How Tall Were Adam and Eve? (Giants in the Bible)

Adam was the first man that God created. He lived in the Garden of Eden with Eve, who was the first woman God created. But how tall were Adam and Eve?

The Bible does not specify their exact height, but we can put our sleuthing skills to work and dig deeper. We know from biblical accounts that giants lived in certain ancient civilizations. Let’s dive in.

What is Adam’s Height?
What was the Tallest Man in the Bible?
Biblical Accounts of Giants

What is Adam’s Height?

The average height of humans today around the globe is 5.8′ for men and 5.2′ for women. Naturally, the average human today varies by height depending on their country, nutritional habits, and more. Since no fossil record exists from the time of creation, what about the first humans God created?

First of all, the book of Genesis tells us that all mankind is made in the image of God: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27). However, since God is spirit (John 4:24), how did He calculate how tall Adam would be?

After all, Adam was never a baby. God created Adam as a fully developed man. Adam’s genes, Adam’s age, and Adam’s stature were all brand-new creations. Adam was the prototype for the entire human race and all future sons of God.

Although the exact height of Adam is not lined out in Scripture, we can consider other biblical factors.

1. Age in the Old Testament

Specific details about age in the Bible are readily available. In ancient times, the life span of human beings was counted by centuries rather than decades.

For instance, Adam lived to be over 900 years old: “Thus all the days that Adam lived were 930 years, and he died” (Genesis 5:5). Today, we get taller as we age and shrink as we get older. Physical appearance and stature change over time. Was the same true for Adam? We simply don’t know.

Adam had his first son at the age of 130 (Genesis 5:3)! We do not know how many children Adam and Eve had because Scripture only says: “The days of Adam after he fathered Seth were 800 years; and he had other sons and daughters” (Genesis 5:4).

2. God Created Eve

The story of Adam is incomplete without mention of his wife Eve. Although marriage likely did not affect Adam’s height, it certainly enhanced his life.

So one day a woman was created in God’s image: “Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him” (Genesis 2:18).

God put Adam into a deep sleep and took one of Adam’s ribs to create Eve: “And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man” (Genesis 2:22).

And like Adam, Eve’s height and exact measurements are not mentioned in Scripture. Interestingly, we do not know how long Eve lived.

In today’s world, women usually outlive men, but Scripture is silent regarding Eve’s age or year of death. After eating the forbidden fruit, Adam and Eve spent the rest of their days banished from the Garden of Eden.

What was the Tallest Man in the Bible?

The tallest man named in the Bible is Goliath. He is the tallest simply because the Bible gives specific information regarding his height: “And there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span” (1 Samuel 17:4).

Goliath’s height was a staggering nine feet, nine inches tall. Wow! Various interpretations put him at around nine feet, four inches tall. However, all religious texts place Goliath at over nine feet tall.

Significantly, Goliath was from Gath. Scripture confirms the existence of giants and that they descended from Gath:

“These were descended from the giants in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants” (1 Chronicles 20:8).
“These four were descended from the giants in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants” (2 Samuel 21:22).
“After this there was again war with the Philistines at Gob. Then Sibbecai the Hushathite struck down Saph, who was one of the descendants of the giants” (2 Samuel 21:18).

The tallest person who ever lived in modern times was Robert Wadlow. He was a staggering 8 ft. 11.1 in. tall. He died in 1940 at the age of 22 due to a foot infection. His feet were 18.5 in. long and he wore size 37 shoes. His great height necessitated custom clothes and shoes since nothing on the store racks would fit him.

Biblical Accounts of Giants

The presence of giants appears in Scripture. Their physical characteristics differed from mentions of the mighty men like those who served King David.

1. The Nephilim

The Nephilim were mysterious beings or people in the Hebrew Bible described as large and strong. The Hebrew word Nephilim means “giants” and were known to be of great size.

Scripture says: “The Nephilim were on the earth in those days and also later. That was when the sons of God had physical relations with the daughters of men. These women gave birth to children, who became famous. They were the mighty warriors of long ago” (Genesis 6:4).

Joshua and Caleb encountered these giants of Nephilim among the people of Canaan in Moses’ time when Moses sent them as spies: “And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them” (Numbers 13:33).

2. Biblical Giants in Gath

There is historical record and biblical evidence of giants descending from Gath. Gath was one of the five chief cities of the Philistines (Joshua 13:3; 1 Samuel 6:17; Amos 6:2; Micah 1:10).

The Anakim was a race of giants who inhabited Gath (Joshua 11:22). As mentioned above, Goliath came from Gath. Giants struck fear in the hearts of men:

“Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying, ‘The people are greater and taller than we. The cities are great and fortified up to heaven. And besides, we have seen the sons of the Anakim there'” (Deuteronomy 1:28).
“The Emim formerly lived there, a people great and many, and tall as the Anakim” (Deuteronomy 2:10).

The term “giant” was a symbolism of height, not spiritual discernment. These were the Old Testament bullies. Remember how Goliath taunted the Israelites before David took him down? These giants leveraged their size to intimidate and conquer. These giants of old are not mentioned in any of the New Testaments.

Bottom Line

Neither the Bible nor ancient texts tell us how tall Adam was. There have also been no ancient skeletal remains discovered to date of giants. The tallest human skeleton ever known or found was Robert Wadlow, the Guinness record-holder mentioned above.

However, consider this: Adam and Eve had the entire world to themselves for a while. Conserving space was not even a concept. Could God have created them really tall? Only He knows.

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About the Author

Donna is a sought-after speaker, multi-published author, and Bible teacher. Her path from unchurched to becoming passionate about sharing Jesus was difficult. Read about her God-breathed journey: “From Unchurched to Becoming a Multi-Published Author and Sought-After Speaker.” If you want to send Donna a quick message, visit her here.

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