A Tower Whose Top Reaches into Heaven I. Introduction and review A. We considered last week the sad story of Noah and his youngest son Ham 1. Because of the actions of his father and the like nature of the son, Canaan was cursed B. We will follow the line of ham s first born and the first born of Shem C. They will lead us to the next down fall of man and God s plan to restore His creation II. Genesis 10:8-12 A. Cush was Ham s first born son 1. To Cush were born a number of sons 2. The one of note is found in 10:8 Nimrod a. His name means [drom.ni Nimrod {nim-rode'}] "rebellion" or "the valiant" 3. He is said to be a mighty hunter before the Lord a. dyic; tsayid {tsah'-yid} Meaning: 1) hunting, game b. This should be understood to mean not a hunter of game but of men c. Before the Lord here best understood to mean against, as in front of without concern for consequences 1 6
4. He establishes a kingdom a. Up to now every man was his own king, now Nimrod begins empire building b. His capital was Babel or Babylon, located in the plain of Shinar c. He was the one who built and established the city of Nineveh, also 5. God s plan was for man to establish local governmental centers, not to build an empire a. God s intention was a theocracy to be recognized b. The dominion that God had ordained was over the earth and the animal kingdom, not over your fellow man B. Shinar, the place where Nimrod and his followers decided to settle, was located in the southern plain between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers 1. It was a place of plenty of water 2. It also was highly fertile C. Did God want men to build cities and dwell there? 1. God want us to replenish the earth 2. That involves scattering throughout the entire earth 3. Why did God want that? 4. What are the most wicked places in our country III. Now we come to the fruition of what was done. [Gen. 11:1-9] A. They choose the land of Shinar to be the center of their new empire 1. Although there were very few rocks in the area for building edifices, there 2 6
was clay, which when fired properly would make excellent bricks, and in just the form that you wanted 2. The KJV translate the word slime 3. Here in the NASB its translated tar 4. In the Septuagint, they used a word from which we get our word asphalt a. Greek word a;sfaltoj b. Hebrew word rm'xe chemar {khay-mawr'} Meaning: 1) slime, pitch, asphalt, bitumen c. Archeologist have found the remains of many of these types of structures d. They refer to them as ziggurats e. They have found that if you try to brake the mortar joints, many time the bricks themselves will break, the mortar joints are so strong B. What they planned to do is set out in verse 4 1. To build a city for themselves, 2. A tower whose top will reach into heaven, and 3. Make a name for themselves. C. A reason for doing this is set out at the end of verse 4 to avoid being scattered over the entire earth D. What was their motivation for these actions and the plans behind them 3 6
1. To rebel against God a. God wanted them to be scattered out over the entire earth b. Their leader s name is one of rebellion c. He was a descendant of the rebellious son of Noah d. He sought to overthrow the curse of Noah e. They wanted to build an empire where they were in charge f. They wanted to establish their own religious system 2. In building the tower a. Some say to avoid another flood b. Probably more in defiance to God c. As a center for worship the stars, their new gods (1) the purpose of religion is always to further the agenda of men (2) here Nimrod wanted to help solidify his new empire with a religious control d. To help establish a name for themselves no one had ever built a structure like this [at least as far as we know] e. This structure would serve as a monument to their own greatness f. Do we ever spend our time, energy and resources to build a monument to ourselves? (1) if we do by seeking to have such things give us identity and/or self-worth, we allow them to take the place of God 4 6
in our lives 3. To make a name for themselves a. So that they will be remembered b. So they become famous c. So that their fame is above all else E. The Lord came down to see the city and the tower 1. Hebrew idiom 2. A figure of speech F. God saw: 1. They are one people 2. They speak the same language 3. They will do what ever they purpose to do G. God s response 1. Confuse their language 2. Scatter them abroad 3. Consider 10:5, 20, 31 a. The separation seems to be based on three b. Language, lands and nations H. Gravity of this judgment 1. Your language touches the very essence of who and what you are 2. Replacing your language has a massive effect on you 3. Consider your language being changed 5 6
4. No longer know English 5. No longer read English 6. No longer think in English I. Change in dispensation 1. Explain dispensations 2. From dispensation of Patriarchs to the dispensation of the Jews IV. Final thoughts A. Let us beware of seeking to make a name for ourselves 1. Building a reputation many times leads us away from God 2. Establishing notoriety is God s job not ours B. What is Nimrod s place in history 1. In Babylonian literature he became to be known by a different name Marduk 2. Marduk was the leader of the Babylonian mystery religion, a religious system which has spawned almost every religious sect in existence today 6 6