Commentary
Skeptic's Annotated Bible
1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.
First off, this contradicts what was just written in Gen 10:5. But secondly, it contradicts what we know about the development of languages. Oh what simplistic thinking, you'd think that this was written by a people with limited knowledge of history and the natural world, rather than an omniscient being.
2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. 3 And they said one to another, Go to , let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. 4 And they said , Go to , let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
I get the part about building a tower to heaven (though it's ridiculous on a couple of counts). What's that bit about "let us make us a name"?
5 And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded .
The clouds in heaven must have been obscuring his view.
6 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 .
Great job mankind, you can accomplish whatever you set your mind to! That's a great quality to have and I wholeheartedly support your efforts. I'm so proud of my creation! (Even if they are trying to build a tower to an imaginary place.)
7 Go to , let us go down , and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.
Why? (And again with the "us," I'm beginning to think there's more than one god here.)
8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city.
Oh, right, knowledge BAD, ignorance GOOD. Of course, the idea that people can't, you know, learn a second language is absurd.
9 Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.
We have skyscrapers today that are taller than any ancient structures, and frankly, higher than I expect could practically be built by hand with bricks (and without a modern understanding of architecture). And of course, there is no physical "heaven" that these tower-builders could have reached. So maybe the problem wasn't that they were going to build a tower to heaven, but that they had resolved to do so, and being allowed to pursue this objective was sufficiently egregious in God's view to warrant the scattering of mankind. But, as we know they would not have reached any physical heaven, so what would have been wrong with letting them try and fail? At about 15,000 - 20,000' people would begin to suffer hypoxia and would be unable to continue, so the project was doomed to failure anyway.
The story as interpreted literally is absurd on just about every detail.
10 These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood: 11 And Shem lived after he begat Arphaxad five hundred years, and begat sons and daughters. 12 And Arphaxad lived five and thirty years, and begat Salah: 13 And Arphaxad lived after he begat Salah four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters. 14 And Salah lived thirty years, and begat Eber: 15 And Salah lived after he begat Eber four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters. 16 And Eber lived four and thirty years, and begat Peleg: 17 And Eber lived after he begat Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters. 18 And Peleg lived thirty years, and begat Reu: 19 And Peleg lived after he begat Reu two hundred and nine years, and begat sons and daughters. 20 And Reu lived two and thirty years, and begat Serug: 21 And Reu lived after he begat Serug two hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters. 22 And Serug lived thirty years, and begat Nahor: 23 And Serug lived after he begat Nahor two hundred years, and begat sons and daughters. 24 And Nahor lived nine and twenty years, and begat Terah: 25 And Nahor lived after he begat Terah an hundred and nineteen years, and begat sons and daughters. 26 And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran. 27 Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot. 28 And Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees. 29 And Abram and Nahor took them wives: the name of Abram's wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah.
Nahor marries Milcah, the daugher of his brother, Haran. (I.e., Nahor marries his niece.) Hey, at least it's one man/one woman, right?
30 But Sarai was barren; she had no child.
Couldn't have possibly been Abram's fault.
31 And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there. 32 And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years: and Terah died in Haran.
Another boring genealogy, with people living impossible lifespans. But we finally get to someone interesting with Abram.
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