Ever read Genesis 6:1-4? You should. It’s a tantalizing piece of the bible with fantastical possibilities.
I don’t know when it occurred to me but ever since I can remember I have always held a connection between those Big Fish (great movie, btw) stories of old, the greek and roman gods, dragons, mythical sea creatures, and more, with the possibility that they may have been based on some kernel of truth, even if they seemed exaggerated out of all rational proportions.
Genesis 6:1-4 talks about “sons of God” and continues to explain the “Nephilim [giants] were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of men and had children by them.” But this is even more fascinating, “They were the heroes of old, men of renown.”
I don’t know about you but I don’t refer to historical figures as heroes or men of renown. Perhaps renown, in the case of great statesmen, or poets or writers, but used in the context like it is, it seems there’s more.
Before I go to far, this isn’t just my imagination running wild. See Sons of God for an incredible journey of possibilities and some eye-openers.
For those not interested in whether or not there were “giants” in the past, you might be interested to know that the King James Version has what is commonly held as a mis-translation in Deuteronomy 32:8 (read the Sons of God link) that in turn leads to more meaning regarding Genesis 6:1-4.
Don’t be afraid of “errors” in your bible. They’re not the kind of errors that are going to blow up your faith. God’s Word is perfect. Mankind is not.
Your bible is a translation and it may have a mistake here and there. The KJV has been known to have a few ever since it was first published but they let it be, I’m not sure why. At any rate, there’s a wealth of knowledge out there when these issues do come up. The answer is always a google away.
Back to the topic at hand.
When you’ve read the links above you’ll better understand what I say next.
What really excites me is the possibility that the adventurers, the heroes, the kings, the queens, the vagabonds and the gods we all read stories about, were not entirely made up by writers of pure fiction, but sourced on real superhuman beings that presented themselves at that time.
Imagine that! If the gods of olympus were bourne on some kind of truth, what else is out there that might also hold some weight? Imagine each and every incredible, far out myth that has come down to us from the dawns of time and that there may be some truth to each.
What I especially love about all of this is the tapestry, vibrant with colour, rich with texture, God has created for us and placed us in. Whether or not roman and greek gods really did exist is beside the point. There were incredible people, creatures and events that continue to astound us. They are so fantastic our minds can not grasp them as a reality.
And so it is with God.
I talk of stories of the farthest of wild dreams. I might be wrong, but then again there might be some truth to what I’m thinking too.
God lays out the brutal truth,
2 “Who is this that darkens my counsel
with words without knowledge?
3 Brace yourself like a man;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.
4 “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?
Tell me, if you understand.
5 Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!
Who stretched a measuring line across it?
6 On what were its footings set,
or who laid its cornerstone-
7 while the morning stars sang together
and all the angels [a] shouted for joy?”
Job 38:2-7
And the Almighty God of the universe goes on and on to drive home the point. We think we are wise. We think we know the ways of God.
The truth is, even this creation he has given us, which we live a lifetime in and think we can finally come to grips with and understand it, even this, even this we truly do not understand the better part of a fraction.
Read it. It’s breath-taking and humbling. When you’re done that, G.K. Chesterton‘s excellent essay may shed some light of the brilliance of the scipture.