RAV KOOK ON Bereishit Part 1: The Titans, Men of Renown

The Nephilim Immediately before the story of Noah and a corrupted world, the Torah makes a passing mention of the Nephilim, powerful giants who lived at that time. “The Nephilim were on the earth in those days.... They were the mightiest ones ever, men of renown.” (Gen. 6:4) Who were these titans? Why does the Torah call them Nephilim? The Midrash explains that they were called Nephilim because they fell (naphlu) and brought about the world’s downfall (nephilah). These giants were the catalysts for society’s great moral collapse.