This question addresses some important issues about the Christian Way of Life.

As we pointed out in our previous Q&A, “Does God Give His Holy Spirit to People Who Have Not Been Baptized?”, since the establishment of the New Testament Church, a person needs to be properly baptized to receive the Holy Spirit, and he will not enter the Kingdom of God at the time of his resurrection if he did not have God’s Holy Spirit within him at the time of his death. Normally, he must spiritually grow after the receipt of the Holy Spirit, until he has qualified for the entrance of the Kingdom of God. (To clarify, when the Bible or we speak of a Christian in the masculine gender, the feminine gender is ALWAYS included, unless the context demands a different understanding in a given case.)

We state the following in our free booklet, “Are You Already Born Again?”, under “The ‘Born-Again’ Process”:

“Using the process of human conception, gestation and birth as an analogy, we can gain a clearer understanding of the concept of being born again into SPIRIT. In this physical life, one is not born immediately at the time of conception. There is a time interval between conception and birth. A human baby must be conceived. A human baby must grow in the womb (the period of gestation). A human baby gains life of its own through birth.

“The same principles apply to our spiritual birth. Although we will be born again at the time of our resurrection or our change to immortality, something else must happen first so that we CAN become born again. The Bible describes this prior event as spiritual conception or ‘begettal.’ Simply put, before we can be born again, we must be begotten again—a spiritual begettal. This spiritual begettal takes place at the time of our baptism, after repentance, and after coming to an understanding of, and belief in, Christ’s sacrifice and the gospel of the Kingdom of God. At the time of baptism we then receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, through the laying on of hands, as a down payment—a guarantee—(Ephesians 1:14; 2 Corinthians 5:5) of our ultimate new birth at our resurrection to spirit.

“In applying the analogy of human birth to spiritual birth, the receipt of God’s Spirit at conversion is a type of spiritual begettal. With the receipt of God’s Spirit, we acquire God’s divine nature (2 Peter 1:4), but there is still another step in the process. Just as an embryo must grow and develop, we must also grow spiritually and develop the fruit of the Spirit—the actual character of God. God considers those who have received His Spirit as being His children (2 Corinthians 6:17–18). Finally, Spirit-begotten children become SEPARATE SPIRIT BEINGS upon being born again—at their resurrection and change to immortality.

“Romans 8:11 tells us that ‘…if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit [which] dwells in you.’ 1 Corinthians 6:14 adds, ‘And God both raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by His power.’ In other words, God will resurrect us by His Spirit, which is a spirit of power (Acts 1:8; 2 Timothy 1:7).

“To come to the point of being ‘born again’ is a process. It starts with the moment we receive God’s Holy Spirit, in the same way that a human being begins to live in his mother’s womb at the time of conception. God baptizes us through His Holy Spirit into the Church, which is called ‘the mother of us all’ (Galatians 4:26–27, 31). A human baby grows in his mother’s womb until he is ready to be born. Likewise, we are to grow in our Christian lives in the womb of the Church, increasing in the ‘grace and knowledge of Christ’ (2 Peter 3:18; compare Ephesians 4:11–13), until we can become born again—Spirit beings.

“A father begets a child, while the mother delivers it. After the father has initiated the process, there is an intervening time of about nine months before birth, or parturition, occurs. During this intervening time, the mother nourishes and protects the unborn child in her womb for the entire gestation period. The same is true for our spiritual begettal, growth and birth. During the spiritual ‘gestation’ period, after our conversion, it is the duty and responsibility of the Church, of which Christ is the Head (Ephesians 5:23), to nourish and protect the begotten children of God. These spiritually begotten children of God, the Father, need nourishment from good spiritual food supplied by God, and they need to absorb the food so they can grow spiritually, striving to become perfect in this life. In this way, they can become born again children at the time of Christ’s return…”

So we see that normally, a newly-baptized person must spiritually grow before he can enter the Kingdom of God. Some have claimed that this is not always the case as the thief on the cross who came to conversion a few hours before his death, was promised by Christ that he would enter “Paradise” or the Kingdom of God on the day of his death… and he was not even baptized. However, in addition to the fact that this incident occurred PRIOR TO the establishment of the New Testament Church, this is not what Christ promised the thief.

We read in Luke 23:39–43, in the translation of the New King James Bible: “Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, ‘If you are the Christ, save Yourself and us.’ But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, ‘Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.’ Then he said to Jesus, ‘Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.’”

