# Nephilim and the Combat Myth

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nephilim-and-the-combat-myth/94418>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [November 20, 2001, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nephilim-and-the-combat-myth/94418 "2001-11-20T16:45:26Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![FriendRob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecc23a/32.png) [@FriendRob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriendRob)\
**Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nephilim-and-the-combat-myth/94418/1 "2001-11-20T16:45:26Z")

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Strangely enough, I just read a book by Neil Forsyth, **The Old Enemy** , that discusses the Nephilim story as a variant of a common “combat myth” from the mid-east dating from about 2000 BC. There are versions from Sumer, Assyria, Babylon, Ugarit… The various Flood stories are part of this tradition, too. The “sons of El (God)” appear in several of these myths, usually as lesser gods in a pantheon with El or Enlil as the chief god. The book of **Job** also refers to such a council of gods, of which Satan is a member!

In later tradition (especially the **Enoch** books, which didn’t make it into either the Jewish or Christian Bible), the Nephilim story gets a lot of attention. The Watchers, as they are called, are originally angels of God, but are overcome by lust, and so introduce wickedness into the world. Some of this mythology made it into Christian doctrine, where Satan becomes the leader of the rebel angels.

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**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\
**Post date:** [November 20, 2001, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nephilim-and-the-combat-myth/94418/2 "2001-11-20T17:19:07Z")

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Link to the Staff Report: [Who are the “giant sons of God” in the Bible?](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mgiantsons.html)

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**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\
**Post date:** [November 21, 2001, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nephilim-and-the-combat-myth/94418/3 "2001-11-21T02:22:29Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by FriendRob \*  
> **The “sons of El (God)” appear in several of these myths, usually as lesser gods in a pantheon**

Such as Kal-El? 🙂

> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by FriendRob \*  
> **The Watchers, as they are called,**

I thought we were discussing DC Comics, not Marvel. 😃