Why Scripture Repeats the Divine Name and the Rebellion of Enosh's Generation

A certain heretic said to Rabbi Yishmael son of Rabbi Yose: It is written, (Genesis 19:24) "And the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD"; it should have said "from Himself." A certain launderer said: Leave him, for I will answer him. "And Lamech said to his wives, Adah and Tzillah, hear my voice, you wives of Lamech"; it should have said "my wives." Rather, Scripture speaks in this manner. Here too Scripture speaks in this manner. He said to him: From where do you have this? He said to him: I heard it from the lecture of Rabbi Meir, for Rabbi Yohanan said: When Rabbi Meir would expound in his lecture, he would expound a third law, a third aggadah, a third parables. We find in the Torah, in the Prophets, and in the Writings that a commoner mentions his own name twice in a single verse. In the Torah, "And Lamech said to his wives." In the Prophets, "And the king said to them, take the servants of your lord and set Solomon my son riding." In the Writings, (Esther 8:8) "for a writing that is written in the name of the king." And you wonder that the Holy One, blessed be He, mentions His name twice in a single verse? (Genesis 4:25) "And Adam knew his wife again." Desire was added to him upon his desire. In the past, if he did not see, he did not desire; now, whether he sees or does not see, he desires. A hint to those who travel the seas, that they should be remembered to their households and come at once. "And she called his name Seth, for God has set for me another seed," and so forth. Rabbi Tanchuma in the name of Rabbi Shmuel said: She looked toward that seed who rises from another place. And who is this? The King Messiah. "In place of Abel, for Cain slew him." From the sin of Abel, Cain was slain. Like two trees standing near each other: the wind broke one of them, and it fell upon its fellow and broke it. So "in place of Abel, for Cain slew him," from the sin of Abel, Cain was slain. (Genesis 4:26) "And to Seth also a son was born, and he called his name Enosh." They asked before Abba Kohen Bardela: Adam, Seth, Enosh, and then silence? He said to them: Until here in image and likeness; from here onward the generations were corrupted, and centaurs were created. Kenan: "contentious ones." Four things changed in the days of Enosh son of Seth: the mountains became hard rock, the dead began to swarm, their faces became like apes, and they became vulnerable to demons. Rabbi Yitzhak said: They themselves caused themselves to be vulnerable to demons, and what caused it for them? That they were saying, "What difference is there between one who bows to an image and one who bows to a man?" "Then it was begun to call on the name of the LORD." Rabbi Simon said: In three places this expression is used as language of rebellion: "then it was begun [huchal] to call on the name of the LORD"; (Genesis 6:1) "and it came to pass when man began [hechel]"; (Genesis 10:8) "he began [hechel] to be a mighty one." They objected: but it is written, "and this is what they began [hachilam] to do"? He said to them: God struck the head of Nimrod and said, "This one incited them in rebellion against Me." Rabbi Levi said: A parable of a woman who said to her husband, "I saw in my dream that you were divorcing me." He said to her, "And why in a dream? Surely plainly." So the Holy One, blessed be He, said: You made yourselves into idolatry and called by your own names; I too will call to the waters of the sea by My name and wipe out those people from the world. Rabbi Abahu expounded: The ocean is higher than all the world. Rabbi Elazar ben Menahem said: Is it not an explicit verse, (Amos 5:8) "who calls to the waters of the sea and pours them out upon the face of the earth, the LORD is His name"? I wonder! Like one pouring from above downward. Twice it is written "who calls to the waters of the sea," corresponding to the two times the sea rose and flooded the world. And how far did it rise the first time, and how far the second? Rabbi Yudan and Rabbi Abahu and Rabbi Elazar in the name of Rabbi Hanina: The first time it rose as far as Acco and Jaffa, and the second time it rose as far as the cliffs of Barbary. Rabbi Hananiah and Rabbi Aha in the name of Rabbi Hanina: The first time it rose as far as the cliffs of Barbary, and the second time as far as Acco and Jaffa. This is what is written, "And I said, thus far shall you come and no further, and here shall your proud waves be stayed," "thus far shall you come and no further" as far as Acco, "and here shall your proud waves be set" at Jaffa. Rabbi Elazar in the name of Rabbi Hanina said: The first time it rose as far as Calabria, and the second time it rose as far as the cliffs of Barbary.