We addressed this question in our free booklet, “Jesus Christ—a Great Mystery”, under “Did the Thief Go To Paradise on the Day of His Death?”.

After discussing Christ’s statement in detail, we offered the following conclusion:

“… both the throne of God and the tree of life are in the Paradise of God. Revelation 22:1–3 teaches us that the throne of God and the tree of life will be in the New Jerusalem, when it descends to [the new] earth. This means, then, that the Paradise of God will be here on [the new] earth.”

This means, Christ promised the thief that he would be in Paradise when the heavenly Jerusalem descends to the new earth—which will occur long AFTER the first resurrection. Christ did not say he would be in Paradise on same day of his death. Rather, to continue with quoting from our above-mentioned booklet:

“Jesus Christ was telling the thief on the cross that he would be with Christ in Paradise, AFTER it had been established on [the new] earth.

“In the original Greek, there are no commas… This means, rather than stating, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise,’ this passage could also be translated as, ‘Assuredly, I say to you today, you will be with Me in Paradise.’ The Companion Bible states in its appendix, in paragraph 173, that the interpretation of this verse depends exclusively on the punctuation, which is totally dependent on human authority. They explain that until the 9th century, Greek manuscripts had no punctuation at all, and even after that time, they only had a dot separating words from each other. The Broadman Bible Commentary admits: ‘It is possible to place the comma after today…’

“Christ did not promise the thief that he would be in Paradise the day he died. But since He saw his repentant attitude, He did promise him on that very day that he would be in Paradise—here on [the new] earth, in the future.”

On the other hand, God looks at the heart of a person, and when He determines that a newly-converted person is qualified to enter the Kingdom of God, He may let him die soon after his baptism. We find that Samson will be in the Kingdom of God (compare Hebrews 11:32, 39-40), even though we understand that he only came to true repentance and conversion shortly before his death, when his hair grew again in the dungeon (Of course, in Old Testament times, God gave the Holy Spirit to some without any requirement of prior baptism. This changed with the establishment of the New Testament Church.)

In any event, converted Christians do not die because of time and chance. When a converted Christian dies, God decided to let him die, because He had determined that he had qualified to enter the Kingdom of God. In other words, when a person dies and the Holy Spirit dwells in him at the time of his death, then that person WILL be in the first resurrection and in the Kingdom of God. God would NOT let a converted Christian die if he was not ready for the Kingdom at the time of his death.

Some quote Ecclesiastes 9:11 for the idea that true Christians may die BECAUSE of time and chance.

We stated the following in our free booklet, “Human Suffering, Why… and How Much Longer”: under “True Christians Not Subject to Time and Chance”:

“Note what Solomon said: ‘Time and chance happen to THEM all.’ He did NOT say—‘to all men,’ or ‘to all of us.’ In the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon was mainly addressing and writing about people in this world—people who only live and work for material possessions (Ecclesiastes 5:13–17), or people who do not understand God’s plan (Ecclesiastes 8:17). When he addressed true Christians, however, he referred to them as ‘you’ (compare Ecclesiastes 9:10: ‘Whatever YOUR hand finds to do, do it with YOUR might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where YOU are going.’)…

“Christ made the same distinction, in Luke 13:1–5: ‘There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And Jesus answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, no; but UNLESS YOU repent, YOU will ALL LIKEWISE perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower of Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, no; but UNLESS YOU repent, YOU will all LIKEWISE perish.”’

“Christ’s teaching is unmistakable: If we don’t repent, we might very well die as those did, on whom the tower of Siloam fell; that is, through an accident, apart from, or being cut off from God, by time and chance. If we repent, however, according to Christ, we will NOT likewise perish or die in that way. Rather, even if we were to die in an ‘accident,’ God would have specifically—not just ‘generally’—DECIDED not to intervene and to LET US die. God is always in control over our lives. Nothing happens to us, which God is not aware of and which God does not ‘approve of’ (compare Job 1:21–22; 2:10).

