The Old Testaments
Prior to listing the generations of Adam in Genesis 5, Holy Scripture makes a special note relative to his grandson, Enosh, at the end of the previous chapter. I believe the text of this note, which is obscure and uncertain, is worth extra attention.
The traditional Hebrew of the second half of Genesis 4:26—the Masoretic text—is 'az huchal liqero' beshem Adonai, which may be literally translated, "Then it was begun to call on the name of the Lord." Although a bit awkward, the sense of the statement is at least intelligible. The King James Version paraphrases it: "Then began men to call upon the name of the Lord," and many translations provide a variant of that rendering. The curious thing about this reading is that the invocation of the Lord's name is not ascribed to Enosh himself.
St. Jerome's Latin version (Vulgate) of the first two words—iste coepit—presupposes a different underlying Hebrew reading: ze' hechel, meaning "He began [to call on the Lord's name]." The merit of this reading, surely, is that it ascribes to Enosh himself the invocation of the Lord's name.
THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
FOR QUICK ACCESS:
Patrick Henry Reardon is pastor emeritus of All Saints Antiochian Orthodox Church in Chicago, Illinois, and the author of numerous books, including, most recently, Out of Step with God: Orthodox Christian Reflections on the Book of Numbers (Ancient Faith Publishing, 2019).
A Journal of Mere Christianity—Delivered to Your Door with Full Online Access
- Essays on theology, culture, and the Church
- Contributors from across the Christian traditions
- Six print issues per year
- Full digital archive access
Subscribe (Print + Online)
Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95.
Subscribe (Online Only)
Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives for only $19.95.
bulk subscriptions
Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.
Transactions will be processed on a secure server.
more on bible from the online archives
32.2—March/April 2019
on Preserving Physical & Spiritual Nourishment by Nathanael Devlin
32.3—May/June 2019
on the Implications of Changing the Pater Noster by John M. McCarthy
27.4—July/August 2014
The Bible, Sacred Theology & the Mind of Christ by Patrick Henry Reardon
more from the online archives
30.5—Sept/Oct 2017
The Christian Cure for What Ails Modern Politics by David Bradshaw
calling all readers
Please Donate
"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand
"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor
