Giants: Sons of the Gods

This is very informative and obviously a lot of research went into it. But, The Introduction is so convoluted I had to read it twice and It's still not clear. Once you get past the Introduction It's better except the author jumps all over the place and makes his ideas harder to follow.

The book is well written but attempts to fuse mythology and Holy Scripture to prove dubious claims. While this book does use much ancient mythology and studies of various biblical manuscripts to try and prove that the giants were the desended of spirits and humans it falls short.
The basis for this whole book are 4 obscure verses of the book of Genesis. The author goes so far in the introduction as to assert that one had better to not argue against his assertions since the same arguments could be used against Redemption,Salvation, Trinity, etc. The issues aren't even the same!
Three stars were given for the interesting ancient writings

Giants: Sons of the Gods

This book helped me understand the scriptures better, and for that, I will always be very grateful to Pastor Doug Van Dorn. I've never had so many of my own presuppositions smashed to pieces by a study before. I loved how it challenged so many bad ideas that I believe the world had taught me, but most of all, it showed me how much greater the seed of the woman is than the seed of the serpent.

I suppose each of us have found difficulty with topics in the scriptures to the point that we shy away from them. Angels, demons, giants, and weird supernatural things made me uneasy. Questions in my mind about passages such as "1Samuel 15:3 Now go and strike Amalek and devote to destruction all that they have. Do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey." would nag at me when I would read them. This book helped me deal with these topics and brought clarity while at the same time renewed my thirst for God's Word.

I think Tony Jackson M.Div. summed it up best for me in the forward when he said, "So many scriptures that I previously considered difficult or even odd are now beginning to make sense. Above all, Doug's book is no mere book of facts about Sons of God and the giants. It is first and foremost about the Unique Son of God who has triumphed over all other gods and has been given a name above every other name, the Lord, Jesus Christ."

If you love cryptozoology, UFOlogy, and similar genres on or just beyond the edge of "respectable" scholarship, this book is for you. It certainly was for me. The author tries to distinguish himself from the cranks and goofballs of the world, and nearly succeeds. I really appreciated his evident respect for the ancients.

I have been researching this subject for years and have often been disappointed with the lack of scholarly research on the giants mentioned in the Bible. Much of the popular literature is full of a mixture of right ideas and nonsense. I ended up writing my Th.M. thesis on the subject of the sons of God and the Nephilim from Gen. 6. Not long after publishing my work on the subject, I "met" Mr. Van Dorn on an online forum discussing the topic. When he told me that he had been working on an in-depth book, I was excited to see it.

This book is a detailed study of the giants described in the Bible. Most people have probably heard of Goliath but are completely unaware that many other giants and giant people groups are mentioned throughout the Old Testament. The author surveys this data in a readable manner, treating the Scripture as the authority, and makes some interesting conclusions based on his research.

In addition to the biblical material, the author incorporates data from archaeology and other ancient writings to show that it wasn't only the ancient Hebrews who believed in the existence of giant peoples. Civilizations from all over the globe have left clues that tell us about these giants. It's been said before, but sometimes the truth really is stranger than fiction.

I have reached slightly different conclusions than the author on a few issues in the book. For example, I would be a little more cautious in drawing certain inferences from Scripture about some of the people groups described, although I think his conclusions are plausible. Even with the minor differences I would highly recommend this to anyone who wants a better understanding of Scripture, particularly of the Old Testament.

Disclaimer: I received a digital copy of this book for free from the author. No other compensation was received. The fact that I received a complimentary product does not guarantee a favorable review.

This book makes the case for Genesis 6 referring to the "sons of God" as angelic beings who procreated with human women, which produce a race of giants. The case for this interpretation is presented in the Introduction, Chapter 15, and Appendix 2. The case is well-argued and convincing, for those who are committed to sound exegesis. The author's use of linguistics is solid. He also deals with other interpretations, and draws on many ancient Jewish and Christian writings. The remainder of the book deals with other passages of Scripture that have to do with this passage, make other mention of Nephilim/Rephaim (giants), and the how the role of demons and Satan is related. There is also a lot of information on how ancient mythology, historical accounts, and archaeological findings may be related.

The one weak point of the book is that some speculative ideas are mentioned in passing. For example page 38 mentions a theory that dinosaurs could have been chimeras (animal hybrids), therefore they were not saved in the flood because they were not created according to their own kind. There is no argument to support this, therefore it is somewhat of a distraction from the main argument from the book.

