Monday, May 26, 2014

Here below, under chapters 2.2 and 2.3, a few alternative theories for the appearance of Nephilim are given. This is done to make sure that all possible paths for their development are covered.

2.2 – The theory of the giants being natural descendants of
         mankind.

This theory says that the giants ( " Nephilim " ) are not the result of sex between men and angels, because angels have no reproductive capacity because they were not created by God for that purpose.
The Nephilim would be in that case just a race of giants that existed before the flood.
The argument is used that in Matthew 22:30, Jesus said to the Pharisees: “For when the dead rise to life, they will be like the angels in heaven and will not marry ". ..... Also it is argued that the complete number of angels was set once and for all by God in his sovereignty from day one and for eternity. No new angels are born....
This theory leaves many questions unanswered. For example the obvious question of from where could have come the giants if they are not the result of a supernatural union between heavenly beings and human beings? Because it is clear from the bible, - and excavations confirm this - , that the giants existed. Also we cannot say that this goes in against the words of Jesus, who spoke of what will happen in heaven but not on earth….
Also with this theory there is a problem to explain where these giants came from after the flood....


2.3 – The theory of the giants being the descendants of Seth
         and Cain

Another theory is that the “Sons of God” refers to the god-fearing line of Seth; and the daughters of men refer to the daughters of the unbelieving line of Cain. Variations on this theme include the idea, that the Sons of God were kings or priests who took any woman they choose to be their wife.

But this theory cannot be maintained because from the offspring of the two it can be seen that neither was exemplary. At Noah's time there was no one except Noah and a few of his family, who lived according to the will God.

         When Noah left the ark, the Nephilim were gone from the earth; however later on they appeared again.


Also: after the flood there was no more a separation between the descendants of Seth and Cain, and therefore no more giants could have been born, - (however they were born) -, due to the union between two different offsprings of Seth and Cain.

As the theory described under chapter 2.1 is the only one that leaves no unanswered questions open, and also nowhere is in disagreement with what the Bible says, and in addition fits in very well with the various occurrences described in the bible, ((such as whereby the devil tries to destroy God’s plan with this world – see later)), we will continue to develop this version and study more in detail about the Nephilim. 

Monday, May 19, 2014

2 - Theories about the appearance of giants, the NEPHILIM

2.1 – The theory of the union of supernatural beings, called in
         the bible “sons of God”, with human women.

Many well-known theologians and researchers believe that the sons of God are the divine or heavenly beings, spoken of in the Bible, such as those mentioned in Job 2 verse1: “When the day came for the heavenly beings to appear before the Lord again, Satan was there among them”, and also Job 38 verse7 “In the dawn of that day the stars sang together, and the heavenly beings shouted for joy”.   And Psalm 29 verse1: “Praise the Lord, you heavenly beings;
praise his glory and power”.  And furthermore Psalm 89 verse7: “You are feared in the council of the holy ones”............ There are many more examples in the Bible where the heavenly angels / beings are mentioned.

According to this theory, the giants were born from the unnatural union of the above mentioned heavenly beings called also “sons of God” in Genesis 6 verse 2, with human women. ….These so-called "sons of God” (in other bible translations called: “heavenly beings”) are actually angels that were cast out of heaven along with the devil for their opposition against God.

                            The sin of the angels was that they revolted against God,
                             and because of this, they were cast down

This theory, has its parallel in a very ancient tradition, that the Israelites had in common with other neighboring peoples such as  the Greeks and Romans,
This tradition referred to a legendary race of giants (such as Herakles and Achilles in the case of the Greeks). But also in other religions such as Indian, Mayan, and many more, we find the same traditions..
 ( (As an additional comment, one  can say that the children of God are a creation of God , and therefore are called "sons of God" , but they were opposed to God and had joined with Satan)). 
Satan had taken one third of the angels with him, says the Bible. For Satan it was very important to have reinforcements, because the army of God at this time had twice as many angels as Satan had (2/3 against 1/3)..... It becomes clear that Satan used his evil forces to have his angels join with humans to create giants to serve him....
A well-known example of this is the giant Goliath who opposed God in front of the Israelites. In the book of Samuel we read how he cursed God and the Israelites. Here we see his evil nature, serving Satan . David took five stones, and not one, to kill Goliath. This was because Goliath had four brothers, and David had to kill these four also with the four stones he had left. Throughout the Bible we can read about giants, (Nephilim), like Goliath, trying to destroy Israel, and with that, God's plan with the world,
The destruction of Israel is so important to Satan because the Messiah was to be born in Israel, and it was prophesized that the Messiah would destroy Satan. We can read about this prophesy in Genesis 3 verses 14 and 15: “Then the Lord God said to the snake, “You will be punished for this; you alone of all the animals must bear this curse: From now on you will crawl on your belly, and you will have to eat dust as long as you live.   I will make you and the woman hate each other; her offspring and yours will always be enemies. Her offspring will crush your head, and you will bite her offspring’s heel”.
With the words “her offspring …” is meant the coming of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, who will destroy, “crush”, Satan. 
Of course, Satan wants to avoid that the Messiah could de born in Israel, and therefore he always tries to destroy Israel. 