“True Christians are NOT in the ‘hand’ of time and chance. Rather, Solomon tells US: ‘… the righteous and the wise and their works are in the hand of God’ (Ecclesiastes 9:1). David understood, too, that he was in God’s hands. He wrote, in Psalm 31:15: ‘My times are in Your hand.’ He knew that he was always, constantly, and completely under God’s observation, His protection, and in His loving care (compare, Psalm 4:7–8; 9:9–10; 17:8; 23:1–6; 33:18–19; 34:7, 15, 19–20, etc. etc.), as are all true Christians today. God promises that nothing will happen to us that is too difficult for us to bear (compare 1 Corinthians 10:13). This means, then, that God must be watching us every second to guarantee the fulfillment of His promise…

“The very idea that a true Christian could die… because of time and chance, limits God and weakens our faith. It is a patently unbiblical concept. When a Christian dies, it is because GOD has DECIDED that it was time for His son or daughter to die…

“Isaiah 57:1–2 states: ‘The righteous perishes, And no man takes it to heart; Merciful men are taken away, While no one considers That the righteous is taken away from evil. He shall enter into peace; They shall rest in their beds, Each one walking in his uprightness.’ Psalm 116:15 teaches: ‘Precious in the SIGHT OF the LORD Is the death of His saints.’ (Compare, too, Psalm 72:14). So, God’s people just don’t die without the knowledge of God. Rather, they die in God’s SIGHT!…

“Did Paul teach that we are hopeless and helpless victims of time and chance? Quite the opposite is true: ‘For if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, WE ARE THE LORD’S’ [Romans 14:8]…

“What exactly is Solomon saying in Ecclesiastes 9:10–11?

“Simply this: In Ecclesiastes 9:10 he encourages us to do with our might what we ought to do. In other words, to be very careful how we live our lives as Christians. Give all glory to God, he says, and don’t lean on your own understanding or strength. Because, he says in verse 11, when you fail, you’ll be right back in the world, which you once belonged to, and in the world, you WILL be subject to time and chance. Your own human abilities won’t necessarily help you in the world. Understand that without God’s help, we are pretty much lost, having become victims of time and chance. Solomon says, you may even die in a terrible accident or because of a terrible sickness.

“But, as long as we are in God’s loving hands, we are not victims of time and chance. And when we die, it is NOT because of time and chance. Rather, when a Christian dies, it is because GOD has decided that it was time for him or her to die, as he or she has qualified for God’s Kingdom (Numbers 23:10; Isaiah 57:1–2; Romans 14:8; Revelation 14:13).”

In conclusion, the Christian Way of Life requires spiritual growth. God will decide when a converted person is ready to enter the Kingdom of God. In doing so, He also looks at the heart, the attitude, the motives and the desires of the person. God will not let a true Christian die before his time and before he is ready. If the Holy Spirit dwells in a person at the time of his death, he WILL be in the first resurrection and in God’s Kingdom.

Lead Writer: Norbert Link

In the writings of the Bible there are a small number of examples of individuals who received the Holy Spirit without a Christian baptism. Prior to the time of the establishment of the New Testament Church, some received the Holy Spirit without first being baptized. They were used by God at that time for a specific and special purpose. They had a job to do, which involved establishing the truth of God among people on the earth and executing the plan of God.

Following the establishment of the New Testament Church, the standard process for receiving the Holy Spirit involves a Christian baptism followed by the laying on of hands by a minister of God.

We write in our free booklet, Baptism – A Requirement for Salvation?: 

“Without baptism based on biblical teaching, we normally would not receive the Holy Spirit and we would not be in a position to look forward to salvation. (An obvious and extremely rare exception to this rule would be, of course, when it is physically impossible to baptize someone, because the person is physically incapable of being baptized.) We understand, of course, that the situation was different in Old Testament times because God did bestow His Spirit on a few people without prior baptism, so that they could fulfill His specific commission for them.

“This is no longer true in New Testament times. We read in Acts 8:16–17… that the Holy Spirit was given to people only AFTER they were baptized and had hands laid upon them—not before then.”

What can we learn about the examples of the individuals who received the Holy Spirit in Old Testament times? A good place to start such a study is by understanding what purpose the Holy Spirit serves in man. Why does God provide His Holy Spirit in the first place?

A very important purpose of the Holy Spirit is to help man understand the things of God. Paul states this fact clearly in 1 Corinthians 2:11-12, “… no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit [which] is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.”

This Scripture clearly states that it is necessary to have the Holy Spirit of God if we are to understand His truth. In addition, we can see that a reason for providing His Holy Spirit is to know the things of God. It makes good sense too. The way mankind thinks is fundamentally different than the way God thinks (compare Isaiah 55:8-9), and if God wants man to understand His ways, it is necessary that a means is provided to do so. The Holy Spirit helps man to understand God and His perfect Will, and it gives man the power to obey that Will.

