Tower of Babel

Text: Genesis 11:1,4

Prop: a poster of the Tower of Babel

Summary: God created languages to disperse the people of the earth following the Flood.

Parlez vous Francaise? ¿Hablas español? Do you speak English? I tried to find out if you spoke French or Spanish or English. What are these? Languages. The way we speak is our language, but other people around the world speak different languages. Have you ever wondered how we came to speak so many languages? The Bible tells us that God made them. But why? Wouldn’t it be easier if everyone in the world simply spoke one language?

And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech… And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. (Genesis 11:1,4)

Back in the beginning of creation, everyone did speak the same language. Everyone could worship God with the same words. Then one day, instead of continuing to spread around the earth after the great flood, they started to stay together in one city. It was there that they started to look up in the sky and wish they could be like God. So they decided to build a tower that would reach to heaven. In the tower they would be able to study the stars and figure out how to get to heaven without God’s help.

Now God knew if they stayed in one place, they would not do what he needed them to do. Soon all the places where there were no people would be run over with all sorts of wild animals such as lions and tigers. Then no one would want to live there. So he decided to give them a reason to leave town. He changed their language into many different languages. Now the man next door was speaking something no one else understood. This finally gave the people a reason to move away with other people they could understand.

The people stopped trying to build a tower to heaven and obeyed God.

There are still people today who are trying to get to heaven in their own way. All of those efforts start here on earth and try to build a way from man to God. But God knows that would never work. So he sent Jesus. Jesus is the way from God to man. He came down from heaven to show us the way. Jesus said in John 14:6 I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, except by me.

Do you think there will ever come a time when we will all speak one language again? The Bible hints that there may be a time after Jesus returns to the earth. In Zephaniah 3:9 the Bible says this: For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent. One day we may all serve God with one language.

©1997 by Jim Kerlin. All rights reserved.

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