Demonology (Doctrine of Fallen Angels): Origin of Demons (Watchers, Nephilim Traditions, etc.)
The origin of demons has long been debated among theologians, Jewish interpreters, and early Christians. Scripture testifies to both rebellious angels and demonic powers, yet their precise relationship is complex. While many traditions equate demons with fallen angels, a closer look at biblical language and Jewish background suggests a distinction: fallen angels, called angeloi in Greek, are heavenly beings who rebelled against God, but the demons of the New Testament—daimonia—appear to be something else entirely.
The case can be made that demons are the disembodied spirits of the Nephilim, the hybrid offspring of the “sons of God” and human women in Genesis 6. These spirits linger after the flood, tormenting and opposing humanity, while the fallen angels themselves remain imprisoned until the final judgment.
1. Fallen Angels in Scripture
The Bible speaks of rebellious angels who departed from their original domain. Genesis 6:1–4 describes the “sons of God” (bene ha-elohim) who took human wives and produced the Nephilim, men of renown who brought great corruption. Deuteronomy 32:8–9 describes God’s assignment of the nations to “the sons of God” (rendered as angeloi in the Greek Septuagint). Daniel 10 refers to supernatural “princes” over nations, reinforcing the connection between the “sons of God” and heavenly beings.
The Greek word angelos (ἄγγελος) means “messenger” and is used consistently for these heavenly beings in the Septuagint and New Testament. These angels, later called “Watchers” in Jewish tradition (see Daniel 4:13, 17, 23), are not human but part of God’s heavenly court. Some of them rebelled, and according to 2 Peter 2:4 and Jude 6, they were cast into chains of gloomy darkness, awaiting judgment.
2. The Nephilim and Their Judgment
The union between the rebellious sons of God and human women produced the Nephilim, described as mighty men and warriors of renown. Their corruption and violence filled the earth, provoking God’s judgment through the flood (Genesis 6:11–13).
Jewish texts like 1 Enoch and Jubilees expand on this story, explaining that when the Nephilim were destroyed in the flood, their bodies perished but their spirits remained. These disembodied spirits, unable to ascend to heaven or rest in Sheol, became restless wanderers on the earth—oppressive spiritual beings seeking embodiment.
This background helps make sense of later biblical language: while fallen angels are kept in chains (Jude 6), the demons who afflict humans in the Gospels are not angels but these restless spirits.
3. The Language of the New Testament
The distinction between angels and demons becomes clear in the New Testament. The word angelos is always used for heavenly beings, good or fallen (e.g., Matthew 25:41, “the devil and his angels”). By contrast, the beings who oppress humans, possess them, and are cast out by Jesus are always called daimonion (δαιμόνιον) or pneuma akatharton (“unclean spirit”).
Notably, the New Testament never calls these oppressing spirits angeloi. If demons were simply fallen angels, one would expect the same terminology. Instead, the biblical writers preserve a distinction:
Angels (angeloi) — heavenly beings, some loyal, some fallen, but powerful and not depicted as possessing humans.
Demons (daimonia) — roaming spirits that inhabit or afflict people, consistently portrayed as seeking embodiment.
This linguistic precision suggests that demons are not identical to fallen angels.
4. Demons as Spirits of the Nephilim
When these two streams of biblical and Jewish tradition are placed together, the picture sharpens:
The Watchers (fallen sons of God) sinned, producing corruption on the earth.
Their offspring, the Nephilim, were destroyed in the flood.
The spirits of the Nephilim became the demons, disembodied entities roaming the earth.
This reading explains several features of New Testament demonology:
Demons crave embodiment (Mark 5:12–13), consistent with being spirits of once-embodied beings.
They are numerous and restless, unlike the bound angels of Jude 6.
They are distinct from Satan’s angels, who remain heavenly powers opposing God.
Thus, the demons continually encountered in the ministry of Jesus are best understood as the disembodied spirits of the Nephilim, unleashed in the world after God’s judgment.
5. Christ’s Victory Over Demons
The good news of the gospel is that Jesus Christ triumphs over both fallen angels and demons. While the angels who rebelled are kept under God’s judgment until the last day, the demons roam the earth and oppress humanity—but Christ demonstrates His authority by casting them out and silencing them (Mark 1:25–26).
On the cross, He disarmed the rulers and authorities (Colossians 2:15), ensuring the final defeat of every spiritual power. The resurrection and ascension of Christ confirm that all things—angels, demons, and human powers—are subject to His reign. Believers, united with Him, share in this victory, resisting the devil and his forces not by strength but by the power of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:10–18).
Conclusion
The origin of demons cannot be reduced to a simple equation of demons with fallen angels. Scripture, when read in light of its linguistic precision and Jewish interpretive traditions, points toward a distinction:
The fallen angels—called angeloi, identified as the Watchers or sons of God—are imprisoned, awaiting final judgment.
The demons—daimonia in the New Testament—are the restless spirits of the Nephilim, destroyed in the flood yet still active in opposition to God and His people.
This conclusion helps explain the biblical data: why angels and demons are described differently, why demons afflict and seek embodiment, and why their defeat in Christ’s ministry is such a powerful sign of the coming kingdom.
Bible Verses on Fallen Angels and Demons
Genesis 6:4 – “The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man and they bore children to them. These were the mighty men who were of old, the men of renown.”
Deuteronomy 32:8 (LXX) – “When the Most High divided the nations, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the nations according to the number of the angels of God.”
Daniel 4:17 – “The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, the decision by the word of the holy ones, to the end that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will and sets over it the lowliest of men.”
2 Peter 2:4 – “For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment.”
Jude 6 – “And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day.”
Matthew 25:41 – “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.’”
Mark 5:12–13 – “And they begged him, saying, ‘Send us to the pigs; let us enter them.’ So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the sea.”
Luke 8:30 – “Jesus then asked him, ‘What is your name?’ And he said, ‘Legion,’ for many demons had entered him.”
Ephesians 6:12 – “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
Colossians 2:15 – “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.”
