My original intent for this series was to take each chapter and write a blog post. I did not break this one into two posts because of its length or its extensive references. I did so because I was disappointed in the general lack of scholarship in the first part of the chapter. And it would be dishonest of me if I were to say that an earlier eisegetical blunder like that didn’t give me cause to question the rest of the chapter, if not the entire book.
As I said earlier, Michael Heiser is educated in biblical matters to a degree that I cannot match. The same was true of the Bereans as well, who couldn’t match the intellect of the Apostle Paul. Yet, Paul references the noble actions of the Bereans for checking what he was saying against the scriptures. This checking against the scriptures was more than just reading the references that Paul offered to see if those words were present. It included cross-referencing the entire authoritative scripture to see if the claims of Paul were in conformity with the truth of the Law, Prophets, and Writings, or the Old Testament as we know it today.
So that will be my charge for the remainder of this project. Michael Heiser has forgotten more biblical knowledge than I will ever learn, but God is no respecter of persons. As one made in the image and likeness of God, I have sought to follow this trait for most of my life. Michael Heiser may be a former scholar-in-residence at Logos Bible Software. That’s well and good. But he is not infallible, and I have already watched him misrepresent one position that is very well accepted in Christian circles. Why wouldn’t he misrepresent views about the supernatural? I’m not saying that he is, but he has opened himself up to additional scrutiny. These first three paragraphs are evidence of how unforced errors can derail other, even unrelated, kingdom work. Christian, learn lessons from the errors of others lest you be forced to learn from your own errors!
Let’s get to the text:
Genesis 6:1-4 When man began to multiply on the face of the land and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose. Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.
This is an accounting of what was going on immediately prior to the flood that covered the entire world. There are a few interpretations of this. All that I am aware of agree that the daughters of man are humans. Their family lines are where the discussion happens. Some say that the sons of God are those in the family line of Seth while the daughters of man are of the family line of Cain. The original popular understanding was that the sons of God were elohim in nature while the daughters of man were humans of unidentified lineage.
The words used in that text don’t really give a definitive answer to just who these sons of God were, but the description of the offspring leads me to have a healthy dose of skepticism (there’s a lot of that going around here) about the Seth/Cain concept. That one is trying to assume that upright human men took evil human women as wives and the results were men mighty enough that the King James Version, based on the Latin Vulgate, referred to them as giants. Throughout the various translations, they are called either giants or Nephilim.
The study of just what was going on here has prompted a resurgence of the study of non-canonical books, such as 1 Enoch. Even though Enoch is referenced in a few New Testament books, that is not sufficient support for it to be included in a modern Bible. If being referenced was enough, then Paul’s reciting of pagan philosophers and poets in his missionary journeys would be enough to bring all kinds of error into the Bible. Enoch is extra-biblical and can be read by someone seeking to understand, but they would be wise to remember throughout the study that there are reasons why it has never been considered appropriate to be included among the scriptures.
The book of Enoch makes claims that contradict the Bible, and it isn’t even debatable. I invite anyone interested in Enoch to read this linked post. You may not agree with everything in it and neither do I. I looked for a snippet of Enoch vs Genesis conflict at the link above and the differences are so many that I couldn’t narrow it down to show it all. Seriously, read it for yourself! The ramifications of Enoch are many. It says that death and suffering are not a result of the sin of Adam but a result of the Watchers and their giant offspring. If this is true, then the wages of sin is not death. The first Adam did not fail as our head and the second Adam (Jesus) was completely unnecessary.
Most conservative Christians believe that demons are angels who sided with Satan, Enoch says they are the spirits of the giants who died in the Flood (I Enoch 15-16). There is nothing to support this in the Bible.
Malcolm Nicholson
That’s the crux of the matter. Michael Heiser introduces some concepts in this chapter that I can’t corroborate in the Bible. But they can be matched to a book that undermines the gospel. Was I willing to overlook this before Heiser started building strawmen arguments to represent his unrelated theological opponents? No. But he is the one who raised my radar to keep a lookout for other contradictions.
So here’s one. Michael Heiser acknowledges that the book of Enoch may have been popular two thousand years ago, but was not considered sacred or inspired.
So far, so good.
Then, in the very next paragraph, Heiser affirms that “Demons are the departed spirits of dead Nephilim killed before and during the flood.”
Heiser can point to this verse over here and that verse over there and lead the reader in circles until they agree with him, but the fact remains. He is basing this chapter on a book that was never considered authoritative. It is fan fiction from milennea ago and again, it undermines the gospel at many places. It also serves to undermine a young Christian’s confidence in the Bible.
