The Tower of Babel 11: 1-9

In this section, primeval history reaches its fruitless climax as man, conscious of his new abilities, prepares to glorify himself by his collective effort to build a monument to himself. The elements of the story are timelessly characteristic ofthe spirit of the world (First John 2:15-17).201 This is a flashback narrative that gives us the reason for the scattering of the nations just described, and these two chapters link the time of Noah to the days of Abraham. The Flood had a worldwide impact on humanity, and so would the confusion of languages here at the Tower of Babel. Although the curtain had now been drawn, as it were, on his activities, there can be little doubt that Satan was still energetically working behind the scenes. He pressed his advantage, gained when he capitalized so effectively on the fatal weakness in Hams character, and soon gained the allegiance of his family in general and of Nimrod in particular.202 Romans 1:18-32 graphically relates the resulting moral and spiritual decay of Nimrod and his followers. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, andworshiped and served created things rather than the Creator (Romans 1:25).The result was the beginning of pantheism, or the belief that God is everything and everything is God; polytheism, or the belief in many gods; and idolatry, or the worshiping of idols. How much of this new religious system came by direct communication with Satan himself we do not know, but there is plentiful evidence that all forms of paganism have come initially from the Tower of Babel. The basic identity of the various gods and goddesses of Rome, Greece, India, Egypt, and other nations originated from the ancient Babylonian religion. Nimrod would be worshiped as a god. His wife Semiramis was worshiped as the Queen of Heaven (Jeremiah 17-19). She would be known as Ishtar in Syria, Ashtoreth in Phoenicia, Isis (the goddess of fertility) in Egypt, Aphrodite in Greece and Venus in Rome. Their son, Tammuz, was worshiped as the sun god (Ezekiel 8:14-17). He became known as Baal in Phoenicia, Osiris in Egypt, Aros in Greece and Cupid in Rome. This religious system would later become known as MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND OF THE

ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH (Revelation 17:5). These pagan deities were also identified with the stars and the planets. Like everything else that is good and righteous on the earth, Satan corrupts it. He takes the truth and turns it into lies (John 8:44). He has done this from the beginning (Chapter 3). And one of the greatest ancient counterfeit mythologies that he has unleashed on mankind is the study of the stars today. After the Tower of Babel the counterfeit religions of the world would be practiced continually and Gods true message of salvation was distorted. For more information about this see the Witness of the Stars at the end of this devotional commentary. The entire account of the Tower of Babel follows an antithetical structure. There is a parallelism, where the first letter is antithetical to the second letter, and so on, with the letter E being the turning point. A The whole world had one language (11:1) B They settled on the plain in Shinar (11:2) C Man said: Come let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly (11:3) D Man said: Let us build ourselves a city and make a name for ourselves (11:4) E But the Lord came down to see (11:5) D The Lord said: If they do this, nothing will be impossible for them (11:6) C The Lord said: Come let us confuse their language (11:7) B They were scattered from the plain of Shinar (11:8) A The Lord confused the language of the whole world (11:9) This section provides a fitting climax to primeval history. It describes the families of the earth hopelessly scattered throughout the then-known world. There was

then no record of a mark for the fugitive (4:15), no rainbow in the clouds(9:13), and no ray of hope or token of grace. This leaves the reader looking for a solution. And after a connecting genealogy (11:10-26), that solution is provided. Out of the scattered nations of the world, God formed one nation that would become His channel of blessing. So God was not done with the human race. This chapter simply prepares the reader for the next step of Gods plan, the calling of Abraham (12:19).203

The Rebellion of Man 11: 1-4

DIG: Why do they build this tower? Why is such unity wrong? REFLECT: What is the lesson here for empire-building? For church-building? For human ambition? As might be expected, the survivors of the Flood spoke only one language. Now the whole world had one language, in the Hebrew this literally means of one lip, and a common speech or vocabulary (11:1). As we have already seen, that language was Hebrew, as all names were Hebrew names prior to this chapter. In addition, the word plays have only made sense in Hebrew. This chapter explains why the dispersion of Chapter 10 took place. As men moved eastward from Ararat and the Armenia-Turkish area, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there (11:2). Their descendants eventually moved to Shinar (an ancient name for Babylonia) and settled there. It was there they decided to rebel against the Lord. Led by Nimrod, his fellow rebels decided to build a city and a tower in order to make a name for themselves as well as to demonstrate their sense of unity. They said to each other, Come, lets make bricks and bake them thoroughly. They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar (11:3).If they had been living in Palestine, they would have used stone andmortar as building materials, but since they were in Babylonia they used brick and tar. There was very little stone available for use in building in ancient Mesopotamia, as the brick structures routinely excavated by archaeologists in that part of the world so vividly illustrate.204

