Text: Genesis 11:1-9
1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. 2 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. 3 And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. 4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. 5 And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. 6 And the Lord said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. 7 Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. 8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. 9 Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.
After the flood event, God gave specific instructions to Noah and his sons to "be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth" (Gen. 9:1,7). In Genesis 10 we learn of the "generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth" (Gen. 10:1). These generations became "nations divided in the earth after the flood" (Gen. 10:32). They must have seen the ruins left by the receded waters from the flood event, and heard stories by its survivors – their grandparents, fathers, and uncles. Now they were given the opportunity to rebuild and repopulate the earth.
They decided to build "a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven" (v. 4). "The Lord came down to see the city and the tower" (v. 5). He concluded that as "they begin to do this" (v. 6), there would be nothing that would be "restrained from them, which they have imagined to do" (v. 6). Meaning, they would be devoid of any allegiance to God. "Let us make us a name" (v. 4), they said. They were seeking autonomy and self-aggrandizement which was contrary to the rulership of God. They had become proud and rebellious, making them subject to God's judgment. There was no gratitude in their hearts. So God "scattered them abroad" (v. 8) by "confound[ing] their language" (v. 7). They were no longer of "one language, and one speech" (v. 1).
We are often spared from life's destructive devices, because we belong to God. Yet we become so busy building earthly kingdoms, filling them with earthly possessions, and forget to simply say "thank you Lord." We are busy trying to make us a name that we forget the name that is above every name.
Deuteronomy 8:17-19 says, "And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish."
May the words "thank you Lord" flow from the abundance of our heart in perpetuity, for all that He has done for us.
Prayer: Dear God, thank you for sparing my life. Forgive me for not showing my gratitude to you. Sometimes I get busy with my own affairs that I fail to see your blessings. I praise you now for you have been good to me. Amen!