With this fact established, we can begin to understand some of the reasons why God provided His Holy Spirit to people in Old Testament times. We find proof that establishes this in the historical account of the construction of the tabernacle when Israel came out of Egypt.

“Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ‘See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, to design artistic works, to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and to work in all manner of workmanship.’” (Exodus 31:1-6).

In this subtle, but clear example, we read that Bezalel was filled with the Holy Spirit, for the special purpose of understanding exactly what was necessary to build God’s tabernacle. The spiritual understanding and wisdom was required to properly design and build the physical tabernacle used in the practice of worshiping God correctly at that time. In addition, God gave him the physical skills required to carry out his task.

Evidence exists in the Bible where several other people in the Bible were given the Holy Spirit in Old Testament times. Again, quoting from Baptism–A Requirement for Salvation? on page 31:

“We understand that the Holy Spirit was not offered to the people of ancient Israel, except for a few people in Old Testament times who were selected by God to receive the Holy Spirit for a special purpose. These would include Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, David, and the prophets of old, among others.”

Noah and Enoch both walked with God (compare Genesis 6:9 and Genesis 5:22 respectively). Walking with God indicates a special relationship with God, in which common understanding is shared (compare Amos 3:3). Since we know that having a common understanding with God requires having His Holy Spirit, we can conclude that Noah and Enoch both had the Holy Spirit. Noah in particular had an important purpose in executing the plan of God in that he “…became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith” (Hebrews 11:7). Enoch too served as an example to the earlier lineage of mankind of how to live by faith (Hebrews 11:5-6). Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob fulfilled a special purpose by establishing the family and nation of Israel, which was to receive God’s promise of eternal life and inheritance of the Kingdom of God (Galatians 3:16). Moses and Aaron were both responsible for administering the law of God and leading the nation of Israel. With such important commissions to fulfill, it was important in Old Testament times (as it is now) that the individuals responsible for carrying out the plan of God understood that plan spiritually. Therefore, it was necessary for God to give His Holy Spirit to people carrying out His Plan.

We understand, of course, that these were not the only reasons why the ancients received the Holy Spirit. It was God’s preordained purpose to call them for salvation and eternal life at that time. Without the gift of God’s Holy Spirit within a person at the time of his or her physical death, he or she would not be resurrected in the First Resurrection to eternal life and enter the Kingdom of God (compare Romans 8:11).

The only biblical example of the Holy Spirit being granted to people following the historical event of the establishment of the New Testament Church occurred when Gentiles were proven to be included in the promise of salvation. Quoting from Baptism – A Requirement for Salvation? on page 3:

“There is only one recorded incident since the establishment of the New Testament Church where someone received the Holy Spirit prior to baptism, and that is the Gentile Cornelius and his household. This was an exception for a specific purpose—God wanted to make it clear to the disciples that He had called Gentiles into the Church, and indeed, to salvation. Before Cornelius, only Jews had been accepted as Church members.”

Interestingly, even though the Holy Spirit was given prior to baptism in that particular and unique case, Peter commanded those who had received the Holy Spirit to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 10:44–48). This example indicates that baptism is a very important requirement for salvation.

Following the establishment of the New Testament Church, the gift of the Holy Spirit is still limited to those whom God uses for a specific task, according to His pre-ordained purpose. Christians are called today to qualify for the Kingdom of God by becoming teachers, so that they can teach others later. Especially in this end time, they are also called for the task of supporting the commission of the Church of God to preach the gospel of the Kingdom in all the world as a witness to all nations. In addition, when Christians are ordained as deacons and ministers, God gives them an additional amount of the Holy Spirit to enable them to fulfill their responsibilities.

In Acts 2:38 we read: “Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission [Margin: forgiveness] of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'” This passage makes it clear that today, a Christian baptism is intimately involved in the process of receiving the Holy Spirit.

This process of baptism, as a means of obtaining the Holy Spirit, highlights another important purpose. The Holy Spirit serves as a guarantee of the promise of God of the gift of eternal life and the corresponding inheritance of the Kingdom of God. Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “… you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, [which] is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14). And to the Romans Paul wrote, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption (better “sonship” NIV) by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit [itself] bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together” (Romans 8:14-17).

