There were giants in the earth in those days
That is, in the days before the sons of God took the daughters of
men for wives, in such a general manner as before declared, or
before the declension and apostasy became so universal; even in
the times of Jared, as the Arabic writers F14
understand it, who say that these giants were begotten on the
daughters of Cain by the children of Seth, who went down from the
mountain to them in the days of Jared, see ( Genesis 5:20
) the word "Nephilim" comes from a word which signifies to fall;
and these might be so called, either because they made their fear
to fall upon men, or men, through fear, to fall before them,
because of their height and strength; or rather because they fell
and rushed on men with great violence, and oppressed them in a
cruel and tyrannical manner; or, as some think, because they fell
off and were apostates from the true religion, which is much
better than to understand them of apostate angels, whom the
Targum of Jonathan mentions by name, and calls them Schanchazai
and Uziel, who fell from heaven, and were in the earth in those
days: and also after that,
which shows that the preceding clause respects giants in former
times, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of
men,
came into their houses and chambers, and lay with them: and
they bare [children] unto them,
or giants unto them, as may be supplied from the former clause;
for the sense is, as there were giants before this general
defection, so there were at this time, when there was a mixture
of the Cainites and Sethites; which were the offspring of the
sons of God, or posterity of Seth, mixing with the daughters of
men, or the posterity of Cain; for this is not to be understood
after the flood, as Aben Ezra, Ben Melech; and so they are
described in the following words, the same [became] mighty
men;
for tallness and strength, for power and dominion, for tyranny
and oppression: which [were] of old:
like those that were of old before; or who in after times were
spoken of, as in the days of old: men of
renown,
or "of name" F15; whose names were often made
mention of, both for their size and for their wickedness; they
were much talked of, and extolled for their exploits, and even
wicked ones: they were famous men, or rather infamous; for some
men get a name in the world, not for their goodness, but for
their greatness, and sometimes for their great wickedness; which
sense is countenanced by what follows: that there were giants in
these early times is confirmed by the testimony of many Heathen
writers; such were the Titans that made war against Saturn,
begotten by Ouranus, who were not only of bulky bodies, but of
invincible strength, as Apollodorus F16 relates, and Berosus
F17 speaks of a city about Lebanon,
called Enos, which was a city of giants, who were men of vast
bodies, and of great strength, inventors of arms and music, were
cannibals, and exceedingly debauched.
F14 Elmacinus & Patricides apud Hottinger, p. 235, 236.
F15 (Mvh yvna) "viri nominis", Montanus.
F16 De Origine Deorum, l. 1. p. 14.
F17 Antiqu. l. 1. fol. 5. 2. vid. Horat. Carmin, l. 2. Ode. 19. Ovid Metamorph. l. 1. Fab. 1.