There are quite a few mysterious characters in the Bible, some more mysterious, some less. And some are, well, just weird.
1. Simon the Canaanite (Zealot)
Of the 12 disciples of Christ, none is more mysterious than Simon Zealot. His name was supposed to distinguish him from Simon Peter and became for some a symbol that he was a member of a similar political movement that advocated the disobedience of the Jews to Roman law.
Some suggest that he acted in close circle of Christ as a political adviser. His presence then indicated that Jesus had a revolutionary political agenda.
The truth is much less exciting. The Zealot movement did not emerge until long after Christ gave Simon his nickname, and there has never been any solid evidence that Simon, despite his appointment, was a political radical. It is more than likely that Simon got his name from spiritual devotion and not from any radical political stance.
Nothing else is known about him, at least with complete certainty. The Catholic Encyclopedia mentions him as a possible brother or cousin of Jesus without any real proof.
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Eastern Orthodox tradition says he developed his zeal when Jesus attended his wedding and turned water into wine. Some legends say that he was a martyr: the philosopher Justus Lipsius believed that he was sawed in half while alive.
2. Cain's wife
According to Genesis, Cain was the first person to be born. He later killed his younger brother Abel in a fit of rage, deciding that sacrificing him would be preferable to a sacrificial fruit basket. God sealed Cain and cursed the earth, causing him to live like a wandering fugitive.
Later, however, he suddenly had a wife. Absolutely nothing else is mentioned about her. Where it came from is unclear. In fact, the question of where Cain found his wife when his next of kin were apparently the only people in the world has sent many discerning Sunday school students down the path of skepticism.
Some believe that there was another mysterious tribe of people, maybe after Adam and Eve, maybe even a different race. But the standard answer is that Adam and Eve had many other sons and daughters who could have populated the earth. The only way to preserve the human race is to mate with siblings, nieces, nephews, and cousins.
In fact, although the Holy Bible is silent about her personality, the Apocryphal Book of Jubilees says that Cain's wife was his sister Avan, who bore him a son, Enoch.
3. Simon Magus
He is presented as a powerful magician with a large following in Samaria who converts to Christianity and wants to learn from the apostles Peter and John. When he sees that the apostles have a gift, he offers them money if they will give him this gift. But the apostles do not accept his proposal, but only strictly reject Simon.
Apocryphal texts reveal much more, such as his alleged ability to levitate and even fly, emphasizing that he was something of a cult in his hometown. It has been suggested that his conversion is more economic than spiritual, and he has presented himself as a messianic figure.
Some consider him the founder of Gnosticism, which is a mixture of different religious systems.
4. Og
Often referred to in general terms, the Nephilim were a race of fierce giants who lived in the antediluvian world at the same time as humanity. Were they, as some have suggested, the descendants of angels and earthly women? Or are they fallen angels themselves? However it was, they evolved and became known as the Rephaim, and often fought with humans for land and power.
The most legendary of these was Og, the king of Bashan. He was killed along with his entire army and his kingdom was plundered. All surviving men, women and children were put to death, and the strongest and most powerful line of Nephilim descendants was destroyed.
Some descendants of the Nephilim continued to fight the Israelites, although they became less and less powerful and died out. One tribe, the Anakim, united with the human tribes in Philistia. Goliath was considered one of the last descendants of the Nephilim.
Goliath's height is indicated in the earliest manuscripts as 275 centimeters. According to the Bible, the descendants of the Nephilim could not survive the flood, although Og and the other giants lived after the flood. Some attribute their later existence to the descendants of the Noah family, once again associated with demons. Or, they survived the flood as fallen angels, not humans.
Some information about the Nephilim and their descendants runs counter to the grain of the biblical story. There is information that Og ordered the passage to the ark, promising to act as a slave to Noah and his family.