Friends,This post is part #2 in the series "Sons of God and daughters of men", if you haven't read part #1. please read it before reading this.
Cyclic reasoning‽
If you ask most of the Christian preachers: "who are the sons of God mentioned in Genesis 6?", the answer would be either "angels" or "fallen angels". Ask them for proof, and they will point you to Job 1:6 and Job 2:1.
If you were to ask them "who are the sons of God mentioned in Job 1 & 2?", again the answers would be the same and they will refer to Genesis 6 to substantiate their views.
This is called cyclic reasoning. There is nothing in both the contexts to prove that "sons of God" are angels or fallen angels.
Sons of God / Jehovah.
Without getting into a theological debate, the names God and Jehovah (H430 and H3068, respectively, in Strong's Lexicon) are used interchangeably in the Old Testament. The Hebrew word for sons / children has the number H1121 in Strong's Lexicon. Now let us examine a few passages containing these words and see who are the sons of God.
Here are the passages from Genesis 6 and Job 1:
Here are the passages from Genesis 6 and Job 1:
- Gen 6:2 That the sons[H1121] of God[H430] ...
- Job 1:6 Now there was a day when the sons[H1121] of God[H430]...
Moses tells the people of Israel:
- Deu 14:1 Ye are the children[H1121] of the LORD[H3068] your God[H430]...
If children of the LORD God (Jehovah Elohim) are the children of Israel, what makes sons of God (Elohim) to be (fallen) angels?
[This section is certainly not recommended for the fainthearted.]
It is a well known fact that the Hebrew manuscript of the Old Testament, named the Masoretic Text (the Old Testament of the King James Version is based on this manuscript), was primarily copied, edited and distributed by a group of Jews known as the Masoretes between the 7th and 10th centuries AD, that is 700 to 1,000 years after Christ. In all probability, the Hebrew Old Testament is newer than the New Testament.
Apart from Genesis 6 and Job 1 & 2, Job 38:17 is the only Old Testament passage where the expression 'the sons[H1121] of God[H430]' occurs.
Does Septuagint's usage of angels in Job 38:7 prove that Gen 6:2, Job 1:6 or Job 2:1 are talking about angels? NO. Septuagint doesn't use the word for angels (ἄγγελοί) in those passages.
Do I say that Septuagint is a superior manuscript? No, none of the manuscripts are superior. I am not into a manuscript war, but, it is a fact that many of Jesus' and disciples' references to the Old Testament may not be found in the Masoretic Text, but are found in the Septuagint.
New Testament references to Sons of God
The New Testament is more forthcoming regarding the identity of the Sons of God. In the following passage, Caiaphas, the high priest during the days of Jesus, calls the children of Israel as the children of God, following the pattern of the Old Testament:
- Joh 11:51 And this spake he (Caiaphas) not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation;
- Joh 11:52 And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad.
Sons / Children of God defined:
- Joh 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
- Rom 8:14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
Job 38:7 question and manuscript mix-ups.
[This section is certainly not recommended for the fainthearted.]
It is a well known fact that the Hebrew manuscript of the Old Testament, named the Masoretic Text (the Old Testament of the King James Version is based on this manuscript), was primarily copied, edited and distributed by a group of Jews known as the Masoretes between the 7th and 10th centuries AD, that is 700 to 1,000 years after Christ. In all probability, the Hebrew Old Testament is newer than the New Testament.
Apart from Genesis 6 and Job 1 & 2, Job 38:17 is the only Old Testament passage where the expression 'the sons[H1121] of God[H430]' occurs.
- Job 38:7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons[H1121] of God[H430] shouted for joy?
If you read the same passage in the Greek Septuagint, it becomes clear that this passage is about angels:
Job 38:7 When the stars were made, all my angels praised me with a loud voice. (Brenton's translation.)
Job 38:7 when the morning stars sang together and the angels shouted with joy? (ERV)
Job 38:7 ὅτε ἐγενήθησαν ἄστρα, ᾔνεσάν με φωνῇ μεγάλῃ πάντες ἄγγελοί μου. (Septuagint/LXX)
Does Septuagint's usage of angels in Job 38:7 prove that Gen 6:2, Job 1:6 or Job 2:1 are talking about angels? NO. Septuagint doesn't use the word for angels (ἄγγελοί) in those passages.
Do I say that Septuagint is a superior manuscript? No, none of the manuscripts are superior. I am not into a manuscript war, but, it is a fact that many of Jesus' and disciples' references to the Old Testament may not be found in the Masoretic Text, but are found in the Septuagint.
Conclusions:
- There is nothing in the Bible to prove that the expression "sons of God" means heavenly angels.
- Throughout the Old Testament and the New Testament, the expression sons/children of God means: those who follow God/Christ.
...to be continued in part #3.
In Christ,
Tomsan Kattackal
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