Plan A PLAN B: THE BLOODLINE OF REDEMPTION

Transcription

1 Plan A PLAN B: THE BLOODLINE OF REDEMPTION

2 Genesis 11 Rebellion Again The Tower of Babel

3 The events of Genesis 11 actually took place before the listing of nations in chapter 10 was recorded. Nimrod, the founder of Babel, and most likely ring leader of this doomed tower comes very early in the records. There is also a reference under Peleg that his life was marked mostly by the division of the earth, a reference to the dividing of the peoples into various languages at Babel.

4 Only a few verses of chapter 11 are dedicated to the events regarding this tower of rebellion. The remainder of the chapter provides the remaining genealogical record of Shem, son of Noah, and father of the line of God s people, Israel, and the Messiah. We have already covered the remaining verses of chapter 11 as they pertained to the line of Shem.

5 1 Now the whole earth had one language and 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 Then they said to one another, Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly. They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar. 4 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. 5 But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.

6 6 And the LORD said, Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. 7 Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another s speech. 8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city. 9 Therefore its name is called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth; and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.

7 This Biblical event has been artistically portrayed many times, but the most well known is the one by painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1563).

8 We cannot underestimate the importance of this chapter for a number of reasons. Although only 9 verses give details about this event, it is critical we know it and its implications to fully understand ourselves and the Plan of God. This event in our history reveals our bent for rebellion. It is the second major rebellion against our Creator. The first happened very shortly after our creation in the garden and got progressively worse until God had to destroy all life on this planet, with a only a handful of survivors.

9 At Babel, we see another major rebellion where God must intervene to keep His plan on track. We should never think of God as being caught by surprise by the sinful behavior of His creation. He knew of these things in advance and already had a plan. OUR GOD IS SOVEREIGN and omniscient! Do not underestimate the importance of this event, despite the very short telling of it in scripture. We need to understand that both major rebellions, pre-flood and post-flood, reveal that man s natural tendency is to be in defiance of God. Man s nature has not changed.

10 Without Elohim intervening in both major rebellions, there would have been no way to save mankind. We should remember that this is true in our own lives as well. Without the Father s loving intervention in each of our lives, we would be lost. In addition to reminding us of our natural evil defiance of Elohim, this event is incredibly important to know today because it is happening again in our time and will play a major role in end time events. (more on this in moment) There are also several other important pieces of information found in this passage.

11 1 Now the whole earth had one language and 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.

12 Everyone on earth at this time spoke one language. It is probable that language was Hebrew. They would have spoken and understood the words in the same way. Since God spoke to the prophets (including Moses) in Hebrew (and all original manuscripts are in Hebrew) it is likely that Hebrew was preserved in the line of Shem, and down through Eber ( the father of all the children of Eber from Genesis 10, and from which we get the word Hebrew ). All evidence points to the fact that Hebrew was the original language of earth, and likely the one God spoke the entire creation into existence.

13 Migration of the descendants of Noah and his three sons has most likely been limited at this point. Nimrod is the son of Cush, son of Noah, so it may only be a few generations of people. We are told that the division occurred during the life of Peleg, who was born approximately 100 years after the flood. However, with still lengthy lifespans, this could have been a significant number of people, but not enough time to spread out across the continent.

14 They found a plain in the land of Shinar Exact migration directions are unknown here. The ark landed on Mt. Ararat, north and slightly east of the plains of Shinar. The mountains of this region would probably not have supported the kind of agrarian existence needed for those times (raising crops, livestock), so they spread down into more fertile areas, apparently eventually arriving in the land of Shinar.

15 Shinar is the region of Babylon in scripture. This is important because man chose this area to live, but God had other ideas. This is the place of major rebellion, and also the place God intervened again to call one man out of this region (Ur of the Chaldees, aka Shinar ) to further His Plan.

16 3 Then they said to one another, Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly. They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar. 4 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. Doesn t this sound so innocent? What a great idea! But buried in these words are the roots of rebellion against El Elon, the Most High God.

17 And behind it is the diligent work of our enemy who is always looking to turn man s hearts away from God. They figured a way to do it themselves. They didn t have much stone in the plains, so they must have learned how to bake bricks and bond them together with something like tar. The first building blocks of the ancient world! Let us make a name for ourselves We don t want to be God s children any longer. We want to do what we want. We want to do things our way, not His. Sounds sadly familiar. It is what is in our own hearts without God s intervention.

