TEACHING NOTES ‌ Introduction Today we finished our series on Gen. 1-11, which is intended to be read as the introduction/prologue to the entire Bible. Gen. 10-11 describes the origin of the nations and how they were scattered to their various locations. This story has several implications and lessons to learn even for our modern culture. Let’s begin with a short review of what God wanted humanity to do. This will give us the context needed to understand why the author is telling us this story. ‌ Genesis 1:28 ESV 28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” ‌ Genesis 9:1 ESV 1 And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. ‌ Genesis 9:7 ESV 7 And you, be fruitful and multiply, increase greatly on the earth and multiply in it.” ‌ God’s Command = Multiply & Spread Out ‌ How to Read Genesis 10-11 ‌Gen. 10 = identifies 70 nations & locations ‌Gen. 11 = explains why the nations were dispersed ‌ Reading these two chapters of Genesis can be confusing if the reader assumes they are in chronological order. Genesis 10 describes the origins of 70 nations, where they were located, and their separate language. Then in Genesis 11 we’re told that “the whole earth had one language” and they are settled in one place. While this seems confusing, ancient authors often write stories that are out of chronological order. Genesis 10 is describing the nations and locations. Genesis 11 is describing how and why these nations were separated and spread out. ‌ Genesis 11:1–2 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. ‌ One language = Later in this story we learn that humanity having one language allows them to work together more efficiently. While this seems to be a good thing, sinful humanity uses this advantage to do evil more efficiently. ‌ People migrated from the east = This can also be translated, “people migrated eastward.” Earlier in Genesis, we learned that Adam and Eve were exiled from the garden eastward and lived in the east side of the region of Eden (Gen. 3:24). Then in Gen. 4:16 we learned that Cain is exiled even farther to the east away from Eden. In Gen. 8:5 we see that Noah’s ark settled in the mountains of Ararat, which is even farther northeast of Eden. Eventually, they migrated farther southeast to Shinar. ‌ The land of Shinar = In the Old Testament, this area is always associated with the enemies of God’s people (Assyria, Babylon). On a modern map, this is the area of Iraq. ‌ Settled there = Not a few families, but all of humanity settled in one place. This is the opposite of what God had commanded. The last person in Genesis to “settle” in one place was Cain (Gen. 4:16). ‌ Genesis 11:3 ESV 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. ‌ Bricks burned thoroughly = This was new technology for building. Burning the bricks makes them harder and more structurally sound. This civilization is becoming more advanced, which is portrayed as negative. ‌ Bitumen for mortar = There were and are still bitumen pits in the area of Shinar. Bitumen allows for a watertight seal. The idea here is that they are trying to build a city and a temple/ziggurat that is waterproof. Why? Because they knew the flood story. In fact, this ancient civilization had their own version of the flood story. It was discovered on a tablet called “The Epic of Gilgamesh.” This tablet tells us that this civilization were not worshiping Yahweh but another group of gods. ‌ Genesis 11:4 ESV 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.” ‌ Let us build ourselves a city = So far in Genesis, the last time someone built a city the result was deadly (see Gen. 4:17). When Cain settled down and built a city, murder and polygamy spread. ‌ A tower with its top in the heavens = Literally, “a ziggurat with its head in the heavens.” Archaeology tells us that this is not a tower but a type of stepped pyramid called a ziggurat. By reading ancient tablets from this area we learn that they are not trying to get up to the gods, but to get their gods to come down. This ziggurat functioned as a temple to the god Enki. To this day there are remains of an unfinished ziggurat that is believed to be the “tower” of Babel. ‌ Let us make a name for ourselves = Two previous passages tell us that this is a prideful and evil idea (see Gen. 4:17; 10:8-10). Building a fortified city and naming it after a human has been portrayed negatively up to this point in Genesis. Making a name (Heb. shem) for yourself has only appeared in stories of evil (Gen. 6:4; 10:8-9). Both the Nephilim and Nimrod were said to be men of great name. ‌ Lest we be dispersed = Humanity was commanded by God to multiply and spread out over the face of the whole earth. Now humanity has decided not to obey God and congregate in one place. ‌ Genesis 11:5–6 ESV 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. ‌ The LORD came down = In the Bible, this is rarely a good thing and most often a scene of judgment. Most of the time when God comes down destruction is soon to follow. In this story, God is coming down to see what humanity is working on. ‌ They are one people with one language = This level of unity is dangerous in a sinful world. Just as the time before the flood, humanity tends to work together for its own destruction. Only when we unite under the authority of God can unity be used for good. ‌ This is only the beginning = Before the flood God saw the inevitable outcome of humanity—that they were headed for extinction. Here again, God can see the outcome of humanity endeavors. They are building a massive temple to call down other gods to rule them. The last time that the sons of God came down, humanity was plunged into chaos. ‌ Nothing will be impossible for them = This level of unity will enable humanity to progress endlessly in their disobedience. This leads the reader to wonder what humanity could have accomplished, but we’ll never know because God stopped them. ‌ Genesis 11:7–8 ESV 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. ‌ Let us go down = Just as in Gen. 1:26, God is speaking in plural language. God is speaking to His heavenly hosts (the spiritual beings). Throughout the biblical story we find that God desires to partner with others to accomplish His plans. God partners with spiritual beings and human beings. This tells us that God desires to share His love and mission with others. God doesn’t do this because He needs help, but because He wants others to be involved. Why? Involvement cultivates relationship. ‌ Confuse their language = The Hebrew word for “confuse” is balal, which literally means to mix up and used as a metaphor for confusion. ‌ They left off building the city = Since they can no longer understand each other, they can no longer work together effectively. In the ancient city of Eridu, the oldest ruins of an unfinished ziggurat are still being studied. Archaeologists have learned that the Eridu ziggurat is the most ancient and was abandoned during the building process. It was supposed to be at least seven tiers high, but was never finished. The evidence shows that the ziggurat and the city was suddenly abandoned. ‌ Genesis 11:9 ESV 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. ‌ Babel/confused = In Hebrew, Babel is the same as Babylon. There is a wordplay here in Hebrew: Babel sounds like Balal which means to mix up or confuse. ‌ The LORD dispersed them = The very thing they were trying to avoid is exactly what happens to them. In Gen. 11:4 they said, “lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth” and then in Gen. 11:9 “from there the LORD dispersed them over the face of all the earth.” ‌ Our best plans, as well-intentioned as they seem, often take us exactly where we didn’t want to go. ‌ The New Testament Connection While many modern readers of the Bible miss the connection of the Tower of Babel to the New Testament, the book of Acts contains an interesting connection. In Acts 2, we’re told a story that seems to be a reversal of the events at Babel. ‌ Acts 2:1–2 ESV 1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. ‌ They were all together in one place = This sounds similar to Gen. 11, where people were gathered together in one place. ‌ A rushing wind from heaven = This is the sound of the Spirit of God coming down. In Gen. 11 God also came down. ‌ Acts 2:3–4 ESV 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. ‌ They began to speak in other tongues = These Galilean disciples begin to speak in other languages that they could not have known. At Babel, God confused their language to STOP them from communicating. At Pentecost, God gives the disciples the ability to speak in multiple languages so they CAN communicate. ‌ Acts 2:5–6 ESV 5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. ‌ From every nation = At Babel, the people were dispersed into 70 nations. At Pentecost, people from those same 70 nations have been brought back together. ‌ Acts 2:7–8 ESV 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? ‌ Acts 2:9–11 ESV 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” ‌ If we track down each of these places, we find that they are located in the same areas of the 70 nations in Gen. 10. ‌ Acts 2:12-36 describes Peter’s spontaneous sermon. Peter quotes from Joel 2:28-32, which ends with “it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” This connects back to Gen. 4:26 where Seth’s descendants begin to “call upon the name of Yahweh” for salvation. Peter declares that Jesus is the fulfilment of David’s prophesies from Psalm 16:8-11 and Psalm 110. ‌ Acts 2:37–38 ESV 37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ‌ Repent and be baptized = This is how we call on the name of the Lord for salvation. We turn away from a life of sin (repent) and we’re baptized to declare our allegiance to Christ. The result is forgiveness and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. ‌ Acts 2:39–40 ESV 39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” 40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” ‌ Acts 2:41 ESV 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. ‌ Conclusion ‌Today we respond by calling on the name of Jesus, declaring our faith and allegiance to Him through worship and Communion. ‌