#genesis 11

The Tower of Babel

Now the whole world had one language and a common form of speech. And as people journeyed eastward, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there.

And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” So they used brick instead of stone, and tar instead of mortar.

“Come,” they said, “let us build for ourselves a city with a tower that reaches to the heavens, that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of all the earth.”

Then the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the sons of men were building. And the LORD said, “If they have begun to do this as one people speaking the same language, then nothing they devise will be beyond them. Come, let Us go down and confuse their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.”

So the LORD scattered them from there over the face of all the earth, and they stopped building the city. That is why it is called Babel, for there the LORD confused the language of the whole world, and from that place the LORD scattered them over the face of all the earth.

This is the account of Shem. Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father of Arphaxad. And after he had become the father of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Arphaxad was 35 years old, he became the father of Shelah. And after he had become the father of Shelah, Arphaxad lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Shelah was 30 years old, he became the father of Eber. And after he had become the father of Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Eber was 34 years old, he became the father of Peleg. And after he had become the father of Peleg, Eber lived 430 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Peleg was 30 years old, he became the father of Reu. And after he had become the father of Reu, Peleg lived 209 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Reu was 32 years old, he became the father of Serug. And after he had become the father of Serug, Reu lived 207 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Serug was 30 years old, he became the father of Nahor. And after he had become the father of Nahor, Serug lived 200 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Nahor was 29 years old, he became the father of Terah. And after he had become the father of Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Terah was 70 years old, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

This is the account of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot. During his father Terah’s lifetime, Haran died in his native land, in Ur of the Chaldeans.

And Abram and Nahor took wives for themselves. Abram’s wife was named Sarai, and Nahor’s wife was named Milcah; she was the daughter of Haran, who was the father of both Milcah and Iscah. But Sarai was barren; she had no children.

And Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai the wife of Abram, and they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans for the land of Canaan. But when they arrived in Haran, they settled there. Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Haran. — Genesis 11 | The Reader’s Bible (BRB) The Reader’s Bible © 2020 by Bible Hub and Berean Bible. All rights Reserved. Cross References: Genesis 1:26; Genesis 6:4; Genesis 10:10; Genesis 10:22; Genesis 10:24; Genesis 10:32; Genesis 12:1; Genesis 12:4; Genesis 14:10; Genesis 15:7; Genesis 16:1; Genesis 17:15; Genesis 18:21; Numbers 31:40; Joshua 24:2; Ezra 1:9; Psalm 55:9; Amos 4:7; Luke 1:51; Luke 3:34; Acts 7:2; Acts 7:4

They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.” 

But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. 

The Tower of Babel

1 And the whole earth is of one language, and of the same words, 2 and it comes to pass, in their journeying from the east, that they find a valley in the land of Shinar and dwell there; 3 and they each say to his neighbor, “Give help, let us make bricks, and burn [them] thoroughly”: and the brick is to them for stone, and the bitumen has been to them for mortar. 4 And they say, “Give help, let us build for ourselves a city and tower with its head in the heavens, and make for ourselves a name, lest we be scattered over the face of all the earth.” 5 And YHWH comes down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men have built; 6 and YHWH says, “Behold, the people [is] one, and one language [is] to them all, and this it has dreamed of doing; and now, nothing is restrained from them of that which they have purposed to do. 7 Give help, let us go down there and confuse their language, so that a man will not understand the language of his companion.” 8 And YHWH scatters them from there over the face of all the earth, and they cease to build the city; 9 therefore [one] has called its name Babel, for there YHWH has confused the language of all the earth, and from there YHWH has scattered them over the face of all the earth.

10 These [are] the generations of Shem: Shem [is] a son of one hundred years, and begets Arphaxad two years after the flood. 11 And Shem lives after his begetting Arphaxad five hundred years, and begets sons and daughters.

12 And Arphaxad has lived thirty-five years [[or one hundred and thirty-five years]], and begets Salah. 13 And Arphaxad lives after his begetting Salah four hundred and three years [[or four hundred and thirty years]], and begets sons and daughters.

14 And Salah has lived thirty years [[or one hundred and thirty years]], and begets Eber. 15 And Salah lives after his begetting Eber four hundred and three years [[or three hundred and thirty years]], and begets sons and daughters.

16 And Eber lives thirty-four years [[or one hundred and thirty-four years]], and begets Peleg. 17 And Eber lives after his begetting Peleg four hundred and thirty years [[or three hundred and seventy years]], and begets sons and daughters.

18 And Peleg lives thirty years [[or one hundred and thirty years]], and begets Reu. 19 And Peleg lives after his begetting Reu two hundred and nine years, and begets sons and daughters.

20 And Reu lives thirty-two years [[or one hundred and thirty-two years]], and begets Serug. 21 And Reu lives after his begetting Serug two hundred and seven years, and begets sons and daughters.

22 And Serug lives thirty years [[or one hundred and thirty years]], and begets Nahor. 23 And Serug lives after his begetting Nahor two hundred years, and begets sons and daughters.

24 And Nahor lives twenty-nine years [[or seventy-nine years]], and begets Terah. 25 And Nahor lives after his begetting Terah one hundred and nineteen years [[or one hundred and twenty-nine years]], and begets sons and daughters.

26 And Terah lives seventy years, and begets Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

27 And these [are] the generations of Terah: Terah has begotten Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran has begotten Lot; 28 and Haran dies in the presence of Terah his father, in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldees. 29 And Abram and Nahor take to themselves wives; the name of Abram’s wife [is] Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife [is] Milcah, daughter of Haran, father of Milcah, and father of Iscah. 30 And Sarai is barren—she has no child.