Monday, May 12, 2014

1 – Introduction

Our reference is from Genesis 6:1-8 where we read the following:
“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.
And 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.
There 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. And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.  
And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD”.

The text of Gen 6:1-8 has puzzled Jewish and Christian Bible interpreters for centuries. Its verses contain a number of notions, raising many questions, such as on the identity of the
“sons of God” and the “daughters of men”.
A specific question is related to the appearance of the giants, the focus of this part of the blog.

The fact that these giants existed becomes clear when we note how often the bible refers to them. A few references, out of the many more that exist, are as follows:
Numbers 13:33…”and we even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak. We felt as small as grasshoppers, and that is how we must have looked to them.”

Deuteronomy 3:11… “King Og was the last of the Rephaim. His coffin, made of stone, was six feet wide and almost fourteen feet long, according to standard measurements. It can still be seen in the Ammonite city of Rabbah.)




















Og’s bed (engraving circa 1770 by Johann Balthasar Probst)

Joshua 14:15… “Before this, Hebron was called the city of Arba. (Arba had been the greatest of the Anakim.)
Deuteronomy 2:10…”A mighty race of giants called the Emim used to live in Ar. They were as tall as the Anakim, another race of giants”.
1 Chronicles 20:8….”These three, who were killed by David and his men, were descendants of the giants at Gath”.
2 Samuel 21:18…”After this there was a battle with the Philistines at Gob, during which Sibbecai from Hushah killed a giant named Saph.”.

¿Who is this group of individuals, called giants, and what do they represent?
We will first identify a number of theories that try to explain the identity of the various individuals identified in Genesis 6 verses 1-8, and then go into more detail about the generally accepted theory for the appearance of the “giants”. 

Monday, May 5, 2014

A few words at the continuation of this blog:

I have started this blog giving comments about the visions of Daniel as described in the book of Daniel chapters 7 through 12. Later on I extended this blog with comments about the "Revelations to John.", written in the last book of the bible: the book of Revelation.
The above books of the bible lend themselves to a deep study and people may have a variety of explanations because their meaning is not always very clear.

Something similar occurs with the text of Genesis 6, verse 1 through 8, where it tells us that “the sons of God” married “the daughters of man”, and that their children were described to be “mighty men which were of old, men of renown”.

 In Genesis chapter 6, it tells us that “sons of God” came down to earth and had children with the daughters of men that came to be known as the Nephilim. One of the key characteristics of these Nephilim were their giant size.

Also here, people may have a variety of explanations for the characters described in this text.
Here below I will give a series of comments to these verses, in the hope that this will provide the reader with a better understanding of their meaning, specifically in relation to the evil forces which are present in this world and which try to destroy Gods plan with the world.

I have always tried to base my comments, formulated here below, on the bible only.  
(The part of the written text in italics is copied directly from the Bible)

This new blog has as title:
COMMENTS ON GENESIS 6, VERSES 1-8, …..........
THE NEPHILIM

INDEX OF CHAPTERS

1 - Introduction                                                                      
2 - Theories about the appearance of giants, the NEPHILIN
2.1 – The theory of the union of supernatural beings, called in the
         bible “sons of God”, with human women.
2.2 – The theory of the giants being natural descendants of
         mankind.
2.3 – The theory of the giants being the descendants of Seth and
         Cain.
3 - Who were the Nephilim ?
4 - Events after the flood
5 - The situation now
6 - Conclusions

Sunday, April 27, 2014

6--- THE LAST BATTLE.

6.1 Location of the last battle.

In Ezekiel 38 and 39 we can read in many verses that the last battle will take place in Israel
More specifically we read in Revelation 16 verse 16 that in “Armageddon” this battle will occur: “Then the spirits brought the kings together in the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon”…

View of Jezreel Valley also known as “Valley of Armageddon”

Verses from Ezekiel 38 that refer to this event are verses 8, 14, and 16 (“You will attack my people Israel like a storm moving across the land. When the time comes, I will send you to invade my land”.), and also verses 17 and 18. See also Ezekiel 39 verses 2, (“I will turn him in a new direction and lead him out of the far north until he comes to the mountains of Israel”.), 4,7,11,12…. and more places.

