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.” Genesis 11:4
In the early stages of civilization, all the people spoke the same language. The tribe of people depicted in Genesis were looking for security and protection from their enemies. They wanted to be feared by all as a powerful and strong nation. They determined to make this happen by building a city and a tower reaching into the heavens.
The tower was a passageway for the gods to come down to earth and bless them. The people would supply the tower with food, drink, and precious items to impress the gods and to meet their needs.
This course of action did not please God. He saw that they were a headstrong people and believed they had the ability to protect themselves and create a powerful name for themselves without the help of the sovereign God.
They believed the tower would give them some control over the gods. They had a serious misconception about God. There is only one God and He has no needs and He can never be controlled by mankind.
The end result was God caused this tribe to stop building the tower and gave the people diverse languages and scattered them around the world.
The lesson in this story is do not start an action or new initiative (like planning to build or buy something, begin a new job, or take a trip) without consulting with God. You must seek out God for His wisdom and guidance and follow His leading.
The works of man operating without God will have no sustaining value and will eventually fade away.
When you try to go it on your own there will always be a consequence from God. He will allow you to see the weakness of your actions and the infallibility of God.
The works of a believer yielding to God will be successful and filled with the abundance and goodness of God.
The whole point of this story is everything begins with God and He is all powerful and lacking in nothing!
Hal Hollister Ministry 