Who are the “sons of God” in this passage?
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It’s exactly the kind of question Bible students ask—and exactly the kind of question Bible Gateway Plus is built to help them work through on their own. With original-language tools, dictionaries, cross-references, and commentaries integrated directly into the text, students can move from question to careful interpretation without ever leaving the passage.
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See it in action: two words, one difficult phrase
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The phrase "sons of God" in Genesis 6:2 is a good example of why word-level study matters, because both words are doing interpretive work.
The word translated “sons” comes from the Hebrew bēn. Bible Gateway Plus surfaces this immediately when you engage the original language.
In many contexts, bēn refers not only to direct offspring, but more broadly to those who belong to a group—descendants, members of a people, or those identified by a shared characteristic.
So the phrase begins to take shape as a description of identity: "sons of…" — those who belong to, or are defined by their association with, what follows.
But that raises the next question: what does it mean here to belong to God?
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Looking more closely at ’ᵉlōhîm
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When you select “God” with Bible Gateway Plus’s NIV Reverse Interlinear, the Hebrew word ’ᵉlōhîm immediately reveals a wider range of meaning than a single English word can capture:
Across Scripture, ’ᵉlōhîm can refer to:
- God, the one true and living God
- gods in a plural sense
- judges or rulers
- angels or other divine beings
Even the form of the word is complex—plural in appearance, yet often used with singular meaning when referring to the God of Israel, which is why this phrase has been understood in many different ways. All of this is shown with one click on a word.
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Following the language across Scripture
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To go a step further, you can compare that initial range with a dictionary.
Mounce’s Complete Expository Dictionary, included with Bible Gateway Plus, traces how ’ᵉlōhîm is used throughout the Old Testament—showing its primary use for the God of Israel, alongside its secondary uses for other beings, authorities, or representatives.
This kind of comparison moves the reader from a quick definition toward a more careful understanding of how the word functions in context.
Rather than just handing students an answer, Bible Gateway Plus gives the tools to understand why multiple readings exist and how to evaluate them carefully.
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Following the pattern across Scripture
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With the range of ʾᵉlōhîm in view, students can take one more step: seeing how similar language appears elsewhere.
In Job, “sons of God” appears in a setting where beings present themselves before the Lord—suggesting a heavenly context. This doesn’t settle the question in Genesis 6, but it provides a meaningful point of comparison.
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Bringing the pieces together
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At this point, several readings begin to emerge:
- A heavenly or divine beings interpretation
- A human lineage or covenant community interpretation
- A description of authority or representation
Each possibility draws on how these words are used across Scripture. This is the kind of cross-textual work that builds real interpretive skill. And with Bible Gateway Plus, that next step is already there, inside the text they're already reading.
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A tool built for how serious study actually works
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For many students, the challenge is not reading the passage—it’s knowing how to explore it. Bible Gateway Plus makes the process of interpretation visible and repeatable:
- Examine key words in the original language
- Explore their range of meaning
- Trace themes through cross-referenced passages
- Consult trusted reference resources for interpretation
When students can do all of that in a single platform, without switching tools or tabs, they're practicing real exegetical method.
This is what Bible Gateway Plus offers: Study Bibles, commentaries, dictionaries, and original-language tools—right alongside the passage you’re reading.
So when a question arises, the next step is already there—within the text itself.
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