humans (Homo sapiens). This was more due to limited fossil findings and a scientific bias that humans were at the top of the evolutionary chain among the hominids. Today, with the inclusion of more complete skeletal specimens, the earlier conclusions are changing — as science does typically as more evidence becomes available.[9]
Neanderthals are now shown to have larger skulls and cranial capacity than humans. There is evidence of advanced culture, arts, toolmaking, cannibalism, and interbreeding between humans and Neanderthals, resulting in living hybrids. Neanderthals lived in areas that included Europe and Eastern Asia, which happened to be the central areas of the biblical worldview.
Evidence of Neanderthal and Human interbreeding was discovered in the Levant, the biblical holy lands within the nation of Israel and surrounding territories.[10] There is also growing evidence of Neanderthal DNA in human bloodlines that have introduced risks for modern diseases.[11] Some human populations may have from 4–6% Neanderthal DNA.[12] Another exciting aspect of Neanderthals is that they were more robust and mightier than humans. They had broader bodies, well-developed musculature, and heavier bones than humans. They are estimated to have been three times stronger than average humans. They were well-developed, more enduring, and better hunter-warriors.[13]
However, Neanderthals were not taller than ancient humans; therefore, the term giant, meaning tall, is questionable. Also, standard dating methods indicate that the Neanderthals died off rather suddenly nearly 40,000 years ago. The biblical timeline places the time of the Nephilim as roughly 6,000 years ago; their descendants are seen as close as 3,000 years during the times of the biblical King David. Other than the height discrepancy and the conflicting timeline, the Neanderthal and the Denisovans (close cousins) could have been the Nephilim of biblical lore. Their robust bodies and larger brains could have dominated humankind and developed a legendary status as men of renown.[14]
The original Hebrew word used in Old Testament texts to describe Nephilim is “gibborim,” which is commonly transliterated as “giant.” However, other translations include “mightiest” and “heroes.” Mightiest would be appropriate to describe Neanderthals as they would have been more robust in hunting in battle and would easily dominate humanity given their brute strength. It would be easy to see how legends and myths about these mighty men would arise.
If height were the only discrepancy, that would not be a problem, but other scriptures in the Old Testament seem to insist that Nephilim and their descendants were, in fact, tall. Consider the story of David and Goliath as a reference. Goliath was estimated to be over 9 feet tall! The issue is that no one measured these beings, and we have a rough estimate of the iron bed of King Og — not King Og himself.[15] It is conceivable that the mere broadness and robustness of the descendants of the Nephilim impressed the early Israelites enough to make them see themselves as grasshoppers (small) in comparison.[16] This could also be an exaggeration due to fear of confronting them.
Neanderthals were shorter than humans, as seen in the current specimens of surviving bones, but they would be more prominent in width and much more muscled than humans.
As I mentioned earlier, the inconsistency in radio-isotope dating could be 20% or more in over-dating. At 20%, it would reduce the last age of Neanderthal by 8,000 years and potentially more. There is also an error in using the Bible for the exact determination of time beyond the writings credited to Moses in the Torah — the first five books of the Old Testament.
There were no real-time observations during the time recorded or real-time means to validate radio-isotope dating other than statistical methods. I say this to illustrate that science, the methods of dating, and the lack of timeline details in the bible provide enough inconsistency so as not to be an absolute scale of the passage of time.
My intent in this section of writing is not to insist that Neanderthals were, in fact, Nephilim. However, I do imply that there is a possibility; in turn, the scripture narrative remains valid. Science remains fluid as far as knowledge is concerned and is subject to further refinement as more information is discovered.
Maybe one day, actual giant bones will be found, or further discoveries will better establish the connection between Neanderthals and Nephilim. The Bible requires faith to perceive and understand. Science also requires faith that the instruments and experiments determine the truth. No honest scientist would say their level of knowledge is conclusive; all scientific discoveries are theories based on further discovery.
As a supplement to this topic, scientists now claim to have located the region where humans and Neanderthals interbred; interestingly, the area is located on the border between Iran and Saudi Arabia — near the course of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.[17] Also, coincidentally, both the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers are essential landmarks of the biblical Eden.[18]
The contrast between biblical narrative and archaeology in many areas shows growing collations; indeed, it is inconclusive as fact, but it sustains a faith that further information may be found.
As I stated, dating methodologies currently used are not standardized with actual known-dated materials, as that would require going back in time and tracking the particle history to current times. Without such standards, we only take mathematical probabilities as approximations of when events occurred.
This aspect of research continues to grow, and more will likely come to light in time, but the Nephilim are not necessarily a topic of myths.
[1] 1 Samuel 17
[2] Deuteronomy 3:11
[3] Zhilyaev, B. E., Petukhov, V. N., & Reshetnyk, V. M. (2022). Unidentified aerial phenomena I. Observations of events. ArXiv. /abs/2208.11215
[4] Deuteronomy 2:10–11; Deuteronomy 2:20–21; Deuteronomy 3:10–14; Joshua 13:12; Numbers 13:31–33; 1 Samuel 17:4–7; Genesis 14:5; 2 Samuel 21:15–22
[5] Roots of the Kingdom, Marx, Glenn L, Valley Warrior Publishing, Manasota Key, Fl, 2022
[6] Jude 6; 2 Peter 2:4–5
[7] The Jerusalem Post, Berkowitz, Adam Eliyahu, “Evidence of the Biblical Giants found in Northern Israel,” February 15, 2022, 15:34
[8] https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170131104433.htm
[9] https://scitechdaily.com/rewriting-hominin-history-new-discoveries-unveil-ancient-human-neanderthal-connections/
[10] https://www.statnews.com/2017/10/05/neanderthal-genes-human-diseases/?matchtype=&keyword=&cid=21378541377&agid=&device=c&placement=&creative=&target=&adposition=&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=pmax-catchall&utm_term=&utm_content=&hsa_acc=5862992171&hsa_cam=21378541377&hsa_grp=&hsa_ad=&hsa_src=x&hsa_tgt=&hsa_kw=&hsa_mt=&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_ver=3&gad_source=5&gclid=EAIaIQobChMInf7Vx9uGhwMVykb_AR32CA93EAAYAyAAEgI6QvD_BwE
[11] https://www.sciencenews.org/article/neandertal-dna-may-raise-risk-some-modern-human-diseases
[12] https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/how-ancient-neanderthal-dna-still-influences-our-genes-today-180962285/
[13] https://phys.org/tags/neanderthals/#google_vignette
[14] Genesis 6:4
[15] Deuteronomy 3:11
[16] Deuteronomy 1:28; Deuteronomy 2:10; Numbers 13:33
[17] https://www.sciencealert.com/we-may-have-found-where-modern-humans-and-neanderthals-became-one
[18] Genesis 2: 8–14
