17 February 2023

So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. Therefore it was 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.
From Genesis 11:1-9, NRSV

The story of the Tower of Babel is one of pride and disobedience leading to disaster for people. The descendants of Noah had been given different lands to inhabit as part of God’s plan that they should be fruitful and “fill the earth”. However, they had decided to stay together and to build a city where they could settle and make a name for themselves. This city was to have a tower leading to heaven. The people were not following God’s will but doing what most suited themselves. Their tower was not so much about giving glory to God as about being a monument to themselves and their achievements. The consequence of their disobedience was that they became a scattered people separated by language as well as by location.

• • Why do you suppose Noah’s descendants chose to shape their own destiny rather than accepting that given by God?
  • How do we know if we are following God’s will or our own?

Pray for the grace to discern what God wants you to spend your time and energy in achieving.

Image – Tower of Babel – Pieter Breughel the Elder 1568