So now it’s not really The Bible vs Enoch. Now it’s The Bible vs “Supernatural” by Michael Heiser, former scholar-in-residence at Logos Bible Software.
Me
Eat the meat. Spit out the bones.
I do not accept the definitions that are given by any work of fiction, no matter what the date of writing was. I am a Protestant. An as such, I believe in Sola Scriptura.
Sola Scriptura
In the Protestant Reformation, there are five primary arguments that Protestants had with the Roman Catholic church. All of the other disputes fell into one of five categories. I won’t go into all five, but Sola Scriptura is in view here. That is a Latin phrase which is shorthand for the conviction that the Bible alone is the lone infallible source of authority for Christian faith and practice. There are other writings that are not in the Bible, such as a majority of the songs sung in churches today. Those are all subservient to the Bible, and if they contain claims that contradict the Bible they are not to be included in the worship of God. So sing “Amazing Grace” with gusto! But “Reckless Love” is heretical, for recklessness implies that God is willing to accept a loss of control.
Pondering the origin of demons from sources that are outside the library of information that God has preserved for His people is dangerous. Where God has not spoken, man ought not seek to fill in those gaps for Him. How presumptuous! As a faithful Christian, I reject Heiser’s foundation for his claims in this chapter. Is it possible that he is correct? I suppose, but he has shown in this chapter a willingness to be adamantly wrong on things that are easy to research. Don’t be mad if you think I’m being unfair to Michael Heiser here. I didn’t undermine his authority. He did!
Back to the Nephilim
I said earlier that the explanation of human to human procreation resulting in “mighty men of renown” seemed unlikely to me. Genetics don’t work that way. There was something more than attractive Caininites and wicked Sethites going on here. And the Bible also states that there were giants in the post-flood world, in Deuteronomy 2 and 3, among other references. If everything that has breath died in the flood of Noah, where did these Cain/Seth offspring come from? Noah was the line of Seth, and the line of Cain was concluded in the deluge. Thus, I am much more convinced in the supernatural origin of the Nephilim.
The only one who can create is God. The best that the forces of darkness can do is to twist the good creation and try to declare themselves to be like God. That was the original temptation in the garden. When the bene elohim looked and saw that the women were desirable, some of them left their places to take them as wives. They sought to “create” life in this way, resulting in hybrid beings. And humanity continues to leave our rightful places in the same sin today. That is what happens today as viral components are massaged, dare I say weaponized, and declared to be a man-made creation. This happens when the scalps of human babies are grafted onto the backs of lab rats. This happens when homosexuals demand that the birth certificate of the child they claimed has their names listed as the parents and not the names of the natural… parents.
RecommendedRequired Reading: The Nephilim, Hades, and Other Oddments by Douglas Wilson
It’s a scam. It is the created spitting in the face of the creator. We have been given rightful placements in our duty to glorify God in all that we do. That same requirement belongs to all of the supernatural forces. Yes, all of them. All of creation exists to the glory of God. There was a rebellion among the created angels and there is ongoing rebellion among the created humans. All of us have turned away from the duty we have. But God did not send a savior to the supernatural or to their offspring. God sent a savior, as the creator of all things overshadowed Mary resulting in her bearing a son who would be the savior of the world.
Luke 1:35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.
It would be a mistake to say that God entered into the same sin that resulted in the existence of evil giants. For one, it is God who set the boundaries that the bene elohim crossed. Remember, the original temptation was that “you will be like God.” God caused the impregnation of Mary and He did so without sinning because in so doing, He was not acting outside of His jurisdiction. And if you wish to debate where God’s jurisdiction begins and ends, let me know so I can make sure to stand far away from you.
This was a frustrating chapter, filled with author bias that cannot be defended with scripture. The first portion of the chapter introduced a tired old argument that has been soundly refuted time and again. The second portion of the chapter relies on a document of fiction. The chapter ends with a statement that goes back to the first error, and that is where Heiser again rejects any connection between foreknowledge and predestination. Again, this is an argument that is unnecessary in the flow of what his valid points are pointing toward. Essentially, he is trying to let God off the hook when it was God himself who placed himself in that position. His ways are above our ways. His thoughts are above our thoughts.
And when we create our own fiction about God so that we can accept His word, we go right back to that original temptation. If we can fit God into our box, then we will be like God. Any god that fits into your box is not YHWH.
Do I still think Christians should read this book? Yes, but with a caveat. They either should be comfortable challenging the book as they read it or they should read it with a more seasoned Christian. In other words, read like a Berean. The Bereans were more noble because they challenged Paul’s teaching by ensuring that it was in conformity with the whole of scripture, not just the handpicked references presented in his preaching.
