not given in Jude, but Peter links the "angels that sinned" with the time of Noah

(II Pet. 2: 4, 5), and refers to the spirits in prison, which were disobedient during the time

that the ark was preparing.

When we remember that angels are always spoken of as men, and indeed were

entertained as such for some hours by Abraham, the difficulty which we may have in

connection with this subject may not appear so great. It may seem strange at first that

verse 3 should come in between the two statements concerning the sons of God, but we

are sure that it is there with a definite object. Of Adam the Lord said, "My spirit shall not

always remain in Adam, for that he also is flesh". The spirit remaining in man keeps him

alive; when that spirit is withdrawn man dies, he is but flesh. Adam differed nothing in

this respect from his children, his days were numbered, and it is revealed to us that from

this point "his days" were to be "an hundred and twenty years". "There were giants in

the earth IN THOSE DAYS", so continues verse 4, and the only days that can be meant

are those which refer to the last 120 years of Adam's life. Not only were they in the earth

then, but "after that", after Adam had died, and after the flood had destroyed the giants

that were in the earth during Adam's closing years. The word "giants" comes form the

Greek gigantes, which did not originally mean only greatness of size, but is derived for

gegenes, "earth born". The Hebrew word is Nephilim, or "the fallen ones"; these were

the Gibbor, the "mighty", for so it is translated 139 times out of 159 occurrences.

Nimrod was "a mighty one in the earth", and "the beginning of his kingdom was Babel".

These mighty ones are also called "men of renown", or literally, "men of name"; this

again is a prominent feature in the rebellion that originated Babel, for the builders said,

"Let us make us a name".

That the Nephilim numbered among them literal giants, the Scriptures clearly testify.

The spies sent by Moses into the land of promise spoke of the "men of great stature" that

they saw, saying, "and there we saw the giants (Nephilim) the sons of Anak which come

of the giants". All however were not of necessity gigantic in size, although they seem to

have left that impression upon the mind of man: their unnatural origin, their superhuman

prowess supplied the basis for the "heroes" of Greek legend, and the "giants" of most

folk tales; the giant cities of Bashan still bear testimony to the existence of a race of

literal giants, the iron bedstead of Og, king of Bashan (over 15 feet long) bears its witness

also; hence although the A.V. gives "giants" as a translation of Nephilim, and is therefore

open to the charge of giving a private interpretation rather than a translation, let us not

hastily come to the conclusion that these Nephilim were not, nevertheless, literal giants,

for Scripture most definitely tells us that many of them were. The intermarrying of one

section of Adam's children with another does not supply a reasonable argument for

"giants" as a result. If the sons of God were fallen angels, the abnormal consequences are

what may be expected, and such a drastic and universal destruction as the flood becomes

a necessity.  Amid the awful corruption of the flesh on every hand Noah stand

uncontaminated. "Noah was a just man and perfect (without blemish) in his generations

(his contemporaries)"; through him only could the line of promise run. Satan had tried to

prevent the coming of the Seed of the woman, but had again failed; he tried at the birth of

Cain, for Cain "was of that wicked one". Finding that Seth was given in place of Abel,

he corrupted the stream of life while Adam still lived by the irruption of the angels that