Genesis 11 - Tower of Babel

Genesis 11:1–9 (ESV)

1 Now the whole earth had one language and the same words.

2 And as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there.

3 And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar.

4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.”

5 And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built.

6 And the Lord said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them.

7 Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another’s speech.”

8 So the Lord dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city.

9 Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth. And from there the Lord dispersed them over the face of all the earth.

Introduction

Babel will be the last great judgment against man we see. We’ve seen:

Fall of Gen 3- Adam & Eve

Fall of Gen 6- Sons of God

Genesis 11:1 - Narrative

Genesis 11:1 “1 Now the whole earth had one language and the same words.”

CLASH W/ CH 10?!

Ch 10 Chronicles descendants of Japheth, Ham, and Shem, each closing w/ “These are the sons of ________, by their clans, their languages, their lands, and their nations

Genesis 10 closes with: “32 These are the clans of the sons of Noah, according to their genealogies, in their nations, and from these the nations spread abroad on the earth after the flood.”

Seems like two conflicting accounts of origins of nations/languages presented

SOLUTION

both being included hints it was seen as complementary- NOT conflicting

NOT CHRONOLOGICAL- most likely happened during events of Ch 10

Genesis 11:2 - Travels of Mankind

Genesis 11:2 “And as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there.”

“to the east” could provoke a reminder of banishment of the garden “to the east” and Cain’s banishment further east

plain is a broad valley thats typically flat

Genesis 11:3-4 - Humans Plan to Build City/Tower

Genesis 11:3-4 “And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.””

Using new technology to build what most scholars think is a Ziggurat

large mesopotamian temple

looked like a stepped pyramid

Deities thought to dwell in high places

why we see them on mountains and hills

no mountains in Mesopotamia so they built temple pyramids to “reach the gods”

allowed priest to get closer to gods

shrine/altar was on top

used for:

sacrifice

prayer

worship

What was their Goal?

force God down

usurp his authority by “making their name great”

VIOLATIONS of what God commanded:

1. make a name for themselves and

2. to prevent being dispersed throughout the earth

Genesis 11:5-7 - God Visits and Frustrates Their Efforts

Genesis 11:5–7 ESV

And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. And the Lord said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another’s speech.”

It doesn’t work, God still has to descend to see it!

shows how weak our great achievements are

Man is concerned about being scattered- God is concerned about what they will do

they would most likely have further collaborated on anti-god projects!

without communication its impossible for them to communicate and cooperate- they can’t understand each other!

Genesis 11:8 - Mankind Scattered/Building Stopped

Genesis 11:8 ESV

So the Lord dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city.

What they feared happened to them

Expulsion marks the end of the building

reminiscent of:

Eden

Cain

Genesis 11:9 - Meaning of Babel

Genesis 11:9 ESV

Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth. And from there the Lord dispersed them over the face of all the earth.