And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. 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. Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another's speech.” So the Lord dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. 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. – Genesis 11:5-9
As mentioned previously, the rebellious nature of man drew special attention from God. This passage read from a modernistic perspective is often quoted to demonstrate the fickle and finite nature of the Christian God. For if such a God is worried over an ancient city, how must He feel when watching the modern age transcend language barriers and build even greater things?
The problem with this modern interpretation is that it ignores the fact that it is the visitation of God the Holy Spirit that begins the restoration of mankind (Acts 2:1-13). And it was God’s desire and command for man to succeed in developing culture and society (Gen 1:26-28; 9:17). However, none of this was meant to be done as rebellion against God. For without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb 11:6).
This story stood as a warning to Israel that God would scatter them too if they disobeyed Him (Deut 4:27; 28:64). It was a warning unheeded but eventually reversed in the “second Abraham”, Jesus Christ.