 6.2 Prophecies and visions about the end.

Prophecies and visions about the end, when the final battle is over, are written in the Bible in many forms. Some examples are:
- Isaiah 56 verse 5: The Lord says: “Then your name will be remembered in my Temple and among my people longer than if you had sons and daughters. You will never be forgotten”.
- Amos 9 verse 15: “I will plant my people on the land I gave them,
and they will not be pulled up again.” The Lord your God has spoken.
- Revelation 20 v 1-3: “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key of the abyss and a heavy chain.   He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent—that is, the Devil, or Satan—and chained him up for a thousand years.  The angel threw him into the abyss, locked it, and sealed it, so that he could not deceive the nations any more until the thousand years were over”. (The scope of this document does not include an explanation of the "thousand years")
We can read that after the after the battle, there will be a new earth and a new Jerusalem:
- Revelation 21 verse 1: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven and the first earth disappeared, and the sea vanished."
- Revelation 21 verse. 2: "And I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared and ready, like a bride dressed to meet her husband." 

Thursday, April 24, 2014

(Continuation of 5,---THE MOMENT OF THE INVASION BY THE NATIONS FROM THE NORTH INTO ISRAEL)

E) -The time when the great suffering of Israel starts, see Matthew 24 verse 21 and 22: “For the trouble at that time will be far more terrible than any there has ever been, from the beginning of the world to this very day. Nor will there ever be anything like it again. But God has already reduced the number of days; had he not done so, nobody would survive. For the sake of his chosen people,
however, God will reduce the days”. This is the period of three and a half years, mentioned before.

F) -The moment of the escape of Daniel's people: “those that are written in the book of the living”. See Exodus 32 verse. 32, Luke 10 verse 20, Revelation 3 verse 5: “Those who win the victory will be clothed like this in white, and I will not remove their names from the book of the living. In the presence of my Father and of his angels I will declare openly that they belong to me”.

Those who win the victory will be clothed like this in white, and I will not remove their names from the book of the living

 See also revelation 13 verse 8, and Revelation 20 verse 12 and 15: ” And I saw the dead, great and small alike, standing before the throne. Books were opened, and then another book was opened, the book of the living….. Those who did not have their name written in the book of the living were thrown into the lake of fire”.  Many more places in the bible refer to these events. Daniel 12 verse 1 mentions: “….Michael, who guards your people…..”. These are the people that are saved because they have believed in Jesus Christ as their savior, and this of course counts also for us.

(Note: With much precaution, I want to mention here that the above references under F, such as Rev. 3:5, Rev. 20:12, 15 and Daniel 12:1 probably refer to those who have come to belief in Jesus Crist after the events described in 1 Thessalonians 4 verses 16,17: "Those who have died believing in Christ will rise to life first; then we who are living at that time will be gathered up along with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord”. … This is also called the “rapture”, and occurs before the time of the “great suffering-, (the three wars)”,- starts.   … The scope of this document does not include a further discussion of this point.

(2) --- About the angel "Michael”
In apocalyptic writings, every nation appears headed by an angel that protects and represents it. Hence sometimes conflicts between nations are described as a struggle between angels. Michael is the guardian angel of God's people. The New Testament calls him archangel (Jude 9) and presents it as an enemy and conqueror of Satan (Revelation 12.7-8).

Monday, April 21, 2014

5---THE MOMENT OF THE INVASION BY THE NATIONS FROM THE NORTH INTO ISRAEL.

At the time when the Antichrist breaks the peace pact, in that same moment, many nations from the north will invade Israel. They will be accompanied by their allies as explained in Chapter 3.1. That is also the time when the second half, (three years and a half) of the last week mentioned in Daniel 9 will start.
In Daniel 12: 1, we read: “At that time (1) the great angel Michael (2), who guards your people, will appear. Then there will be a time of troubles, the worst since nations first came into existence. When that time comes, all the people of your nation whose names are written in God's book will be saved”.

(1) --- Here below, under A through F, an explanation is given of the words: "At that time" and what happens at that moment:

A) - It is the time when the Antichrist breaks the peace pact.

B) - The time when the antichrist installs himself on Mount Moriah, the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

Mount Moriah, the Temple Mount.

C) -The time when the angel Michael throws Satan and his angels on the earth…, see Revelation 12 versiculos7-9: “Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, who fought back with his angels; but the dragon was defeated, and he and his angels were not allowed to stay in heaven any longer.  The huge dragon was thrown out—that ancient serpent, named the Devil, or Satan, that deceived the whole world. He was thrown down to earth and all his angels with him”.

D) -The moment when the “awful horror” will appear at a holy place in Israel.  See Matthew 24 verse15: “You will see ‘The Awful Horror’ of which the prophet Daniel spoke. It will be standing in the holy place”.
Also: 2 Thessalonians 2 verse 4:” He will oppose every so-called god or object of worship and will put himself above them all. He will even go in and sit down in God's Temple and claim to be God”. And revelations 13 verse 6: “It began to curse God, his name, the place where he lives, and all those who live in heaven“.