Enos (biblical Figure) - "Call Upon The Name of The Lord"

"Call Upon The Name of The Lord"

Genesis 4:26 says that "at that time men began to call upon the name of the Lord". In giving a meaning to the statement, commentators have proposed that it means either (1) then began men to call themselves by the name of the Lord (marg.) i.e., to distinguish themselves thereby from idolaters; or (2) then men in some public and earnest way began to call upon the Lord, indicating a time of spiritual revival.

The traditional Jewish interpretation of this verse, though, implies that it marked the beginning of idolatry, i.e. that men start dubbing "Lord" things that were mere creatures. This is because the previous generations, notably Adam, had already "begun calling upon the name of the Lord", which forces us to interpret הוחל huchal not as "began" but as the homonym "profanated". In this light, Enosh suggests the notion of a humanity (Enoshut) thinking of itself as an absolute rather than in relation to God (Enosh vs. Adam).

Read more about this topic:  Enos (biblical Figure)

Famous quotes containing the words call, the and/or lord:

    “O thou invisible spirit of wine, if thou hast no name to be known by, let us call thee devil!”
    —William Shakespeare (1564–1616)

    “When you’re at the end of your rope, all you have to do is make one foot move out in front of the other. Just take the next step. That’s all there is to it.”
    —Samuel Fuller, U.S. screenwriter, and Milton Sperling. Samuel Fuller. Merrill (Jeff Chandler)

    “Then the LORD called, -Samuel! Samuel! and he said, -Here I am!”
    —Bible: Hebrew, 1 Samuel 3:4.