Note: Due to a rather hectic start to this year, I am slightly behind on these postings. To remedy this, I will increase this week's postings in order to get back on schedule. Thank you.
Morning Reading from Noach:
Genesis 11:1-32
This morning's reading can easily be divided into two parts. The first is the account of the tower of Babel. The second is the genealogical record of the line of Shem. While these two parts of Genesis 11 may seem vastly different in style and content, the lessons they teach us are consistent with themes seen in earlier passages.
As Genesis 11 opens, we see the people of the world returning to sin once again. At this time in history they speak the same language (Gen. 11:1) and are unified in purpose (Gen. 11:4). They determine to build for themselves a gigantic tower in order to make a name for themselves (Gen. 11:4). So what is the sin here? What could be so terrible about building a large tower? Given that the motivation for this construction project was a sinful pride, there was great potential for this to result in other sinful practices, and on a grand scale.
To begin with, in Genesis 11:4 where it says the people desire to make a name for themselves, my Bible has a cross reference on the word "name" to Genesis 6:4 and 2 Samuel 8:13. Both verses describe someone making a name for themselves in reference to domination over or killing of other people. In other words, the tower builders weren't just looking for fame, they were seeking power.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary further points out that part of their motivation for building the tower was to avoid being scattered abroad (Gen. 11:4), which appears to be in direct disobedience to G-d's command in Genesis 9:1 to "multiply and fill the earth."
Thus in verse 7 we see a demonstration of G-d's power in confusing their speech so they were no longer able to communicate with one another. My Bible cross references this with Exodus 4:11, in which the L-rd says to Moses "Who has made man's mouth?...Is it not I, the L-rd?" Another verse that springs to my mind at this time is Proverbs 16:9, which states "The mind of man plans his way, but the L-rd directs his steps." Ultimately the very project mankind used to avoid being scattered resulted in a punishment that caused them to scatter across the earth.
Now we come to the list of the descendants of Shem. Like other ancestral lists we've seen, it gives an account of the family line down through the generations, including some women (again, highly unusual for that time and place in history). In verse 31 it also gives a little more information about a man named Terah, who is the father of the patriarch Abraham (verse 25). It mentions that Terah took his family and left Ur to settle in the land of Canaan. However, there is another mention of Terah in the Bible. In Joshua 24:2 we learn that Terah served other gods. So Abram, who had a father (Terah) who worshiped other gods and lived among people who worshiped other gods, eventually becomes Abraham - the patriarch of the children of Israel and worshiper of the one true G-d. A change like this could only be possible through G-d's boundless mercy and incredible redemptive power.
My prayer today is that I would put away any pride and allow myself to be used by G-d for His purposes.
Next: Haftorah: Isaiah 54:1-55:5
No comments:
Post a Comment