Taken together, we can see that the Holy Spirit is provided as personal proof of the promise of eternal life in the Kingdom of God.

The Bible makes it clear that the Holy Spirit was given to people by God without a Christian baptism prior to the establishment of the New Testament Church. God’s Word also reveals that since that time, a proper Christian baptism IS required for salvation. Then, as now, the Holy Spirit is given so that a special purpose in the plan of God can be fulfilled. The Holy Spirit was necessary then, and it is necessary now, to understand the things of God, to live in accordance with that understanding, and to inherit eternal life in God’s Kingdom.

Lead Writer: Eric Rank

There are indeed several references to giants in the Bible, and several words are used to describe giants.

In Job 16:14 (Authorized Version), we read about Job’s complaint against God: “He breaketh me with breach upon breach, he runneth upon me like a giant.” Here, the word for “giant” is “gibbor” and is defined as “mighty” or “a strong one.”

Another word for “giant” is “nephilim,” which can first be found in Genesis 6:4, at the time of Noah: “There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became [ note: the word “became” is not in the original and was added by the translator] mighty men which were of old, men of renown.”

The Ryrie Study Bible explains that the meaning of the word “nephilim” is “to fall,” and continues: “… to fall upon others because they were men of strength.” The commentary concludes: “Evidently they were in the earth before the marriages [between the son of God and the daughters of men], and were not the offspring of those marriages who became mighty men (military men) and men of renown (of wealth or power).”

This conclusion is correct, as more fully explained in our Q&A, discussing the question whether angels had intercourse with women. We rejected this and also stated that the translation in Genesis 6:4 is not accurate in the Authorized Version. For instance, read the rendering in the New International Version: “The Nephilim were on the earth in those days–and also afterward–when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.”

All human beings, including those giants, died in the Flood, except for Noah and his family. However, “nephilim” giants are mentioned again long after the Flood, at the time of Moses. They must have been descendants of one of the three sons of Noah who were with him in the Ark.

The “nephilim” (giants) are mentioned in Numbers 13:32-33, when the spies returned from the Promised Land of Canaan and gave a bad report about it:

“And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, ‘the land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in their own sight, and so were in their sight.’”

These “giants” are also mentioned again in the books of Deuteronomy and Joshua, as well as in other books, but different Hebrew words are used, showing however, that they all describe the same kind of people.

According to Young’s Analytical Concordance, one such additional Hebrew expression is the word “raphah,” which can be found in 2 Samuel 21:18-22, at the time of King David. The word “raphah” has the meaning of “fearful one” or “giant,” inasmuch as his huge stature struck fear in the heart of men:

“Now it happened afterward that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob. Then Sibbechal the Hushathite killed Saph, who was one of the sons of the giant. Again there was war at Gob with the Philistines, where Elhaan the son of Jaare-Oregim the Bethlehemite killed the brother of Golitah the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. Yet again there was war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also was born to the giant. So when he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea, David’s brother, killed him. These four were born of the giant in Gath, and fell by the hand of David and by the hands of his servants.”

When turning to the parallel passage in 1 Chronicles 20:4-8, the Hebrew word for “giant” in verses 4, 6 and 8 is “rapha,” according to Young’s Analytical Concordance, but as we can see from these two examples, the words “raphah” and “rapha” have the same identical meaning (“fearful one”; “giant”). “Rapha” is the most commonly used expression, and can be found, for instance, in Deuteronomy 2:9-11, where Moses told the people of Israel, prior to the occupation of the Promised Land:

“Then the LORD said to me, ‘Do not harass Moab, nor contend with them in battle, for I will not give you any of their land as a possession, because I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as a possession.’ (The Enim had dwelt there in times past, a people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. They were also regarded as giants [Hebrew “rephaim”–plural form and related to “rapha,” according to the margin of the King James Bible], like the Anakim, but the Moabites call them Emim…).”

These gigantic people (“rephaim”) might also be mentioned in Genesis 14:5, in connection with the events surrounding Lot.

In Deuteronomy 2:19-21, Moses continues:

“‘And when you come near the people of Ammon, do not harass them or meddle with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to the descendants of Lot as a possession.’   (That was also regarded as a land of giants; giants formerly dwelt there. But the Ammonites call them Zamzummim, a people as great and numerous and tall as the Anakim. But the LORD destroyed them before them, and they dispossessed them and dwelt in their place…).”

