Who Are the “Sons of God” Who

Married the Daughters of Men?

Mike Johnson

Genesis 6:1-4 says:

Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose. And the Lord said, ‘My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.’ There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.

People often refer to this text as one of the most difficult in the Bible; there is much disagreement about what the verses mean. They speak of a time before the flood when the sons of God married the daughters of men. A commonly held position is that the “sons of God” are angels, as this phrase is sometimes used to refer to them (Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7; Ps. 29:1-2). Rebellious angels, they say, came to the earth in human bodies and married “the daughters of men” (humans) because of their beauty. (Some argue that these “sons of God” were lesser gods instead of angels. Others explain the verses by saying that evil spirits took over the bodies of wicked men.) Even though they were heavenly, spiritual beings, according to some, these angels had sexual desires. This union produced children who became “giants,” resulting in the earth’s wickedness that led to the flood. (2 Peter 2:4 and Jude 6, which speak of angels who sinned, are tied into this viewpoint.) This position is very ancient, with many believing it today.

First, the interpretation that “sons of God” are angels contradicts Jesus’s teaching in Luke 20:35-36, which says angels do not marry. Next, if this position is true, it is interesting that only humans, not angels, are condemned. One writer put it like this:

Even more serious is the problem of why judgment should fall on the humans and on the earth if the angels of heaven were the cause of the trouble. God should have flooded heaven, not earth. The culprits came from above; the women seem to have been doing nothing except being beautiful! (Kaiser et al.107)

As noted, some passages refer to angels as the “sons of God.” However, the Bible uses this description in another way — it can refer to followers of God, and there are many more cases of this use in the Scriptures. For instance, in the Old Testament, Israel is called the sons of God. Deuteronomy 14:1 says, “You are the children (“sons” ESV) of the Lord your God.” When Moses returned to Egypt, God told him to tell Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord: Israel is My son, My firstborn” (Ex. 4:22). In Jeremiah 31:9, He also said Israel is His firstborn son. Speaking to restored Israel, Hosea 1:10 says, “You are sons of the living God,” and Proverbs 14:26 reveals, “In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence, and His children will have a place of refuge.”

Passages abound in the New Testament where this description occurs. Consider them:

Galatians 3:26 — “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.”
Romans 8:14 — “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”
Romans 8:19 — “For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.”
Matthew 5:9 — “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

With this in mind, to help us understand these verses, it is important to consider the context. Chapters 4 through 5 list the descendants of Cain (who murdered his brother) and Seth (Adam and Eve’s third son). Cain’s descendants, listed in Genesis 4:16-24, say little about whether they were righteous or unrighteous, except for one, Lamech, a murderer. In contrast, after the birth of Seth, verse 26 of chapter 4 says, “And as for Seth, to him also a son was born; and he named him Enosh. Then men began to call on the name of the Lord.” It says nothing like this of Cain’s descendants. Chapter 5 gives the descendants of Seth; among them were Enoch (“who walked with God”), Methuselah, and Noah. Thus, it might be concluded that the descendants of Seth were generally righteous, and those of Cain were generally unrighteous. After having spoken of sons and daughters being produced upon the earth, the verses then mention the “sons of God” (descendants of Seth) marrying the “daughters of men” (descendants of Cain) in Genesis 6:1-2. This union resulted in wickedness upon the earth, which brought on the flood described in chapters 6-8. If marrying between the two lines is not meant, the Scriptures could still be speaking of the righteous marrying the unrighteous, regardless of lineage. Nevertheless, this verse does not teach that angels came to earth and married women.

Some interpret verse 4 to mean that giants (NKJV) were born of the union of angels with women. But, first, we must understand that the first part of the verse discusses something which happened before the sinful marriages of Genesis 6:1. It says, “There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men . . . .”

Next, we will look more closely at the word “giant” (NKJV). Most modern English translations render the original word as “Nephilim” instead of “giants.” This word is a transliteration of the original Hebrew word and means “to fall upon or attack.” Another definition is a person who is a bully or tyrant. Consider the following comments from the Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary:

But although the idea of gigantic power does underlie the language of the sacred historian, the term Nephilim seems to bear a deeper significance; and if etymology may guide us, it describes a class of men of worthless and at the same time of violent character. It is commonly traced to fall, and considered to signify either fallen ones, apostates, or falling upon others. In the first sense many of the fathers applied it to designate fallen angels. But it evidently describes a particular class of men, and hence, the latter meaning is preferable, intimating that the Nephilim were marauding nomads-men of a violent, overbearing, lawless character-who abused their bodily powers to obtain their selfish ends; who were constantly roving from place to place in quest of plunder, and, emerging suddenly from their retreat, made attacks both on the property and the lives of men.

Mike Willis, in his commentary, points out, “The text does not emphasize their physical size (which has nothing to do with moral degeneracy) or that these were a hybrid race (which again says nothing about their moral conduct), but their violence” (306).

The last part of verse 4 reveals the aftermath of the marriages (6:1): “Afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.” These were “mighty men,” generally a positive description; however, in this context, it describes people who used their strength for tyranny and oppression and became well known for it. The world was full of violent people. All of this set the stage for the flood soon to come.

Again, this is a difficult passage. But, the most plausible position seems to be that the sons of God (descendants of Seth/righteous men) chose to marry the daughters of men (descendants of Cain/unrighteous women). They based their choice on physical beauty rather than character, which led to wickedness on the earth and the resulting flood.

Works Cited and Consulted

Kaiser, Walter C., et al. Hard Sayings of the Bible. Intervarsity Press, 2010.

Willis, Mike. Truth Commentaries Genesis 1 Genesis 1-25a. Vol. 1, Truth Publications Inc., 2021.