18 Lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth. They didn t know God s plan at this time, but they feared they would lose their power to the people by being scattered (as they grew in number) so they needed something to focus them together. This alone was rebellion. Some have said that in these words is the desire to worship the heavens, or worship the creation but not the Creator. (or even to reach the heavens without God) Others have said it represents their desire to survive any future floods (by being as high above the ground as possible.)

19 All we are told, as far as their intent, was to build something that was a testament to their human greatness and would serve to keep them from going forth and populating the earth, as God intended. Bottom line, they were acting on their own, apart from God s will. Given what we know about these structures in the ancient world, they are all associated with pagan worship. We know the founder of this city was Nimrod, and perhaps he was largely instrumental in building this tower. We know he was not a godly man, nor did he wish to do God s will. He was a mighty rebel before YHVH. That is enough to know!

20 One commentator put it this way: "A true son of Adam, man wants to be God Himself. He wants to run the world in his own way. He wants to put himself at the center of his civilization on a pedestal inscribed with his own name: `Glory to MAN in the highest! Nothing much has changed, has it? The nature of man and his desire to rebel is the same today. I can t put what was going on here at Babel into any better words than this commentary.

21 COMMENTARY: The children of men who wrought this wickedness in God's sight were clearly infected with the US virus - the pride, arrogance, and conceit of the people standing starkly obvious in this cryptic account of it. Their rebellion against God is inherent in their stated purpose of avoiding their being "scattered," a scattering that God had commanded in the original great commission to "multiply and replenish the earth." Their self-centeredness and anti-god determination reveal with surgical accuracy the fundamental aspects of paganism.

22 The rapid increase and degeneration of paganism were also recounted by Paul. It began by man worshipping himself (or, an image of himself), but it swiftly moved downward in cycles until men were worshipping reptiles and creeping things! Thus, we understand the events of Babel as man's SUBSTITUTION of himself for God as the object of worship and devotion.

23 5 But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. 6 And the LORD said, Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. 7 Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another s speech.

24 We know God does not need to come down to see what man is up to! This is an anthropomorphism or attributing human things to God. It is merely a way of stating how terrible the situation was. Instead of remaining seated on His throne, God had to come down. It s kind of like a parent saying, don t make me get up! That s exactly what our Parent did here!

25 ..now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. This does not mean man can do anything, or that he can rival God. It means God knew if He let things be as they were, true knowledge of Him and His plan of redemption would be lost. Of course, God knew of this and had a plan. He knew He would establish a bloodline of redemption by calling Abraham and eventually building a people who would be His witness. But it wasn t time yet.

26 The people needed to do what God told them to do from the very beginning to spread out over the entire earth. He has a very precise plan which He executes just as precisely. All these things, such as the flood, the termination of the tower and the scattering after the rebellion, are NOT COURSE CORRECTIONS! God does not need to correct Himself. These were all part of the plan. Above all else, remember GOD IS SOVERIEGN!!!

27 Perhaps this is what God knew man would do when they united as one. This is labeled the digital tower of Babel. We are building it today. Another tower of confusion!

28 Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another s speech. And of course, this verse is used often as evidence of the plural nature of Elohim (a plural word!). Who is He (YHVH) talking to? Who is the US? He is not muttering to Himself, frustrated with mankind. This verse is given to us as a gift, to see His plurality. It does, of course, include the Son, Yeshua, by whom all things were created, including these maddening humans! How long-suffering is our God!!!

29 Just how did He confuse the speech? We love to ask questions like this, but frankly, we don t know because we are not told. There is nothing impossible to God. He works in mysterious ways, well beyond our comprehension! Can you imagine how truly confusing that would be? A French poet (du Bartas) once tried to capture this scene. This is a poem written over 500 years ago, and paraphrased in English

30 Some speak between the teeth, some in the nose, Some in the throat their words do ill dispose - "Bring me," quoth one, "a trowel, quickly, quick!" One brings him up a hammer. "Hew this brick," Another bids; and then they cleave a tree; "Make fast this rope," and then they let it flee. One calls for planks, another mortar lacks; They bear the first a stone, the last an axe. One would have spikes, and him a spade they give; Another asks a saw, and gets a sieve.

31 Thus crossly crost, they prate and point in vain: What one hath made another mars again These masons then, seeing the storm arrived Of God's just wrath, all weak and heart-deprived, Forsake their purpose, and, like frantic fools, Scatter their stuff and tumble down their tools.

32 One of few rare photographs unearthed of the workers at the fated Tower of Babel

33 8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they ceased building the city. 9 Therefore its name is called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth.

