Tower of Babel: Now the whole earth

had one language and one speech. 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” (Genesis 11:1,4) Research has shown, probably because we are all different, that when groups get too big they tend to fragment.  Nevertheless as Ross comments on this section of Genesis “All generations of humanity, including our own, have looked to political peace and unity among all peoples as the solution to humanity’s ills” (Questions in Genesis p.169).  

Over and over, again people have dreamed of utopia (a place of ideal perfection especially in laws, government, and social conditions). The problem,  as history attests, is such unity can only be maintained by force. Ross again “in fact so-called peace and unity can lead to greater evil and suffering than conflict and disunity. And the reason is that evil people driven by greed and power always try to exploit social peace and unity to rob and oppress others.  Under the “peace and unity” of the Soviet Union for example,  16 million civilians and soldiers were killed.

Utopia would be possible only if humanity was basically good. But why do saying such as “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” make so much sense? An essential step in my conversion came with the realization of the wickedness of my own heart (Jeremiah 17:9).  I like Winston Churchill's quote “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.”  It's only the worst form if you compare it to unobtainable and unworkable Utopia.

In his Biblical series lectures, Jordon Peterson paraphrases verse four as “we will make something so great it will compete with heaven itself. This means it will take the place of God.” It starts with “let's make a name for ourselves” (verse 4). Ross comments that this is start of humanism.  Peterson again says that if we give God the benefit of the doubt by assuming that He is Good, then He must have a reason for declaring “Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech” (verse 7).  Humanism is the philosophical stance that emphasizes the value and agency of human beings, individually and collectively. But if humanism without God could ever work, then why is “man's inhumanity to man” so common?

God promised in the covenant to Noah that He would never again wipe out all humanity, I can't help thinking He might have been tempted to,  on numerous occasions. What is interesting to me, is that no empire has stood forever,  Scripture teaches  that God intervenes in said empire when He has had enough (Genesis 15:16). He is, I believe, determined one way or another to show the living “that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will, and sets over it the lowest of men” (Daniel 4:17).

Father, I am just waking up to the knowledge that we are to be co-labourers with You in bringing the Kingdom to earth, as it is in heaven. It's not just about my inner peace! We're not to use the worlds weapons Lord (2 Corinthians 10:4), and I don't know what it is supposed to look like, but I do know it starts with repentance and prayer (1 Chronicles 7:14). Equip us Lord and guide us, and bring the fullness of the Kingdom in Jesus Name Amen