Genesis 4:26 New International Version

²⁶ Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.

At that time people began to call on the name of the Lord.

So what is the big deal or controversy seems pretty simply right?

Some feel this should truly read that “in that time they profaned the name of the Lord”

Ok ,so why then ? Let us unpack the original text then

וּלְשֵׁ֤ת גַּם־הוּא֙ יֻלַּד־בֵּ֔ן וַיִּקְרָ֥א אֶת־שְׁמ֖וֹ אֱנ֑וֹשׁ אָ֣ז הוּחַ֔ל לִקְרֹ֖א בְּשֵׁ֥ם יְהֹוָֽה

“And to Sheit (Seth) also to he a son was born and he called his name Enosh (Enosh not EEnash as his often said) and so they began to call in the name of the Lord”

הוּחַ֔ל This here is the main word in question “huchal” and this word לְהָחֵל “lihacheil” means to begin in a more modern dialect so you see that this word is consistent with to begin and can also mean hope.

But what is the true root of huchal is it יחל yicheil which means to hope or start or to begin.Like many ancient Hebrew words it has agricultural origins here in Genesis 9.20

וַיָּ֥חֶל נֹ֖חַ אִ֣ישׁ הָֽאֲדָמָ֑ה וַיִּטַּ֖ע כָּֽרֶם

In a verbal form of וַיָּ֥חֶל Vayachel it is used to mean “And he began”

“And Noach Began as a man of the soil (a farmer) and he planted a vinyard”

So if huchal is from yicheil then “begin or began” is the proper translation then

So what is the case for “profane” as definition” ,this is from a dictionary.

חלל chileil or chalal as a root

 ” space; emptiness, cavity, void, hollow, shaft, voidness, socket, well, inane, lacuna, lumen

  dead, fatal casualty, fallen

חולל

verbbe desecrated; violated; redeemed

verbto kill

verbbe played (flute)

לחלל

verbto desecrate; violate; redeem

verbto play the flute

לחלל (>>חילל)

verbto desecrate; violate; redeem”

So chileil or also chalal חלל as the root has many meaning mostly to to profane or polute but can also mean killed or slain and even to play the flute.I believe the flute part comes from a meaning of to strike or to pierce or to bore through which relates to the slain part.And the bore through meaning might pertain to the flute.And also maybe it connects the other word meaning to begin ,meaning sort of like to light a match or strike a match ,to strike can mean to begin.So a proto ancient meaning of strike may connect to begin or began with slain or profaned.

There is a verb in Hebrew called a hofal and in hofal or hophal form and the huchal could mean to profane.The great Rabbi Rashi also suggested this also and the word will vowels chalal tends to imply void or empty and chileil more profane

So you see from an ancient semitic root that we may have one one word meaning that lends itself to ,to bore or pierce which leads to strike which leads to begin and hope.Which also leads to profanity which could have meant to strike or dig at God hence to profane and it all likely came from a farming term term meaning to bore or dig into soil which led to it meaning to begin or hope and then the negative conotations like to profane or polute.

So it looks here like both words roots have the same original word root anyway.For more context this verse deals with Enosh whose name means person and it is the root of the words ish and ishah that mean man and woman respectively.It also means sick,mortal,wounded and fatal also.It is interesting that so many say the Torah does not proclaim man has a sinful nature but the very Hebrew words for people mean frail,fatal or wounded! More proof we really are fallen in nature and truly need Jesus our Messiah to save us!

Did man in his wounded state call out to God for help or did many in his wounded state in anger curse God.Or another mixed view is that man called out to God but in a profane type of worship ,a mix of both.The answer could be both because Biblical interpretation has four levels: The pashat or the simple ,the remez or the hinted meaning,the drash or the seeking and the sod the secret the esoteric.Sometimes the Bible has several meanings in one scripture.

I cannot render a sure verdict on this one but the fact that it does get translated as “began” says that the Rabbi’s may have had reason for this.On the other hand the direction humanity went after Seth and before the flood leans “profane” ,it could go either way really.

Some of you may ask then how reliable is the Bible if there is question on original textual meaning? The answer is very reliable despite there being some discrepancy.Common today today on the internet is that alma/betulah debate from Isaiah everyone is talking about a lot.

¹⁴ Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

So many say this is illegitimate as a reference to the virgin birth because the text should read “young woman not literally virgin” and this is true ,the word used in Hebrew does mean young woman.That being said ,does the term maiden or young woman or alma in Hebrew exclude virginity? No, very simply so the word alma does not diminish anything.In the Book of Genesis Rebekah is called both betulah and alma.

The English Standard Version or ESV of the Bible uses Dead Sea scroll material in Deuteronomy when talking about how the nations were numbered (See Deuteronomy 32.8-9) Most Bibles using the masoretic text say according to the number of the children of Israel but the ESV says children of God( that is angels).

This has little serious theological meaning as far as the truths of God are concerned.The Bible was inspired by God and guided by the Holy Spirit but written by people who at times used different language styles and scribes made some copying errors along the way too.The Holy Spirit was there along the way to keep the big stuff in order as it was later translated.

So people ask ,if God is omniscient than why even the slighest variance ever then? By using human language and the styles of the prophets and scribes it made scripture relatable to people.If a Bible droped from heaven in the language of heaven ,who would understand it or feel it speaks to them.The Bible was written so not only in the original Hebrew,Aramaic and Greek but in every language it would be translated into ,people could feel it speaks to them!

Thank you and God Bless