These gigantic people (called “Zamzummim”) might also be referred to in Genesis 14:5.

As Moses continues with his narrative, he points out that in regard to the kingdom of Og in Bashan, only one mighty giant survived. We read in Deuteronomy 3:11, 13:

“‘For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of the giants [in that area and belonging to that people, as we read about other giants at the time of David]. Indeed his bedstead was an iron bedstead. (Is it not in Rabah of the people of Ammon?) Nine cubits is its length and four cubits its width, according to the standard cubit…  The rest of Gilead, and all Bashan, the kingdom of Gog, I gave it to the half tribe of Manasseh (All the region of Argob, with all Bashan, was called the land of the giants…).’”

Reference to Og, the king of Bashan, is made in Joshua 12:4 and 13:12 as the “remnant of the giants.”

When Joshua led the people of Israel into the Promised Land, they had to contend with giants who were still living there. The “Valley of Rephaim” (“Valley of the Giants”) is mentioned in Joshua 15:8 and 18:16. In Joshua 17:15, Joshua tells the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh: “‘If you are a great people, then go up to the forest country and clear a place for yourself there in the land of the Perizzites and the giants, since the mountains of Ephraim are too confined for you.’”

As mentioned, giants existed at the time of David.

We have all heard about the giant Goliath who was killed by young David. Goliath was from Gath, “whose height was six cubits and a span” (1 Samuel 17:4).

The Benson Commentary states:

“Goliath of Gath — For to this city the Anakims fled when Joshua rooted them out of the land of Canaan, Joshua 11:22. And here they propagated a race of giants; that is, people of great strength and stature. Whose height was six cubits and a span—At least nine feet nine inches…”

Barnes’ Notes on the Bible adds:

“Goliath of Gath – One of the places mentioned in Joshua 11:22 as still retaining a remnant of the sons of Anak; Gaza and Ashdod being the others. The race of giants (the Rephaim, from… râphâ’ ) is mentioned again in the account of David’s Philistine wars [in] 2 Samuel 21:15-22; 1 Chronicles 20:4-8… Six cubits and a span… would equal about nine feet nine inches. The bed of Og king of Bashan was nine cubits long.”

Matthew Poole’s commentary writes:

“Whose height was six cubits and a span; which is not strange, for besides the giants mentioned in Scripture, Herodotus, Diodorus Siculus, and Pliny, and others, make mention of persons seven cubits high, which is near double to an ordinary man’s height.”

Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible says:

“… the coffin of Orestea, the son of Agamemnon, is said… to be seven cubits long; and Eleazar, a Jew, who because of his size was called the giant, and was presented by Artabanus, king of the Parthians, to Tiberius Caesar, is said by Josephus… to be seven cubits high; and one Gabbara of Arabia, in the times of Claudius Caesar, measured nine feet nine inches, as Pliny… relates, and who elsewhere… speaks of a people in Ethiopia, called Syrbotae, who were eight cubits high…”

We also read that Goliath was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was 5,000 shekels of bronze (verse 5), or “156 pounds 4 ounces,” according to the Geneva Study Bible. His iron spearhead weighed six hundred shekels (verse 7), or “between seventeen and eighteen pounds” (Barnes’ Notes on the Bible).

In addition, we read about an encounter of one of David’s mighty men with an Egyptian giant in 1 Chronicles 11:23.

In a letter by the Letter Answering Department of the Worldwide Church of God, the following was stated about giants:

“The Bible indicates that men of great size lived both before and after the Flood…. The giants who lived after the Flood were some of the offspring of Canaan, one of Ham’s sons [Ham was one of the three sons of Noah]. These descendants of Ham were living in the land of Canaan when the Israelite spies went through it… When the Israelites conquered the lands east of the Jordan, they encountered Og, King of Bashan. He was the last of the giants on that side of the river…

“Three chiefs of the giants lived in Hebron until Caleb took the city… After the conquest of Canaan by Joshua…, remnants of the giants were still living in the Philistine cities of Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod. The most famous of these was Goliath… A later encounter by David’s ‘mighty man’ with four other giants is recorded [as well]…

“These giants terrorized Israel periodically from the time of the entry into Canaan until late in the reign of King David. The Bible says nothing further about giants from that time (about 1,000 B.C.) on.”