34 So God stepped in to do what He originally told them to do to scatter across the face of the earth. This was part of His plan, and He stepped in to ensure it would happen. Perhaps that is why we are given this information twice in this passage. All work ceased on this tower of evil intent. Apparently no one picked up the pieces to try to rebuild it, though there is an effort today to do just that. But that effort will have no more success than this ancient attempt to remove God for man s destiny.

35 Therefore its name is called Babel There is a lot of dialogue about this word. Babel does mean confusion in Hebrew (from balal), so it seems fitting considering this event. Some have said it means gateway to the gods from an Akkadian (that region) word babili. Some say the word has additional meanings in other tongues, but then, there WERE NO OTHER TONGUES at that time! The name means confusion!

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41 Assumed site (arrow) of Tower of Babel in 2004 during Military occupation Iraq war. Euphrates River on left. Babylon proper above the arrow.

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43 Other than the obvious awareness that God is Sovereign and man is by nature in rebellion against Him, we should have knowledge of this event because of what is currently happening in these times. There is much talk about rebuilding the Tower of Babel and making it a tourist attraction. Wow, who wouldn t want to view the place called Confusion? But other than this obvious physical attempt to rebuild this tower, there is much more going on

44 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited

45 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited The European Union makes no attempt to hide its obvious association with the Tower of Babel. This is a recent poster with a mock tower and the slogan Europe: Many Tongues, One Voice. Many believe the EU will grow and morph into the revived Roman Empire of end times. There is much discussion/controversy over this. Notice the 12 stars here.

46 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited

47 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited EU s Parliament Building in Strasbourg, France. An open, obvious association with Babel. Many see this as an act of defiance of God.

48 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited European Union Parliament Building Brussels Always a tower

49 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited Some people see the rise of big business as a form of the Tower of Babel. Man s attempt to make it without God.

50 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited Revelation 17 The European Union is also associated with another Biblical figure that represents Babylon The Harlot on the Beast Mystery Babylon

51 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited THE LEGEND OF EUROPA In Greek mythology Europa was mother of King Minos of Crete, a woman with Phoenician origin of high lineage, for whom continent Europe was named. The story of her abduction by Zeus in the form of a white bull was a Cretan story; but most of the lovestories concerning Zeus originated from more ancient tales describing his marriages with goddesses. This can especially be said of the story of Europa. (Wikipedia)

52 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited THE LEGEND OF EUROPA This story also known (interestingly) as the Rape of Europa. It goes like this Zeus saw Europa alone on the beach and lusted after her. So he transformed himself into a bull and lay down at her feet. She climbed on his back and he plunged with her into the waves of the sea and raped her. She conceived a son, and after her death she received divine honors as "Queen of Heaven." The bull became the constellation Taurus. The legend of Europa has come alive in the European Union, and The Queen of Heaven is no stranger to the cults.

53 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited THE SYMBOLS OF EUROPA today! Euro Magazine Cover, coins

54 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited stamps German phone card From Time Magazine article about European Union

55 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited Sculpture, "The Removal of Europa," a gift from Crete to the European Parliament in Sculpture outside the Council of Ministers in Brussels

56 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited Katy Perry is the Harlot, riding a beast Superbowl 2015

57 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited SO, IS THERE ANY ASSOCIATION WITH THE EUROPEAN UNION, EUROPA AND THE WOMAN AND THE BEAST? Probably. We re just not exactly sure, YET, what form it will take. A revived Roman Empire (Daniel 2), an Islamic Empire where church and state are combined? A false religious system supported by government, most likely. Speculation rampant.

58 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited The physical Tower of Babel of ancient times is still in ruins, but with plans to rebuild into a tourist attraction. We are also currently building a spiritual tower in opposition to God. Today the European Union (attempting to reunite the world as one) claims open association with this evil Tower, and also the woman who rides the beast in the mythological Europa, who is associated with the woman who rides the beast in Revelation 17 and 18. (Note: This mysterious woman may also relate to a vision in Zechariah 5, the woman in the ephah)

59 Revived Rebellion: BABEL Revisited The Tower of Babel was built in Babylon, the place that became the symbol in scripture for the world in opposition to God. The woman who rides the beast in Revelation 12 is also a symbol mystery Babylon. Right now we can only speculate, but the pieces are falling into place. The European Union may be at the heart of the world in opposition to God in the end times.

60 Yevarekh-kha Adonai veyishmerekha May the LORD bless you and keep you Yaʾer Adonai panav elekha viḥunneka May the LORD make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you Yissa Adonai panav elekha viyasem lekha shalom. May the LORD lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace.