The Book of Giants
Apocryphal pre-Flood narrative of Watchers and giants.
Wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons
The Book of Giants is an apocryphal book that expands upon the Genesis narrative of the Hebrew Bible, similar to the Book of Enoch. It explains how wickedness became widespread before the flood and supplies the reason why God was justified in sending that flood. The text's composition has been dated to before the 2nd century BC.
- type
- Apocryphal text
- earliest_known_copies
- Aramaic fragments among the Dead Sea Scrolls
- original_language
- Disputed; possibly Hebrew or Aramaic; some scholars posit Hebrew origin in the 3rd century BCE
- associated_tradition
- Manichaean literature, also known at Turfan
- key_figures
- Watchers (grigori), giants (nephilim, gibborim, rephaim), Enoch, Ohyah, Hahyah, Mahway
- related_works
- Book of Enoch, Jubilees, Genesis Apocryphon, 2 and 3 Baruch, Damascus Document, Daniel 7:9-14
Lore & Background
The Book of Giants is an antediluvian narrative received primarily in Manichaean literature and known at Turfan. The earliest known traditions originate in Aramaic copies among the Dead Sea Scrolls. The book tells of the background and fate of the antediluvial giants and their fathers, the Watchers—sons of God or holy ones who rebelled against heaven by commingling with the daughters of men. Their offspring, the giants, were called nephilim, gibborim, or rephaim, and are referred to collectively as fallen angels in apocryphal sources.
Reader's Guide
The Book of Giants holds significance as an early attempt to explain the origin of widespread wickedness before the flood, providing a theological rationale for the deluge. Its discovery among the Dead Sea Scrolls confirmed it as an independent composition from the Second Temple period, not merely a Manichaean work. The fragments show the book's influence on Mani, who made the legend of the Watchers and giants a cornerstone of his theological speculations. The text also affiliates the names of the Sumerian hero Gilgamesh and the monster Humbaba with the Watchers and giants, indicating cross-cultural connections. The book's preservation in multiple copies at Qumran suggests its importance to that community, though scholars still do not know why the Qumran community considered Enochic texts so important. The work remains a key source for understanding the development of Jewish angelology and demonology in the Second Temple period.
Did You Know?
- The Book of Giants is an antediluvian narrative received primarily in Manichaean literature and known at Turfan.
- Ten manuscripts of the book were identified among the Dead Sea Scrolls by Loren Stuckenbruck.
- The text affiliates the names of the Sumerian hero Gilgamesh and the monster Humbaba with the Watchers and giants.
- Some scholars believe the book was originally composed in Hebrew during the 3rd century BCE, though this is disputed.
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