We also need to realize that there were very tall people and warriors in the Bible, who were of Israelite stock, such as King Saul (1 Samuel 9:2; 10:20-23). They would not have been descendants of the Canaanite ”giants” of the Bible, as described above, but could be considered “giants” in their own “right”—even though they did not reach the height of the Canaanite “giants” of the Bible.

Even though nobody is specifically identified in the Bible as a “giant” after the days of David, does this mean that all giants became extinct? It is of course known that there are very tall people alive in these times (as there are little people in existence today as well), but these KNOWN tall people do not seem to reach the height of the giants of the Bible, and even apart from their height, there seems to be another fundamental distinction between many (but not all) of the modern tall people and the giants of the Bible. As one website puts it:

“So were all of these giants just people who developed gigantism? Although gigantism may account for some of the ancient giants, this proposed solution falls short of explaining many of the biblical accounts.

“Modern gigantism is often caused by abnormalities that lead to excessive production of growth hormone. It is highly unlikely that Goliath, the nephilim, Anakim, or most of the other Old Testament giants suffered from such a condition since they were often described as warriors or ‘mighty men,’ while modern ‘giants’ are usually awkward, uncoordinated, and endure several physical ailments. There have been some rare cases where the person could accurately be described as a ‘mighty man.’

“Furthermore, modern gigantism is not hereditary, whereas the Bible often describes giants as being the offspring of other giants (e.g., Deuteronomy 9:2; 1 Chronicles 20:6). So the groups known as giants were not simply made up of individuals with the modern form of gigantism.”

We might also think of historical tall powerful men since the birth of Christ. For instance, it is said that Charles the Great—Charlemagne—was a very tall man, and he was of course a mighty warrior. But again, his height did not seem to remotely reach the height of the Canaanite giants of the Bible. (In any event, this does not mean that he should be considered to be a descendant of the ancient Canaanite giants of the Bible). On the other hand, modern “giants” –very tall people – with physical ailments could of course be the end result of decades, if not centuries, of degeneration.

We need to note that the Bible does not say that ancient powerful giants—the “heroes of old,” as mentioned in Old Testament times—were totally extinct and that they all died out. We do read that they were “dispossessed’ from areas which they once inhabited, and that they appeared in subsequent times in other areas. Therefore, can we rule out that “giants,” as described in the Bible, could exist today?

Speculation abounds regarding encounters with tall hairy creatures around the world, which are referred to as Bigfoot, Sasquatch, the Russian “Abominable” Snowman or Yeti. Many consider these stories as mere fabrications and fairy tales, while others believe that not all of the many independent reports over many centuries (some of them highly reliable) could be simply made up.

Some who believe in the accuracy of at least some of the eye-witness accounts conclude that they might be “demonic illusions”—but even though some “encounters” might very well be of demonic origin, this could not explain all witness accounts and findings (including unexplained huge footprints, hair samples etc.). Others see in them huge ape-like animals, which could be a distinct possibility. Still others view them as missing links between pre-historic men-like creatures and modern men—a totally wrong idea, as humans did not evolve, and therefore, such missing links did not and do not exist.

Still others view them as fully human—modern representatives of homo sapiens, albeit perhaps in a wild, savage and degenerated state. This is also a distinct possibility. Hunters who had alleged close encounters with Sasquatch reported that they were determined to shoot and kill “the beast,” but refrained from doing so, when they looked into its eyes which were perceived to be “distinctly” human.

One might ask how “hairy” creatures could qualify as humans. Even though the Bible does not specifically say that the ancient GIANTS were hairy, it does include a few examples of “hairy” men. For instance, we read that Esau, when he was born, was “like a hairy garment all over” (Genesis 25:25).

The Pulpit Commentary remarks that literally, it says, “‘all of him as a cloak of hair’… the fur cloak, or hair mantle, forming one notion…  the child’s body [was] covered with an unusual quantity of red hair…”

Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible adds: “his body was all over full of hair, which stood as thick as a garment made of hair…”

Esau’s condition did not change when he grew up. In fact, it increased. He is referred to as a “hairy man” (Genesis 27:11). Gill’s states that Esau “was covered all over with hair; as with a hairy garment; so he was born, and so he continued, and no doubt his hair increased.” This condition was so severe that his blind father, Isaac, was tricked in believing that Jacob was Esau, when “skins of the kids of the goats” were placed on Jacob’s hands and on the smooth part of his neck, so that Isaac did not recognize Jacob  (Genesis 27:16, 23).

