I’m loving the new column “Ask a Bible Teacher.” From the response you’re receiving I think I’m not alone.
My question regards the Nephilim. Are these “hybrids” without a soul and therefore condemned from birth? Since they are partially human genetically, is there an opportunity for salvation for them or their ancestry, for instance Goliath (obviously he was not a believer but someone like him)?
While there’s no clear passage on the general fate of the Nephilim, most scholars would agree that salvation is not an option for them. Of course, all those of Noah’s day perished in the flood, since none got on the ark.
A family of Nephilim, called Rephaim or Rephadim (of whom Goliath was one) were traditionally referred to as “soulless ones” in ancient times.
And it’s pretty clear from Scripture that not only the Jews but also the descendants of Esau and Lot along with the Philistines were commanded by God to rid their lands of the Nephilim. So I don’t think God liked them at all. My article entitled “The Nephilim” describes this and other aspects of the Nephilim in more detail.
(www.gracethrufaith.com/ikvot/the-nephilim)