“Now the whole earth had one language and one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt there. Then they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar. And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.”” (v1-4)
It is logical that all spoke the same language. After all they came from one family. They travelled eastwards and found a plain in the land of Shinar (Babylon) and stayed there. They decided to make and build with bricks. Prior to this they had used stone. They used asphalt for mortar. These materials have found to have been common in Babylon by archaeologists. The materials used show that they did not believe God’s promise to never again flood as they made it waterproof.
They were disobeying God. They wanted to make a name for themselves, and the top of the tower would be in the heavens. They were concerned that they would be scattered over the earth. Archaeologists have found towers, and one ancient Greek historian said it was still there in his day.
It is interesting to note (v5-9) that however high they had built, God had to come down. He came to see what they had built. This is another of those statements – like when God asked ‘where are you’ etc. There is no doubt that God knew what they had done and where they were up to, but He came on the scene to show His presence. A conversation had already taken place in heaven – “And the LORD said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. “Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.”” This is clearly between the Godhead, the Trinity.
They spoke one language, and The LORD confused their language. A simple step but showing God’s mighty power. They wouldn’t be able to understand each other, they would be confused. God could have demolished the tower but He simply made it so they couldn’t understand each other.
The LORD scattered them, the very thing they were trying to avoid, and they ceased building. The name of the place was called Babel because of confusion of language. Reminds me of the word we often use – ‘babel’ or ‘babble’- confused noise. Languages can be complex, but most linguists say that they all come from one original.
“Therefore, its name is called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth; and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.”
Verses 10-25 continue with the line of Shem through to Abram. Abram came through the offspring of Shem’s son Arphaxad which was the line of the Messiah, the Lord Jesus and is mentioned again in Luke 3. It initially runs through to Terah the father of Abram. “Now Terah lived seventy years, and begot Abram, Nahor, and Haran. This is the genealogy of Terah: Terah begot Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Haran begot Lot. And Haran died before his father Terah in his native land, in Ur of the Chaldeans” (v26-28).
Abram (later changed to Abraham) is first mentioned here but is mentioned over three hundred times in the Bible. Perhaps the most famous of the men in in the Old Testament. He occupies about thirty per cent of the book of Genesis.
When we read of Abraham, we are clearly aware that he was human. His thoughts and actions were indicative of a culture whose morality at times may shock us. Abraham was by no means perfect, but he had great faith in God and is even referred to as ‘the friend of God’ (James 2:23). What matters is not how great our faith is but who our faith is in, our Great God.
God does not hold up Abraham as some sort of hero. He is portrayed honestly, and his sins and faults are recorded. He is sinful, like all of us, and we desperately need forgiveness and redemption. He was merely a man, but a man whose life was anchored in God.
Abram married Sarah but she was barren. It seems contradictory that Abram means father, but he had no children, however, this was all in the plan and purpose of God. Nahor married Micah, his cousin and they had children. (v29,30)
We now come to the well-known account of Abram leaving Ur of the Chaldeans and setting out on his journey, although at this point Abram had no idea where he was bound for. Initially it was Terah who set out with his family, Abram and Sarai, and Lot, his grandson, to go to Canaan. They arrived at Harlan and stayed there for a while, but Terah died there at the age of two hundred and five (31,32). They came from a family of idol worshipers. Maybe they were trying to get away from that, certainly if Abram had faith in God, he would certainly have wanted to do that.
When Abram received God’s call he was still in Ur. It seems that Abram is only partially obedient to God’s call to go to a land which God would show him (Genesis 12:1) but maybe, he latched on to Terah’s idea to move. I say this because he was told to leave his family and country. It was a big step to take, and problems did arise because he wasn’t fully obedient.
It is important that we obey fully what God tells us, but it doesn’t say it would be easy. Thy start out for Canaan with good intentions but soon stopover in Haran. Haran means barren or parched, and Terah means delay, so it seems that Abram was guilty of delaying in a barren place. This can happen to us especially if we don’t fully obey The Lord.