Overall, the book is fascinating and persuasive. The author's writing style is casual and easy to follow, but not dull. I will be returning to this book again.

The book was very enlightening on some levels regarding a little known fact of the bible that Giants are mentioned is something many Christians I spoke with were not aware. I read most of the book but had to stop at chapter 12. Why, because as mentioned in another review greek mythology is fiction, the bible I contend thru my belief system is not fiction. Mixing the two is something I would suggest nor take lightly. The authors credentials are quite extensive and I have no doubt he knows the scriptures which is why I was perplexed by the verses of the bible mentioned throughout the book that didn't appear in the scriptures as they did in the book. Maybe he pasted them in from some work of fiction but they didn't exsist in any bible translation I could find. I didn't write them down but I will give one example. In chapter 12 or 13 at the beginning there is a scripture verse quoted with Num 6:24 used as the reference. There were some of the mentioned lines in Num 6:24 but the last part pertaining to protect you from evil spirits or demons simply didn't exsist. I kept the bible gateway up and looked everything up as I went so I have to ask the author why?
The book is interesting as is the topic but a lot is a work of fiction or legend and should be taken as such until MR Van Dorn can respond to me where these bible verse quotes came from...

Deep, very deep into the Biblical verses on fallen angels, giants and demons. This book starts with a wealth of information which is supposed to get you ready to read the main part of the book, when in fact it was very confusing to me. I've never been to seminary or much of a Bible type of student or person yet I am Christian. I've wanted to know more about Angels who came to earth and had no idea they had anything to do with giants.

The author kept saying he would get to why all this mattered in modern days but really never did in the actual "book". it was in the appendix. Sounds to me that Celts and Gauls are most likely the closest related to fallen angels and giants. I'd like to know if ANY DNA studies have been done on the skeletons which have been discovered? If so, do they match any living peoples in any way? If I am from a TALL family of Celts/Gauls, does that make my ancestors possible giants and therefore fallen angels? Am I paying for the sins of my ancestors with bad health? Have my recent ancestors also with cancer, Parkinson's, etc? I have three cousins over 7 feet in height and a nephew with an inherited, rare for of gigantism, he has red hair so what am I to think after reading this book?

Are all the fallen angels and giants dead or are there descendants still roaming among us? I never got this answer.

I did however get the idea that ancient man did learn a lot from these fallen angels and therefor the earth had to be flooded to kill all the wickedness that they brought upon the land. I have to wonder if the Egyptians still had some of this knowledge?

Cherry picking ideas from other mythologies while proclaiming they are really based on Jewish bible. That along with spelling and grammar errors make this tome not so great. Its nice to see when someone tries to be straight foward about whether or not the whole bible should be history or maybe some of it was actually just hold overs from other peoples

After many attempts I finally downloaded the complete version of his book. It is an extensive collection of data regarding myths about giants in many cultures around the world. As for archaeological evidence, he tackles the reasons for its scant existence. It is a fascinating read and should be read with an open mind. After all, it's a far stretch to think that similarities in worldwide ancient cultures is just a coincidence.

Naturalists and evangelicals have pooh-poohed these ideas for very different reasons over the centuries, but Van Dorn approaches the subject objectively and comprehensively. No dogma is forced on the reader, and one can see that painstaking effort was made in all of his careful exegesis of the scripture. The implications of this theory surprisingly work as an overarching connection for several difficult passages and doctrines. It is definitely not what we have come to expect from our reformed, evangelical brothers, but this book is a must-read.

This book may not be loaded with exclamation points, but it doesn't need them. As you are reading along, you will be supplying your own exclamation points. Because of the subject matter and the author's writing skills, I often felt as if I were reading a mystery (which, in the best sense, it rather is). This is a page turner--I promise you won't be bored. The author spent a lot of time and effort on research: The book is heavily sourced. You'll be blessed; you'll be challenged; you'll be so very glad you read this. You'll also be reading the Bible with some sharper glasses, I suspect. Oh, did I mention that you may look with a more inquisitive eye when you meet an unusually tall person?

This is one of the best researched and most referenced books on this topic I have read. In seeking truth it is always good to look at the best argument from all sides of an issue. Being in the more traditional reformed circles I am constantly inundated with certain despiritualized histories and arguments. That the bible could not mean something that made these people feel uncomfortable or that they could not understand. Well if they have any study in the area of historical middle eastern culture and language this book should bring them to the realization that the sethite view is not logically supportable. That the only means of rejecting the view would be on means of personal issues or not understanding logical argumentation.