Then they said, Come, let us build ourselvesa city. This was the counsel of the princes, to make Nimrod king over the whole human race. This desire to build a city existed even before the Flood. Cain was building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch (4:17b). Here again we have the building of a city connected with those who were evidently indifferent to God. At first it was not so much wickedness but indifference. God was not in their life. But from indifference soon came rebellion, as is always the case. Whenever a religious system glorifies humanity and makes man everything, it is not long before it minimizes God and makes Him nothing. Culture, civilization, intellect and progress are all gifts from God to us. And when they are yielded to God they become a blessing. But when they are not handed over to God who gave them in the first place, but are kept for mans own power and authority, they lead mankind further and further away from God and become a curse.205 A self-reliant society, under the power of a gifted leader, would be a society no longer dependant upon God. This was Nimrods aim. In addition, they wanted to build a tower that reaches to the heavens (11:4a). The great tower would dominate the city, both architecturally and culturally. It would serve as the focal point of the political and religious life of the population, and would be a symbol of their unity and strength.206 The Hebrew name Babylon is Babel which means the gate of god. The Tower of Babel was not a monument to the one true God, but to prideful mankind. It reveals mans arrogant, defiant, rebellious attitude his Maker. Therefore, the Babel of the earth is set against the Jerusalem in heaven; the city of man opposed to the city of God. True unity is based upon God and upon spiritual life in Him.There is one body and one Spirit just as you were called to one hope when you were called one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all (Ephesians 4:4-6). What was their real motivation? So that we may make a name for ourselves. This was nothing more than open rebellion against God. Humility is often equated with trust and obedience, and conversely pride, as seen here, is related to independence and disobedience.207 The desire to make a name for oneself also existed before the Flood. The Nephilim were heroes of old, men of renown (6:4). At its most basic element, this is humanism and comes from the wrong motivation. Humanism starts with mankind putting himself in the place of God and eliminating God from the center of our lives. Humanists do not believe in God. Man has become god. They believe that everyone has the right to determine their own

destiny. They adhere to situational ethics and have no concept of absolute authority. Their desire is to force God to bend to their will. People who think like this are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight (Isaiah 5:21).208 This prideful human achievement was nothing more than a return to Adam and Eves effort to be like God (3:5). Their ultimate desire, led by the serpent, was to ascend above the tops of the clouds and make themselves like the Most High (Isaiah 14:14). In the pride of their hearts they wanted to say: I am a god (Ezekiel 28:2). And by doing so they would be emulating their father the Devil, who will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up on Gods temple, proclaiming himself to be God (Second Thessalonians 2:4). However, their goal was thwarted and they were scattered over the whole face of the earth (11:4b). This was, of course, an act of rebellion against God in opposition with His Covenant with Noah (9:1 and 7). Confusion is the inevitable fate of all such manmade schemes. At the Constitutional Convention of 1787, Benjamin Franklin quoted the King James Version of Psalm 127:1 when he said: Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain. He then continued, I firmly believe this, and I also believe that without His [helping hand] we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel.

The Judgment of the Lord 11: 5-9

DIG: What does the Lord do in this passage? Why? How would confusing their language aid in fulfilling the first Great Commission (12:1-3)? What do you learn about judgment and mercy from these verses? REFLECT: How is unity in Christ (see Ephesians Chapters 1 and 2) different from the unity at the Tower of Babel? Where are you feeling scattered or confused? Why might that be?

Normally the Lord allows men and nations to pursue their own ways without supernatural interference on His part. Man is free and responsible; and though he will eventually suffer the consequences of his evil deeds, God is long-suffering. Therefore ungodliness often seems to thrive without His interference in the affairs of men. But there have been a few occasions on which the accomplishment of Gods very purposes for the world became so endangered that divine intervention was required. The antediluvian corruption was one such example (6:18), and the rebellion at Babel was another.209 Just as 8:1 is the hinge of the Flood story, so this is the hinge of the Babel account: But Jehovah, the Lord of redemption and mercy, came down to see the city and the tower that the men were building (11:5).This is anthropomorphism. God did not need to do this, but the purpose is to teach us that a judge must not condemn the accused until he has seen for himself. No matter how high man built his tower, the Lord still had to come down to see it. This shows that the Lord is interested in the affairs of man. But He is so high and man is so small by comparison that He has to come down to get a better look. This section deals totally with the judgment of the Lord in response to the rebellion of man in the previous four verses. Before this verse, there was only human activity and after this verse there is only divine activity. As always, the Lord has the final word.210 The Tower that they built was a religious symbol called a ziggurat. It had a square base and sloping, stepped sides with a small shrine on top. They were often painted with blue enamel in order to make them blend in, in their minds, with the heavenly home of one or more of their gods. They believed that the gods would briefly live in the shrine when they came down to meet with the people. The people would climb up the side of the ziggurat all the way to the top in the hope that the gods would condescend to meet with them. The story of Jacobs dream at Bethel (28:12) refers to a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven. In the same way, here they built a tower that reached to the heavens (11:4). Other towers in Mesopotamia had similar names and served the same purpose. The one at Asshur was called The House of the Mountain of the Universe, Borsippas tower was called The House of the Seven Guides of Heaven and Earth, and Larsas people knew theirs as The House of the

