Genesis 6:4 references "giants," that they were mighty men of renown, and that is nearly all we get from this one verse.
The NKJV Evangelical Study Bible, available with Bible Gateway Plus, offers this explanation:
6:4. Giants. The Hebrew word is nephilim (lit., “fallen ones”), which is often left untranslated. “Giants” is an interpretation reflective of the description of the same term in Numbers 13:33, where the Anakim are known for their height and power. Whoever the Nephilim were, they were presented as contemporaries with and not descendants of the sons of God. Their description here and in Numbers highlights their role as a class (mighty men . . . men of renown) rather than an ethnic group.
The study note helps us look behind the English word “giants” to the Hebrew term nephilim. It also points out something easy to miss: the Nephilim are described as contemporaries of the sons of God, not their descendants.
And notice what the note doesn’t do. It doesn’t force an answer Scripture doesn’t give: “Whoever the Nephilim were.”
This Week's Reflection: How might mystery help me trust God more instead of less?
Some passages give us less detail than we might want. That isn’t a reason to rush to an answer. It’s an invitation to read slowly, compare carefully, and keep returning to God’s Word.
Read Genesis 6:1–4 and the excerpt from the NKJV Evangelical Study Bible >>
