Texts in Conversation
In Genesis, the sons of God have children with human women, producing mighty heroes. In 4Q180 from the Dead Sea Scrolls, this narrative becomes an interpretation about Azazel and the angels, linking the story to the spread of wickedness.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Genesis 6:4
Hebrew Bible
1 When humankind began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, 2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of humankind were beautiful. Thus they took wives for themselves from any they chose. 3 So the Lord said, “My Spirit will not remain in humankind indefinitely, since they are mortal. They will remain for 120 more years.” 4 The Nephilim were on the earth in those days (and also after this) when the sons of God would sleep with the daughters of humankind, who gave birth to their children. They were the mighty heroes of old, the famous men.
4Q180 1 7–9
The Ages of the Creation
Dead Sea Scrolls, Biblical Interpretation
7 Interpretation concerning Azazel and the angels who […] 8 and they bore them mighty ones. And concerning Azazel […] 9 […] iniquity, and to make wickedness an inheritance, all … […] 10 […] … judgments and the judgment of the council of … […]
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Notes and References
“... After this introduction, a new section
starts with "Interpretation concerning Azazel and the angels", a reference to
Gen 6:1-4, as well as to the Enochic Book of Watchers, especially 1 Enoch
6-16. How do the quotations of Genesis (in frags. 2-4 and 5-6) fit within a
composition that presents an interpretation concerning the ages? ...”
Tigchelaar, Eibert
"Sodom and Gomorrah in the Dead Sea Scrolls" in Noort, Ed, and Eibert Tigchelaar (eds.) Sodom’s Sin: Genesis 18-19 and Its Interpretations
(p. 55) Brill, 2004
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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