Legacy of the Tower of Babel

One major event recorded in Genesis between the flood and the call of Abraham is the incident at the Tower of Babel. Without trying to speculate on how the Lord accomplished this or why building a tower would merit such an extreme response, let’s just consider the consequences of this event.

1) It caused the rapid spread of humanity across the globe.

2) It resulted in the establishment of a variety of distinct people groups from one family (Noah’s).

3) And finally, it demolished the existing political system and required men to rebuild politically from nothing.

I believe that God used this situation to nurture His plan of salvation through the next thousand or so years. City-states during the time of Abraham, tribal nations during the times of Joshua and the judges, small kingdoms during the time of David and Solomon each played their role in allowing the people of God to experience just the right amount of opposition to keep them challenged and growing in faith toward God. Towards the end of the kingdom period, mighty empires began to rise as God prepared to take His plan of salvation to the world, using each of them for spreading His people, preparing highways, providing a common language, each played a role in setting the stage for the rapid spread of the gospel. But I’m getting way ahead of myself.