31 And Terah takes his son Abram, and Lot, son of Haran, his son’s son, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, wife of his son Abram, and they go out with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go toward the land of Canaan; and they come to Haran, and dwell there. 32 And the days of Terah are two hundred and five years, and Terah dies in Haran. — Genesis 11 | Literal Standard Version (LSV) The Literal Standard Version Bible Copyright © 2020 by Covenant Press. Cross References: Genesis 1:26; Genesis 6:4; Genesis 10:10; Genesis 10:22; Genesis 10:24; Genesis 10:32; Genesis 12:1; Genesis 12:4; Genesis 14:10; Genesis 15:7; Genesis 16:1; Genesis 17:15; Genesis 18:21; Numbers 31:40; Joshua 24:2; Ezra 1:9; Psalm 55:9; Amos 4:7; Luke 1:51; Luke 3:34; Acts 7:2; Acts 7:4

Start reading the Bible today -- there is no better time, and there's no reason to wait. Set aside a specific time each day. Set your schedule and then stick to it. Mornings are great, but feel free to use any time that works consistently for you. Read the Bible for the sake of learning, not simply to accomplish your next reading. Say a short prayer to God before you begin, asking the Holy Spirit to give you wisdom and understanding, then be refreshed by the words you read!

So "Babel" doesn't mean "unintelligible speech," like a lot of people think. (Further research on the etymology of the word "babble" suggests that this word is Proto-Germanic and may be onomatopoeic in origin. The similarity between "Babel" and "babble" in both pronunciation and word origin is just a funny coincidence.)

The Tower of Babel was considered the gate of the gods. Well, considering the Biblical account of the Tower of Babel, that actually makes a lot of sense:

"And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven;" Genesis 11:4a

And no, they weren't trying to build a tower to reach the stars or whatever. If you know anything about ancient history, you know they were genius builders. They knew physics, they knew it was impossible to build a tower that tall, especially with nothing but mud brick and "slime for mortar" (Genesis 11:3). The most likely answer is that they were building a temple, or possibly an observatory, probably in the shape of a ziggurat (a stepped pyramid).

But here's the thing: there's more to the mystery of Babylon (Revelation 17:5) than just its beginnings. I think that what started at the Tower of Babel will be finished by the Antichrist.

So, according to Genesis 11, God stopped the building of Babel by confusing the languages. The story that I always heard growing up was that everyone probably went and found people who spoke the same new language as them, and they went and settled somewhere new.

I saw a recording of a sermon a while back, I don't remember who it was by, where the preacher said that he saw Pentecost as God's way of fixing what was broken at Babel. You know, because of the speaking in tongues thing. I wish I could remember exactly how he said it, because it really made sense to me.

Anyway. The other day, as I was grumbling to myself- not for the first time- about how miserable the world has become since we became "connected" because of the Internet, it hit me: that's the point. Satan can't do anything but copy, right? And he also can't just let God be God- I mean, that's his thing, it's the whole reason sin exists in the first place. So, of course, Satan also wants to copy the whole thing about unity in the body of Christ. But Satan doesn't have a Holy Spirit to unify people with. So... he's creating one.

Now, I'm not suggesting that Satan is responsible for the Internet. From what I've heard, there were just so many incredible "coincidences" that all happened around the same general time, and they led to invention of the world wide web. Satan can't really pull off a successful "coincidence," at least not one with lasting effects, and not without copying.

But. I think we can all agree that the Internet is similar to a knife: a wonderful tool when used properly, and one of the deadliest weapons available when its power is abused.

Many people, myself included, believe the Antichrist will use the Internet to bring about the Mark of the Beast. And if so, then Revelation 17:5 makes even more sense:

And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon The Great, The Mother Of Harlots And Abominations Of The Earth.

Babel was the place where the whole of mankind unified together to try to "build a tower to reach unto heaven," whatever that actually means. And the Babylon of the end times will lead to the unification of all mankind under the Antichrist:

And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.  These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.  These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful. Revelation 17:12-14

For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. Revelation 18:3

And the rest of Revelation 18 says that THE ENTIRE EARTH will mourn over Babylon's destruction. This only makes sense if Babylon's power is based through the Internet.

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[a] the language of all the earth. And from there the Lord dispersed them over the face of all the earth.

10 These are the generations of Shem. When Shem was 100 years old, he fathered Arpachshad two years after the flood. 11 And Shem lived after he fathered Arpachshad 500 years and had other sons and daughters.

12 When Arpachshad had lived 35 years, he fathered Shelah. 13 And Arpachshad lived after he fathered Shelah 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

14 When Shelah had lived 30 years, he fathered Eber. 15 And Shelah lived after he fathered Eber 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

16 When Eber had lived 34 years, he fathered Peleg. 17 And Eber lived after he fathered Peleg 430 years and had other sons and daughters.

18 When Peleg had lived 30 years, he fathered Reu. 19 And Peleg lived after he fathered Reu 209 years and had other sons and daughters.

20 When Reu had lived 32 years, he fathered Serug. 21 And Reu lived after he fathered Serug 207 years and had other sons and daughters.

22 When Serug had lived 30 years, he fathered Nahor. 23 And Serug lived after he fathered Nahor 200 years and had other sons and daughters.

24 When Nahor had lived 29 years, he fathered Terah. 25 And Nahor lived after he fathered Terah 119 years and had other sons and daughters.

26 When Terah had lived 70 years, he fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

27 Now these are the generations of Terah. Terah fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran fathered Lot. 28 Haran died in the presence of his father Terah in the land of his kindred, in Ur of the Chaldeans. 29 And Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran the father of Milcah and Iscah. 30 Now Sarai was barren; she had no child.

31 Terah took Abram his son and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram's wife, and they went forth together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan, but when they came to Haran, they settled there. 32 The days of Terah were 205 years, and Terah died in Haran.