Genesis11_5-6

Genesis 11:5-6

And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.

And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.

When God found out what the children of men had built, He came down to see the city and the tower. Since God Elohim had handed over governing authority to humanity after the floodwaters, He did not interfere with what human beings did on their own. Nevertheless, what they did broke basic rules in some way. God had to come down to check it, even though He already knew what had happened. Furthermore, God Elohim makes rules, and He also obeys them without claiming special privileges for Himself.

Human beings all had one language at that time, and this meant they could work together to undertake new projects and endeavors. In the present world, we can easily observe that language barriers increase the cost of cooperation between different regions. Technologies, ideas, culture, and so on cannot spread freely across language boundaries. From history, we know that when a dynasty ruled over lands that had previously been divided into different kingdoms, it would unify its peoples through an official language.

The children of men began to do this, and now nothing they imagined doing would be restrained from them. So what did they imagine doing? Judging by the tower whose top was to reach unto heaven, and the city around it, they wanted to govern all humanity on the earth under their own kingdom. At the same time, they wanted to usurp the place of God, for the tower reaching unto heaven indicated their ambition and desire. If they had succeeded in building their autocratic kingdom, ordinary people would have been their slaves from generation to generation.

A city and a tower reaching unto heaven signify much. Praise God that He brought down this kingdom of slavery.