If they do, they are wrong.
Glad you think so
It's completely unnecessary, anyway. I could translate every instance of erets as land and the effect would be the same.
Here we get to the other problem in your translation of
erets. The first problem is thinking it is never used to sum up all of creation outside heaven, the second is to think it has to mean all the dry ground on the planet. The word is regularly used to describe much smaller areas, countries, regions even fields.
A description of the whole earth
kol-h'erets being flooded may simply describe the whole region Noah came from.
Exodus 10:15
They covered the face of the whole land, so that the land was darkened, and they ate all the plants in the land and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Not a green thing remained, neither tree nor plant of the field, through all the land of Egypt.
The whole earth,
kol-h'erets, that was covered with locusts was not the entire dry land surface of the planet, but the whole land of Egypt.
1Sam 30:15
And David said to him, "Will you take me down to this band?" And he said, "Swear to me by God that you will not kill me or deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will take you down to this band." 16 And when he had taken him down, behold, they were spread abroad over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah.
If the Amalekites had really covered the whole earth, David would not have had so much trouble finding them.
2Sam 18:7
And the men of Israel were defeated there by the servants of David, and the loss there was great on that day, twenty thousand men. 8 The battle spread over the face of all the country, and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword.
Hardly a world war. But 'the face of all the country' is the exact same Hebrew phrase as 'the face of the whole earth' in Genesis 8:9
Gen. 7:17 Now the flood was on the LAND forty days. The waters increased and lifted up the ark, and it rose high above the LAND. 18 The waters prevailed and greatly increased on the LAND, and the ark moved about on the surface of the waters. 19 And the waters prevailed exceedingly on the LAND, and all the high hills under the whole heaven were covered.
This passage says that all of the hills of the dry land were covered under the whole heavens. This can only mean that ALL lands were covered.
Except the ancient writers had a very different idea of what 'under the whole heavens' meant than a 21st century reader approaching the text. The key is the word 'under'. It is not describing a spherical atmosphere surrounding the planet and space beyond in every direction. It is talking about the sky above their heads, the heavens they are 'under'. Under the whole heaven means everything from horizon to horizon. It does not refer to Australia and Brazil. They were completely unaware of these areas.
So the bible can talk of the Medes from around Iran as coming 'from the ends of the heavens'. I
saiah 13:5 They come from a distant land, from the end of the heavens, the LORD and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land... 17 Behold, I am stirring up the Medes against them, who have no regard for silver and do not delight in gold.
So did the Medes come from Persia to destroy Babylonia... or did they come from the far side of the universe to destroy
kol-h'erets, the entire planet
God promised to put fear of the Isrealites on all the peoples who are under the whole heavens.
Deut 2:25 This day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you on the peoples who are under the whole heaven, who shall hear the report of you and shall tremble and be in anguish because of you.
But if we look at who was terrified, under the whole heaven simply applied to people from horizon to horizon in the regions they travelled through.
Exodus 15:14-16 The peoples have heard; they tremble; pangs have seized the inhabitants of Philistia. 15 Now are the chiefs of Edom dismayed; trembling seizes the leaders of Moab; all the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away. 16 Terror and dread fall upon them; because of the greatness of your arm, they are still as a stone, till your people, O LORD, pass by, till the people pass by whom you have purchased.
This is not scripture being wrong, this is understanding what the words and phrases meant when they were spoken and written down. Under the whole heaven did not means all lands.
This passage says nothing about the earth and sea not being distinct. Just because a passage mentions the land without mentioning the sea, does not prove they are not distinct. You need to find a passage that sums them up together into one term.
The passages sums up the entire creation in as earth and heaven. Given creation did include sea and sea creatures, and they are hardly listed as part of heaven, the word earth is being used to describe everything God created on earth, both land and sea.
Read this carefully. Deeps is simply a reference to the oceans.
Psa. 148:7 Praise the LORD from the earth, you great sea creatures and all ocean depths, (NIV)
Exactly and the ocean depths and great sea creatures are being told to praise God from the earth. Where are they? Earth. The Psalm starts of telling sun moon stars to praise the LORD from the heavens. It then gives a list of creatures commanded to praise the LORD from the earth, which starts off with sea creatures, hail and snow, beasts and livestock. Sea creatures and ocean depths are all seen as belonging on earth, at least in that use of the word earth.
I know life would be simpler and bible study much easier if words used had only one precise meaning. But language is not like that and God chose to communicate with us in human language. Word can have a wide range of meaning and we have to work them out from context, often it just isn't that clear. Here is what Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Dictionary gives as the range of means to erets
H776
ארץ
'erets
BDB Definition:
1) land, earth
1a) earth
1a1) whole earth (as opposed to a part)
1a2) earth (as opposed to heaven)
1a3) earth (inhabitants)
1b) land
1b1) country, territory
1b2) district, region
1b3) tribal territory
1b4) piece of ground
1b5) land of Canaan, Israel
1b6) inhabitants of land
1b7) Sheol, land without return, (under) world
1b8) city (-state)
1c) ground, surface of the earth
1c1) ground
1c2) soil
1d) (in phrases)
1d1) people of the land
1d2) space or distance of country (in measurements of distance)
1d3) level or plain country
1d4) land of the living
1d5) end(s) of the earth
1e) (almost wholly late in usage)
1e1) lands, countries
1e1a) often in contrast to Canaan
noun feminine
A Related Word by BDB/Strongs Number: from an unused root probably meaning to be firm
Same Word by TWOT Number: 167