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Devotions from Gospel Chapel Ministries HOME SERMONS SERMON NOTES
MORE REBELLION
The Lord had just delivered Noah and his descendants; they had just been through the great flood and saw the great destruction that had come upon the earth for rebellion against God and the authority of His Word. Now we see that as they began to increase and multiply, rebellion set in again. This message will center around the curse of the broken law which came upon the face of the earth for rebellion. We first saw this curse in GEN 3 pronounced upon the woman. GEN 3:16 says, "Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee." The curse of the broken law is confusion. Look at the confusion resulting from "and thy desire shall be to thy husband." The word "desire" as set forth in the Hebrew dictionary means a burning, yearning desire to overflow, to run over the top of. Yet he will rule over you. See the automatic state of confusion that would result from such a relationship! That state of confusion is the curse of the broken law!
Now in Genesis 11, we find that right after the flood, God again sends confusion as His curse upon the rebellion of those who refused to obey. After the flood, God said, "Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth," GEN 9:1. The Lord’s command to the people was to replenish the earth. They were to scatter over the face of the earth and replenish it. God would multiply them so the whole earth would be replenished. Instead, we see in GEN 11:4 that the people 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."
They planned to build a tower high enough that no matter how far they would go, they would still be able to see the tower and find their way back, lest they become scattered. They were planning to do the exact opposite of what God had commanded them to do. They were going to make a way whereby they could stay together and never become scattered.
In GEN 11:6 we read, "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." There was harmony of purpose, harmony of thinking, and harmony of language. The problem was that all this was not in harmony with God’s command or His will. All their plans were in defiance of the revealed will of God. God had told them to go out and replenish the world, but they made their plans, lest they become scattered.
When God saw their rebellion, He said in GEN 11:7, "Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech." The Lord came and brought confusion by confounding their language. The confusion broke the harmony they had established. The Lord brought this confusion by sending the curse of the broken law to break their oneness of purpose in rebellion against God’s clear command; they no longer were able to complete their work because they were not able to understand each other’s speech.
What happened? Their speech sounded like they were babbling to each other. No one could understand what the other was saying. There were different languages among the families and groups. The harmony of their language was broken.
The confusion which God sent for their rebellion gives us the meaning of the word babble. GEN 11:9a says, "Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth..." This Hebrew word "Babel" translated into English means "confusion." Amen.
Great God! My Maker and my King,
Of thee I’ll speak, of thee I’ll sing;
All thou hast done, and all thou dost,
Declare thee good, proclaim thee just.Thy ancient thoughts and firm decrees;
Thy threatenings and thy promises;
The joys of heaven, the pains of hell--
What angels taste, what devils feel;Thy terrors and thy acts of grace;
Thy threatening rod, and smiling face;
Thy wounding and thy healing word;
A world undone, a world restored;While these excite my fear and joy,
While these my tuneful lips employ,
Accept, O Lord, the humble song,
The tribute of a trembling tongue.
~Author: Beddome
Our sermons and devotions are a ministry of Gospel Chapel located in Conrad, Montana. We also have a daily devotion and sermon notes on-line. We pray this devotion has been a blessing to those who read it. Thank you.