Genesis 6

[Jarid in Cedar]

Genesis 6
1And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,

2That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.

3And 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.

4There 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.

This set of scriptures always baffled me. Especially verse 2. Is it saying that there were 2 different sets of beings on Earth? When I was in my apologetic stage, I thought of this as some weird explanation for evolution. later, I wondered if there was something lost in translation that would have made it more clear.

Any thoughts?

[Babs]

This set of scriptures always baffled me. Especially verse 2. Is it saying that there were 2 different sets of beings on Earth?

Some people think so. Some people think that the "sons of god" are quasi-supernatural entities, offspring of the fallen angels or something of the like. These beings and mankind interbred, and the result was a monstrous race and the widespread wickedness that led to the flood.

Others think that there were two lines descending from Adam: the "sons of God," who revered God, and the "sons of men," who rebelled. The sons of men were seduced and corrupted by the daughters of the godless, leading to the aforementioned culture of wickedness that God decided to destroy.

I think the truth is that no one really knows. The fact is that it's simply not clear what was meant by the sons of god vs. daughters of man dichotomy. There's a bit of ambiguity in the language, but not much. It mostly is what it is. Clearly the section was intended to provide the history behind the development of the immorality that precipitated the flood, but I don't think we don't know much more than that.

[Indy Coug]

Genesis 6
1And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,

2That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.

3And 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.

4There 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.

This set of scriptures always baffled me. Especially verse 2. Is it saying that there were 2 different sets of beings on Earth? When I was in my apologetic stage, I thought of this as some weird explanation for evolution. later, I wondered if there was something lost in translation that would have made it more clear.

Any thoughts?

Read Nibley's Book of Enoch

[Fiyero]

The JST and Moses 8 change the wording of Gen 6:1-4, and Mark E. Peterson discusses them in Noah and the Flood pp.25-26, explaining the terms "sons of God," "sons of men" and "giants":

The righteous sons of Noah, together with Noah himself, were called the sons of God because of their faithfulness, in contrast to the wicked men about them whom their daughters married in their apostasy. These wicked men now taunted Noah and claimed also to be sons of God, as though to make themselves equal with Noah in the eyes of the people. They jeered at him and said: "Behold, we are the sons of God; have we not taken unto ourselves the daughters of men? And are we not eating and drinking, and marrying and giving in marriage? And our wives bear unto us children, and the same are mighty men, which are like unto men of old, men of great renown. And they hearkened not unto the words of Noah."

The scripture says that "every man was lifted up in the imagination of the thoughts of his heart, being only evil continually."

Noah continued his preaching, but he grieved over the wickedness of the people and their complete refusal to listen to his words. They scorned the idea of a flood. Never had there been such a catastrophe; why should they believe one would come now? They reveled in their sins, their drinking, their feasting, their marriages. They boasted that their children "are mighty men which are like unto men of old, men of great renown."

But Noah "was a just man and perfect in his generation." He had been ordained by the Lord "after his own order," the priesthood after the order of the Son of God (see D&C 84:17-23; 107:64), and he "walked with God, as did also his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth." (Moses 8:20-27. Italics added.)

This is significant. Noah's sons walked with God as did their father. No wonder they were called "the sons of God," being so righteous!

As this expression is used in Genesis, however, it is misunderstood. It appears there in this manner: "And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose." (Gen. 6:1-2.)

The Jerusalem Bible, in a footnote on this passage, says: "The Catholic fathers commonly take the `sons of God' to be Seth's descendants and the daughters of men those of Cain." But this is not the view of the Latter-day Saints.

The Book of Moses, which was given by revelation both to Moses and Joseph Smith, says: "And Noah and his sons hearkened unto the Lord, and gave heed, and they were called the sons of God. And when these men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, the sons of men saw that those daughters were fair, and they took them wives, even as they chose. And the Lord said unto Noah: The daughters of thy sons have sold themselves; for behold mine anger is kindled against the sons of men, for they will not hearken to my voice." (Moses 8:13-15.)

To understand better the difference between the sons of God and the sons of men, we would do well to read the following: "Now this prophecy Adam spake, as he was moved upon by the Holy Ghost, and a genealogy was kept of the children of God. And this was the book of the generations of Adam, saying: In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him." (Moses 6:8.)

The children of God referred to here are very obviously the believing descendants of Adam, because the book they prepared recorded "the generations of Adam."

To suppose as some do that God came down and consorted with mortal women, and thus developed a new race of "sons of God," is to borrow from the mythology of Greece and Rome. It was therein that the gods from Olympus came down and, by intercourse with the women of the community, raised up "half-gods" or "demigods," as a new race on earth. But it is all mythology, nothing more. Some Bible translations tend to encourage such a theory, however. For example, the following comes from the Jerusalem Bible, a Roman Catholic work, in which Gen. 6:1-4 reads: "When men had begun to be plentiful on the earth, and daughters had been born to them, the sons of God, looking at the daughters of men, saw that they were pleasing, so they married as many as they chose. Yahweh said, `My spirit must not for ever be disgraced in man, for he is but flesh; his life shall last no more than a hundred and twenty years.' The Nephilim were on the earth at that time (and even afterward) when the sons of God resorted to the daughters of man, and had children by them. These are the heroes of days gone by, the famous men."

When that text refers to these offspring as being "the heroes of days gone by, the famous men," it seems to set them apart as some special and superior type of beings, possibly not merely human, but better.

A Bible dictionary says that the Nephilim referred to in this passage were giant demigods who lived in those days. (New Analytical Bible and Dictionary of the Bible.) Enoch spoke of them as a depraved lot who sought to murder him. But part divine and part human they were not, for God at no time consorted with the "daughters of men." It is sacrilege even to mention such a thing.

Also damaging and misleading are some of the other translations of the Bible on this point. Note, for example, this passage from the Moffatt Translation: "Now when men began to multiply over all the world and had daughters born to them, the angels noticed that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they married any one of them that they chose." This at least removed the idea that the Deity had mingled with mortal women. But did even the angels?

Note this further divergent view from the American Translation by Smith and Goodspeed: "The sons of the Gods noticed that the daughters of men were attractive, so they married those whom they liked best. . . . There were giants on the earth who were born to the sons of the Gods whenever they had intercourse with the daughters of men; these were the heroes who were men of note in the days of old."

The Roman Catholic Knox Translation also gives the idea that two kinds of people were on earth, the descendants of men and the descendants of God: "Time passed, and the race of men began to spread over the face of the earth, they and the daughters that were born to them. And now the sons of God saw how beautiful were these daughters of men, and took them as wives. . . . Giants lived on the earth in those days, when first the sons of God mated with the daughters of men, and by them had children; these were the heroes whose fame has come down to us from long ago." (Gen. 6:1-4.)

It is incredible how far afield these translators, supposedly great scholars, could stray. The "sons of gods mating with the daughters of men" indeed! There was no such mating as these passages indicate because there were not two different races there.

Thank heaven for the Prophet Joseph Smith and his sensible and correct rendering of these passages, which he gave by inspiration: "And Noah and his sons hearkened unto the Lord, and gave heed; and they were called the sons of God. And when these men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, the sons of men saw that their daughters were fair, and they took them wives even as they chose." (Joseph Smith Translation, Gen. 8:1-2.)

There was only one human race. All were descendants of Adam. Those who were righteous were called the children or sons of God, and those who were wicked were called the sons of men. It was righteousness and wickedness that drew the line of demarcation, not descent from two sources.

When the apostle Paul preached from Mars Hill in Athens, the very heartland of Greek mythology, he fought this demigod theory. As he explained the truth about "the unknown God," he declared that God "hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed and the bounds of their habitation." (Acts 17:26. Italics added.)

The Nephilim were described as giants—how big we do not know. Were they like Goliath? In any case, the giants who lived in Enoch's day were a depraved lot who sought to murder him. But part divine and part human they were not, for neither God, angels, nor "the sons of the gods" consorted with earthly women as implied.

Certain persons try to use Luke 3:38 to sustain their mistaken point. The King James Version reads: "Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God." (Luke 3:38.) But when the Prophet Joseph revised the scriptures, he changed that and made it read: "And of Enos, and of Seth, and of Adam, who was formed of God, and the first man upon the earth." (JST, Luke 3:45.) This harmonizes with the Genesis doctrine and other references to the origin of Adam.

In the correct sense Moses also declared as he confronted Satan: "Who art thou? For behold, I am a son of God, in the similitude of his Only Begotten; and where is thy glory, that I should worship thee?" (Moses 1:13.)

It is also well to read Moses 7:1, wherein all believers are designated as the children of God: "And it came to pass that Enoch continued his speech, saying: Behold, our father Adam taught these things, and many have believed and become the sons of God, and many have believed not, and have perished in their sins, and are looking forth with fear, in torment, for the fiery indignation of the wrath of God to be poured out upon them." (Moses 7:1.)

The term was applied directly to Noah and his sons: "And Noah and his sons hearkened unto the Lord, and gave heed, and they were called the sons of God." (Moses 8:13.) It is obvious, then, that as men became converted to Christ, they were called the sons of God.

[Jarid in Cedar]

thanks for the replies. Will be sure to read the references.

[All-American]

I've heard many LDS interpret it as saying "Sons of God" means the righteous individuals of the covenant, and "daughters of men" as those who were not. Essentially, they married non-members.

Outside of the LDS culture, though, you get a lot more interesting interpretations. This includes the so-called "watchers," angels in heaven who descended to earth and had sexual relations with women. Their progeny were the giants referred to in Genesis 6. They were killed in the flood, and their spirits roam the earth to this day, tempting man to do evil as they did.

[Fiyero]

This includes the so-called "watchers," angels in heaven who descended to earth and had sexual relations with women. Their progeny were the giants referred to in Genesis 6. They were killed in the flood, and their spirits roam the earth to this day, tempting man to do evil as they did.

I like this and am going to start using it. When I sin it's not my fault because I was tempted by the spirits of the Watchers.

[Jarid in Cedar]

I like this and am going to start using it. When I sin it's not my fault because I was tempted by the spirits of the Watchers.

They must have an enclave in my back yard!

[wuapinmon]

The epigraph to Lesson 38 in the JS Priesthood manual says "those who aspire to be sons of God."

I asked the teacher, if we are all children of our Father in Heaven, why do we have to aspire to be sons of God. Aren't we that by birthright? He didn't know the answer, and neither do I. This clarifies a little, but it's still confusing......wouldn't the sons of men also be sons of NPC?