1. Question Restatement:
- Does Genesis 6:6 show that God himself is admitting a mistake?
- Or, Does Genesis 6:6 show that God corrects his own actions?
2. Question Not About Possibility of God Making Mistakes:
The issue, here, is whether or not a sense of "culpability" should be inferred from the context - and then attributed to God.
- Whether God is in/directly responsible for the mistakes of Mankind, is not being addressed.
- Whether or not it is even possible for God to make mistakes, is not being addressed.
3. Debunking Objections Raised in other Questions:
Debunking the "Anthropomorphic" Objection:
Any "Anthropomorphic Objection", (a.k.a the Pathetic Fallacy), (in other questions) is facially invalid - because an Anthropomorphic error in reasoning occurs, at the very least, between objects of different classes: attributing human attributes to non-human things, (trees, etc).
It is perfectly appropriate to argue that Fathers and Children share common attributes - and this is exactly what this same context states:
NKJV, Genesis 1:26 - Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;
Debunking the Misanthropic Presupposition:
When someone "Grieves", or "Mourns", neither a "mistake" or "sin" has to have occurred. People die, people get sick, disasters happen; none are sins, or mistakes. "Culpability" is not a necessary condition for "Grief", or "Morning".
Also as noted in discussion, parents can grieve about the actions of their children - without any implication that having had children was a mistake, (keeping them, on the other hand, is a much more difficult.)
4. Hebrew, "נָחַם", (Grieve, Mourn, Console):
No passage in Scripture where "נָחַם" occurs, requires an interpretation of "Repent", or "Regret". And although "Regret" is certainly a part of "mourning", it also carries a sense of "culpability" - in English. This isn't necessarily true in Hebrew.
The Hebrew word, "נָחַם", in Genesis 6:6, (Hebrew Interlinear), is usually always translated with a sense of "mourning", "grieving", "consolation", etc. There are no passages that require an interpretation of this word, as: "regret". See some Hebrew instances of "נָחַם" at BibleHub.com.
NKJV, Genesis 27:42, (Hebrew Interlinear) - “Surely your brother Esau comforts | מִתְנַחֵ֥ם himself concerning you by intending to kill you.
Granted, "נָחַם" is usually conflated with "שׁוּב | Return, Repent", translators often times using them BOTH as words for "repent".
NKJV, 1 Samuel 15:11 - “I greatly regret | נִחַ֗מְתִּי that I have set up Saul as king, for he has turned back | שָׁב֙ from following Me, and has not performed My commandments.” And it grieved | וַיִּ֙חַר֙ Samuel, and he cried out to the Lord all night.
5. Answer, God was "Grieving" - not "Repenting":
- At the very least, God is taking responsibility for "something wrong".
- At most, even if God is directly responsible, the rest of Scripture indicates that all works of God are good - in the context of eternity. Even if there are "temporary mistakes", they are always in the context of a "broader good work").
So, the text can be interpreted at face value - God was grieved, God mourned, God was upset - at what happened.
Even if God DID make a mistake, or even "corrected his actions", Genesis 6:6 is certainly not saying this, (another proof text would be needed).
At the very most, the text might be implying that God makes "temporary mistakes" - but even this is hard to argue:
NKJV, Numbers 23:19, (Hebrew Interlinear) - “God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?
According to Numbers 23:19, God will cause things to happen - and grieve, for a time. But, the text also states: "will he not make it good?"
; this indicates that regardless, all things work together for "good", (Romans 8:28).
Every interpretation of this text requires an understanding that God was motivated to action - by a conviction of "spirit / emotion", (an emotion of grief, regret, mourning, etc.).
And for the record, even if Genesis 6:6 is saying that an "error" was made - the name of "God" is different in the different contexts of Genesis 6:6, and Genesis 1-2. So, perhaps the effort of "many", ("let us make man"), might be a reference to all the host of Heaven. Then, this might mean that although God is taking responsibility in Genesis 6:6, it doesn't invalidate the argument that someone else could be more directly responsible, (the host of heaven, or even mankind themselves).
So, no matter how you shake this - there are too many "more valid" translations and interpretations available; so, it is absolutely impossible to claim that Genesis 6:6 CERTAINLY means that God, himself, made a mistake, (c.f. Internet search: "Ruling out Rival Hypotheses".)
So, it is certainly true that neither this passage, its semantics, its context, nor its grammar, demand an interpretation that "God makes mistakes" or "God corrects his own actions".
"Regret and sorrow are both acts related to mistakes or sin."
It is assumed that "regret" is THE proper definition, and also assumed that nothing else can cause, "נָחַם". B.) However, there are many other passages illustrating "נָחַם" that contradict both premises:"NAS: died; and when the time of mourning was ended, Judah..."
C.) I hope an accepted answer will either affirm or refute the premises. D.) "נָחַם" can mean "mourn", which has nothing to do with mistake, or sin. – elika kohen Jul 6 '17 at 21:22