Link Between Heaven and Earth. The tower at Babel was referred to by the Babylonians themselves as The House of the Foundation of Heaven and Earth.211 The Lord said: It is as one people speaking the same Hebrew language they have begun to do this (11:6a). The rabbis teach that all their advantages, which they were using ungratefully, arose from the fact that they were one people and spoke one language. But this was only the beginning, only the first act of rebellion. More rebellion would follow and they would sin in many other ways as well. Then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them (11:6b). Two uncommon words are used here, both of which are found only where Job is responding to the Lord. He says: No plan of yours can be thwarted (Job 42:2). The first word is batzar, which means to thwart and is translated be impossible here. The second word is zamah, which means to purpose and is translated they plan to do. Both of these verses make the same point. In Job, nothing or nobody can restrain or thwart the workings of the Lord. And here,the Lord states that nothing will be able to restrain or thwart the workings of man unless his initial building project, a threat to the divine will and rule, is halted. The rabbis interpret this verse to mean with such unity they will enthrone idolatry for all Basic to everything was their ability to communicate with each other. Therefore He said: Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other (11:7). The Lord takes their scheme quite seriously. God cannot ignore this rebellion, for it is rebellion against Him.212 This is the second time He comes down, but this time He comes down to thwart mans purpose. By using the word us, it implies a plurality in the Godhead. Because Jews do not believe in the Trinity, the rabbis interpret this to mean the Lord was talking to the angels. But the purpose of their coming down was to confuse their language. Literally, the Hebrew reads: They will not hear a man, the language of his friend. In verse 3 they said to each other, Come lets make bricks and bake them thoroughly. But here they will not hear a man, the language of his friend. The point is that what they could do before, they will no longer be able to do. Knowing the evil in their hearts, Jehovah, the Lord of mercy moved to protect them from even more evil schemes. But why not simply topple the tower? Because that would solve the problem only temporarily. Towers are replaceable. Even if the people did not build another

time, so that no man will ever be able to turn to the worship or the true God.

tower, they could choose another equally arrogant project. The answer must be deeper than that. It is not the tower that must be done away with, but what makes possible the building of the tower an international language that provides communication among them. If this ability to communicate is removed, it is unlikely that that individuals will continue with their work.213 The next two verses show us the results. Not content toconfuse their language, the Lord, the One who always exists, scattered them from there all over the earth. It seems that much more than egotism on the part of mankind was involved. The Lord decided that as good as unity and harmony were, division and separation were better than collective sin and apostasy.214 This is how the dispersion of 10:5, 20, 31 and 32 was accomplished. What they feared actually happened. The tower was finished, but they stopped building the city because they could not understand each other (11:8). That is why it is called Babel because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world (11:9a). What we have here is a play on words. The Akkadian word translated as Babel literally means gateway to a god, and this was a fitting description of what the ziggurat was intended to do. But the word Babel sounds enough like the Hebrew word balal, which meansconfused, to provide an opportunity for a play on words by the writer. While the people called it babel, the gateway to god; God made abalal of it. From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth (11:9b).The rabbis teach that this indicates that they have no portion in the world to come. For whose sin was greater, theirs or that of the generation of the Flood? The latter did not plan a rebellion against God, whereas these did; and yet the former were drowned while these were saved! The generation of the Flood, however, robbed and quarreled with each other, while these were united and acted with brotherly love toward each other. This demonstrates how hateful dissension is and how great peace. Babel was the reverse of the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2). On that day the Holy Spirit restored order to the languages so that everyone together in one place understood each other. Today the Bible has gone out in more languages than any other book. It is still being translated into tongues and dialects and is being brought to literally hundreds of tribes throughout the world. The gospel is for all mankind and the purpose for speaking in tongues at Pentecost was to let the human

race know that the Lord had answered the Tower of Babel problem. He had a redemption for man now. The mission had been accomplished. It is no longer necessary for man to try to work out his salvation on his own. He can listen to Gods message and turn to Him. The gospel is for you, whoever you are and whatever language you speak. Its for you. Its for all the nations of the world. We are told in the final book of the Bible that there will be gathered into His presence a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language (Revelation 7:9).215 At that time the Lord says that He will restore to the nations a pure language, that they all may call on the name of the Lord for redemption and mercy and serve Him with one accord (Zephaniah 3:9).