I thank the Lord for the work Douglas Van Dorn has done in this book. It has been very helpful for me to recommend a concise conservative orthodox work to those who disagree.

Why do Christians committed to the inerrancy of Scripture, the veracity of such Biblical accounts as the Flood and the parting of the Red Sea, and the reality of the miracles of Jesus often struggle so much with other supernatural elements of the Bible such as Giants? Perhaps it is because we so often fear that which falls outside of our neat and tidy world views and theological boxes.

You need not agree with every conclusion reached by my friend Doug Van Dorn in this wonderfully readable book to benefit richly from having your worldview and presuppositions given a good shake up. And if you're paying attention and open to careful arguments from the Word of God and the historical record rather than your preconditioned comfort zones, you may just end up in some unexpected places...

Giants in context of the supernatural is a dodgy subject. It can be all too easy to take the idea and run with it as far as possible, all the way to the last chapter of Revelations and come out the other side holding a calculator, a calendar, and a cardboard sign. Contrariwise, in an effort to avoid street corners, flying tomatoes, and people named Camping, it is equally tempting to discard the subject with derision and assume that science will eventually explain away all the supernatural. Though I do not scoff at the pleasure of finding correlations between the ways of God and the ways of science, sterilizing the supernatural with that assumption is unhealthy and unproductive. If one's goal is to know God and enjoy Him forever, then both approaches are excellent ways to cheat oneself out of a great element of enrichment and delight.

Abandoning both camps, the author elects draws from scripture, comparing it with other ancient texts, archeological finds, and mythology, including but not limited to Judeo-Christian tradition, and expose the argument to a broader field of human experience, providing what photographs and graphs would be necessary to understand the comparisons.
Throughout, and despite the potentially dry nature of his resources, the author maintains familiar readability and carefully separates the insights that are already outlined in text from the conjecture so easily inspired by the issues explored.
The result is a deeper, fuller, possibly less egocentric appreciation for all the wealth that history, scripture, and logic can instill, not to mention a better understanding of some of the more inscrutable parts of scripture; not just in the histories, but in the poetry and prophecies as well. Most of all, it backlights the power and authority of a truly awesome God who laid out His plans and promises from the foundation of the world...and kept them.

This book has answered a very big question I have long wondered about. A question I thought would not be answered until I was with the Lord in heaven. I do believe this book is right on target. As someone who believes the Bible is full of information, instruction ,knowledge and God's love for us I do believe He took the time to have all of it written down because these are the things that he wants us all to know. I also believe He reveals the truth to us when we need it and when are ready to receive it

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and I found it to be very thought provoking. I recommend it to anyone interested in the topic of giants or who wish to better understand the Genesis 6 Experiment.

I’ve read books about giants before this book, but this is the best one I’ve seen on the topic yet. Douglas Van Dorn has done a great job researching other people and groups in biblical times, besides Goliath and Og, who were most likely also giants, and lays out the proof in a concise way that allows others to both check his work, and also potential dig deeper into this subject.

Van Dorn's enthusiasm for this little-explored biblical subject is infectious. Whether I agreed with all of his conclusions or not, I couldn't help but appreciate the depth and breadth of his research in the book. His respect for the authority of Scripture is apparent, but he is also not shy about looking to every reputable source to explore the topic in ancient literature, which is refreshing and very intriguing. I felt like the author was able to pull off a very scholarly work and yet make it quite readable on a popular level--something not easy to do in my opinion.

This book has redefined my worldview in regards to how I consider the supernatural. The author sheds quite a bit of light on the giants of the Bible and their origins, as well as bringing to the forefront of my mind a thread that connects the Old Testament and the New Testament in a way that has changed how I view them both.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in some of the strange things that pop up in the Bible, as well as anyone curious about the role the giants played in the New Testament.

This book opened my eyes to some rather unique possibilities. I had never considered demons as anything other than fallen angels and had no idea that giant lore was so widespread. A very worthwhile read.

I have been obsessed with this subject since I was old enough to read the bible and wondered about the meaning of Genesis 6· I learned early on that questions about this subject to people of the modern church are not welcomed and blatantly would say I was making things up. I learned to stop asking questions.