By Derek Westmoreland
Senior Pastor, Hopewell Baptist Church, Savannah
Focal Passage: Genesis 11:1-9
It is a humbling situation (i.e. foreign land) when you cannot verbally communicate with those around you. In Genesis 11:1-9 we find God responding to the rebellion of man by confusing their language. As a result of what happened that day, we now have well over 6,000 languages on planet earth.
I. The nature of man is rebellion (vv. 1-4) In verses 1-2 we read that the entire population of the earth traveled together to the plain of Shinar. The people settling in Shinar, was in direct rebellion to God’s command in Genesis 9:1 to “fill the earth.” In verse 3 we learn that they used brick for stone and rock for mortar. When we arrive at verse 4 we find the three motivations they had for building the city and the tower.
The first motivation was self-fulfillment. They built for themselves. (v. 4) They said, “Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven.” Now let us not misinterpret the phrase; “a tower whose top will reach into heaven,” for the phrase does not refer to heaven where God is; but to the sky.
We see the same use of the word “heaven” in Deuteronomy 1:28 where it says …“The people are bigger and taller than we; the cities are large and fortified to heaven.” The fortified cities in Deuteronomy 1 did not reach God in heaven. They reached into the sky. In Genesis 11:4, they were building a tower that reached high into the sky. Secondly, it is important to realize that the tower was not built to reach God. When I was in Sunday School as a child, I was taught that they were trying to build a tower to heaven; that they wanted to go to heaven their way rather than God’s way. Unfortunately, this is not entirely accurate. They didn’t even acknowledge that God existed. Their intent was not to earn their way to heaven. Their intent was to feed their own egos.
Their second motivation was fame. They built to make a name for themselves. In verse 4 they said … let us make for ourselves a name. The tower was built as a monument, as a testimony of their greatness, as a landmark for future generations to admire. We, as people of God must be careful not to seek to make a name for ourselves but instead seek to promote the name of Christ.
Their third motivation was security. They built in order to stay together. Verse 4 records, They said, “Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, …otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.” As I shared earlier Genesis 9:1 says …“fill the earth.” The people did multiply but they resisted God’s mandate to “fill the earth.” They believed staying together would make them more powerful and would provide security. They chose their way over God’s way.
II. The nature of God is intervention (vv. 5-9). Verse 5 says, “The LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.” Every biblical instance where “God comes down;” is significant! In verse 6 The Lord said, “Behold, they are one people, and they all have the same language. And this is what they began to do, and now nothing which they purpose to do will be impossible for them.” This verse reveals that earth once had a one world system. There used to be only one culture, one people, and one language; and it didn’t turn out well. They thought it was about them when it was about Him! In verse 7, how does God respond to the rebellion of man? He says, “Come, let Us (plural) go down and there confuse their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.” The people said, “let us build.” The Lord said, “let us (plural) … confuse.”
I’m glad God is an active God. He doesn’t let us go on wallowing in sin. He takes action. The inclination of man is rebellion but the inclination of God is intervention! Verses 8-9 reveal that God intervened by confusing the language of the people which led them to scatter. Due to God confusing the people, there is no tower today.
No one is taking a vacation to see the Tower of Babel. What man meant for glorifying himself is now an afterthought. They wanted to be famous but the only thing they are famous for is sin. And the reason we have thousands of languages and dialects today is because God confused the people on that day. When the people refused to scatter, God forced them to scatter.
God was merciful that day for He did not give them what they deserved! They deserved death, but they were only scattered and because of that grace we now have many tribes, tongues, and nations!
