In the Shadow of Babel
In the Beginning - Part 7
Sunday, October 3, 2021
Genesis 11:1-9
From these the island-nations were divided into their own countries, each according to their languages and their clans within their nations.
Genesis 10:5
Listen to this week’s sermon here:
Most people assume that the separation of languages and culture came as a result of God’s curse at the Tower of Babel. This story has often been used to diminish other cultures in the name of promoting the unity God desires. The problem, of course, is that most of us assume that everyone should be unified around our own language, culture, and beliefs and the rest must be the inferior ones that were scattered. Let’s be honest, how many of us would feel comfortable with global peace and unity if it meant we all had to learn Mandarin Chinese instead of requiring the rest of the world to speak English?
The incident at Babel, however, occurs in Genesis 11. Long before that event, the world had already been divided into diverse nations, languages and cultures. Reading the account of Noah’s descendants in Genesis 10, we find this refrain repeated three times in verse 5, 20 and 31… “each according to their clans, their languages, their lands, and their nations.”
What if diversity of language and culture was part of God’s plan all along? What if it wasn’t a curse, but a restoration of God’s intent that was thwarted when the people began to use a single language to dominate the rest of the world and seek the power of God for themselves. Regardless of whether languages developed instantly as in the story or over a long period of cultural adaptation, the message is the same: diversity is a good thing.
When we look at the early colonization of many nations throughout the world, we find the common language of the invading empire often used as weapon against the so-called “uncivilized” indigenous people. So tribal peoples were forced to learn the languages of their oppressors just to survive. It was rarely the other way around. Conquerors generally don’t bother to learn the language or culture of those whose land they are taking.
What if the division of languages to stop the construction of Babel wasn’t really a curse at all?
What if it was God’s way of making us humble, of reminding us that every tribe, tongue and nation is equally valuable in their Creator’s eyes?
How have we used common language, culture, or other distinctive traits to isolate ourselves or exclude others who are different?
Maybe, just maybe, the point of Babel is not to cast out the “other”, but to let the “other” be themselves and begin to appreciate and learn from our differences rather than trying to make everyone else like us. Only then will we catch a glimpse of God’s kingdom, where people from every tribe, tongue and nation bow before the throne and worship the Lamb of God, each in their own language.