The Hebrew words quoted above and used for hairy or hair are also applied to “rough” garments (Zechariah 13:4, Authorized Version) or a “rough” goat (Daniel 8:21).

We also read that Elijah was a “hairy man,” or the “owner of hair” (2 Kings 1:8).  Many interpret this to mean that he was wearing a long beard and long hair [even though nothing is mentioned that he ever took a Nazirite vow (compare Numbers 6:1-21) or that he was a Nazirite from birth, such as Samuel, compare 1 Samuel 1:11]. Others claim that he was wearing a hairy cloak or mantle of sheep or goat skin or of camel’s hair (1 Kings 19:13), comparing it with the mantle of camel’s hair which John the Baptist wore (Matthew 3:4).

However, these conclusions are not compelling. The Nelson Study Bible states: “Although hairy may refer to Elijah’s garments, the usual translation ‘hairy man’ is supported by the ancient versions.” It is possible that Elijah had a similar appearance as Esau. In any event, the Bible knows of the existence of human beings who were covered all over with hair, as with a hairy garment.

In addition, cases are known of people with the so-called “werewolf syndrome” or “hypertrichosis,” who might even pass on their condition to the next generation. One website describes this condition as follows:

“Hypertrichosis is a rare genetic condition that results in extreme hairiness… There is some speculation that Esau, son of Isaac and twin brother of Jacob, may have had hypertrichosis. He was described in the Old Testament as born covered in red hair, and was referred to as a hairy man by his brother as an adult.”

Life Science reported on June 6, 2011, that “Scientists have discovered a genetic mutation responsible for a disorder that causes people to sprout thick hair on their faces and bodies. Hypertrichosis, sometimes called ‘werewolf syndrome,’ is a very rare condition, with fewer than 100 cases documented worldwide. But researchers knew the disorder runs in families, and in 1995 they traced the approximate location of the mutation to a section of the X chromosome (one of the two sex chromosomes) in a Mexican family affected by hypertrichosis.”

As mentioned, the Bible does not describe ancient giants as “hairy” people, but it does indicate a genetic mutation or disorder in the case of at least one giant (apart from their height, the precise cause for which is still open to debate). Remember that one particular giant was described as having twelve fingers and twelve toes (compare again 2 Samuel 21:20 and 1 Chronicles 20:6).

Similar “abnormities” have been reported elsewhere. The condition is commonly referred to as “polydactyly”; that is, a person has extra fingers and/or extra toes.

Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible states that “Pliny speaks of one M. Curiatius, a patrician, who had two daughters that had six fingers on an hand, and were called ‘Sedigitae’, six-fingered; and of Volcatius, a famous poet, called ‘Sedigitus’, or six-fingered, for the same reason; and elsewhere, from other writers he makes mention of a people that had eight toes each foot; so Ctesias speaks of a people in the mountains of India, which have eight fingers on each hand, and eight toes [on] each foot, both men and women.”

The Benson Commentary adds that “Tavernier, in his relation of the grand seignior’s seraglio… says, that the eldest son of the emperor of Java, who reigned in the year 1648, when he was in that island, had six fingers on each hand, and as many toes on each foot, all of equal length.”

Based on all of the foregoing evidence, we cannot exclude the possibility that giants exist today. Some of them could even be hairy people. They could be, but would not have to be, descendants of ancient Canaanite giants as described in the Bible. If they were, this would mean that not all of those ancient giants were totally extinct, but that some might have survived and procreated over the centuries and millennia, and that remnants with a hairy genetic disorder —perhaps known as Bigfoot or Yeti— might still live today in remote wilderness areas and in secluded high mountain terrains.

It is interesting to consider that many sightings of Bigfoot or Sasquatch have been reported in North America (California, Washington, Oregon, Montana, Idaho) and Canada (British Columbia), and that these reports include ancient “legends” told by American Indians. Although many American Indians descended from Tiras, a son of Japheth (one of the three sons of Noah), some historians feel that “Native American” tribes might also be, to an extent, descendants of ancient Canaanites who migrated to North America.

In light of the biblical and historical evidence of very tall people as well as hairy people with genetic disorders, including hypertrichosis, which seems to run in families and for which there is still no known cure, it is not totally unreasonable to assume that mighty and powerful human “giants” known as Bigfoot, Sasquatch or Yeti might exist today in fairly inaccessible terrains in different parts of the world.

Lead Writer: Norbert Link