Genesis 6:2

Genesis 6:2 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.
• English Standard Version (ESV)the sons of God saw that the daughters of man were attractive. And they took as their wives any they chose.
• New King James Version (NKJV)that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose.
• New Living Translation (NLT)The sons of God saw the beautiful women and took any they wanted as their wives.

Context of Genesis 6:2

1When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. 3Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.” 4The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.

Genesis 6:2 word by word

וַיִּרְא֤וּ בְנֵי־הָֽאֱלֹהִים֙ אֶת־בְּנ֣וֹת הָֽאָדָ֔ם כִּ֥י טֹבֹ֖ת הֵ֑נָּה וַיִּקְח֤וּ לָהֶם֙ נָשִׁ֔ים מִכֹּ֖ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר בָּחָֽרוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• That the sonsבֵּןbên · son: type ofH1121
• of Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• sawרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• the daughtersבַּתbath · daughterH1323
• of menאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
• that theyהֵנָּהhênnâh · they(fem.)H2007
• fairטוֹבţôb · pleasantH2896
• and they tookלָקַחlâqach · to take: marryH3947
• them wivesאִשָּׁה'ishshâh nâshîym · woman: wifeH802
• of all which they choseבָּחַרbâchar · to chooseH977

Cross-references for Genesis 6:2

• Genesis 4:26Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh. At that time people began to call on the name of the Lord.
• Exodus 4:22Then say to Pharaoh, ‘This is what the Lord says: Israel is my firstborn son,
• Deuteronomy 14:1You are the children of the Lord your God. Do not cut yourselves or shave the front of your heads for the dead,
• Psalms 82:6“I said, ‘You are “gods”; you are all sons of the Most High.’
• Isaiah 63:16But you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us or Israel acknowledge us; you, Lord, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is your name.
• Malachi 2:11Judah has been unfaithful. A detestable thing has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem: Judah has desecrated the sanctuary the Lord loves by marrying women who worship a foreign god.
• John 8:41You are doing the works of your own father.” “We are not illegitimate children,” they protested. “The only Father we have is God himself.”
• John 8:42Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me.
• Romans 9:7Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham’s children. On the contrary, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.”
• 2 Corinthians 6:18And, “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”
• 2 Peter 2:14With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they are experts in greed—an accursed brood!
• Genesis 3:6When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
• Genesis 39:6So Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph’s care; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome,
• 2 Samuel 11:2One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful,
• Job 31:1“I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman.
• 1 John 2:16For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.

Commentaries on Genesis 6:2

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-8Verses 1-8 - The Growth of Sin 3. דון dı̂yn “be down, strive, subdue, judge.” בשׁגם bāshagām “inasmuch, as also.” The rendering “in their error” requires the pointing בשׁגם beshāgām and the plural form of the following pronoun. It is also unknown to the Septuagint. 4. נפילים nepı̂lı̂ym “assailants, fellers, men of violence, tyrants.” Having traced the line of descent from Adam through Sheth, the seed of God, to Noah, the author proceeds to describe…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-2The sons of God have generally been understood as fallen angels (or demons). The main interpretation of the phrase seems to refer to demons. The same Hebrew phrase is in Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7; Psalms 29:1; 89:7. This idea appears often in ancient Jewish and Christian writings (for example, 1 Enoch 6:1–7:6; Justin Martyr, Apology 2.5). The New Testament also seems to support this view in some passages (see 1 Peter 3:18–20; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 1:6–7). Some…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-222. the sons of God saw the daughters of men--By the former is meant the family of Seth, who were professedly religious; by the latter, the descendants of apostate Cain. Mixed marriages between parties of opposite principles and practice were necessarily sources of extensive corruption. The women, religious themselves, would as wives and mothers exert an influence fatal to the existence of religion in their household, and consequently the people of that…Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Sons of God
• Corrupt
• Fill
• Flesh
• Imagination
• Marriage
• Multiply
• Noah

Commentaries on Genesis 6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings