Punished for Babel?

[Minimalist]

The story is rather absurd, to the point of giddiness. God clearly states that nothing would be beyond our reach and capability if we had but a single language. And much like the later story of him being unable to win a battle because of the enemy having iron chariots, the explanations given by believers tend to be amusingly ad hoc and in excess of what the text actually says.

It's called making shit up as they go along. Some are very good at it but it remains shit.

[Silver]

My faith, however, is based upon reason.

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The validity of the bible comes from reference to physical reality.

Someone should inform the library that all fiction books should be relabeled nonfiction.

[Godscreated]

The story is incoherent on several levels. The biggest one is that it says that all of mankind was speaking the same language. This is Genesis 11. One chapter back, in Genesis 10, it talks about the descendants of Noah's sons settling into their own territories, each with their own language.

Did you actually read that, or did you find this notion on one of your atheist sites.
Chapter 10 is giving a genealogy of Noah's family, through over a couple hundred years. Noah was still alive at the end of the given genealogy, Noah, his sons, grandsons, all lived long enough to be at Bable. God did not punish the people for building a tower, He knew they could not accomplish that task. What He did was give them different languages to scatter them as He first commanded them to do. He did not want man to accomplish the evil they had before the flood, that's what God meant by man could accomplish anything. Why would an omnipotent God worry about people being able to accomplish great things, He could have foiled anything they would do against Him, He's omnipotent.

[Minimalist]

It's called making shit up as they go along. Some are very good at it but it remains shit.

And right on cue, G-C delivers a big load of shit.

[Faith No More]

Why is it that god is suddenly concerned with humanity doing evil when not too long ago he let the whole planet go to shit and had to drown everyone but some guy, his wife, their kids, and their kids' wives?

Why is this supposedly omniscient, omnipotent deity never consistent in his actions and motivations?

[MindForgedManacle]

God did not punish the people for building a tower, He knew they could not accomplish that task.

The Bible makes ZERO mention of your assertion. It, in fact, implies the contrary: that given but a single language, they could accomplish anything.

What He did was give them different languages to scatter them as He first commanded them to do. He did not want man to accomplish the evil they had before the flood, that's what God meant by man could accomplish anything.

And yet it doesn't even imply that. God specifically makes mention of them being able to accomplish anything within the context of building a tower to Heaven or the heavens.

Oh and notice how that COMPLETELY failed? Why would confusing his creation change ANYTHING with respect to doing evil? Especially considering they managed to do so regardless.

Why would an omnipotent God worry about people being able to accomplish great things, He could have foiled anything they would do against Him, He's omnipotent.

Yeah, we're wondering that too. Apparently omnipotent, yet specifically notes that his creations' ability to accomplish any task (in the context of building a great tower to the heavens) given a single language as the reason for screwing with their languages...and which failed to avert what you claim to have been his real intention.


What a load of poorly thought out croc.

[Bad Writer]

God did not punish the people for building a tower, He knew they could not accomplish that task. What He did was give them different languages to scatter them as He first commanded them to do. He did not want man to accomplish the evil they had before the flood, that's what God meant by man could accomplish anything. Why would an omnipotent God worry about people being able to accomplish great things, He could have foiled anything they would do against Him, He's omnipotent.

So then, explain to us how the historical evolution of linguistics over the face of the earth does not account at all for a one-time scattering from Babel.

[The Reality Salesman01]

Lol, sorry, honest mistake.

[Chas]

Man cannot become God. That doesn't stop him trying, and that effort is justly punished, as in this case.

The point isn't that they could do it. The point is that subverting good never works, and reaps its own reward.

The story is a universal truth.

It's simply a myth 'explaining' the fact that there are many languages.

The sub-text is about keeping people separated and subjugated.

[fr0d0]

I would have to first accept that this character is necessary, before entertaining any belief in it.

Absolutely. I felt exactly the same.

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This God, is no where on my chalkboard, nor can you give me any reason to think that it would even be necessary to correlate it to the things on my board. I would need to assume that God is a sensical word before adopting a belief system in it. Do you understand?

I can't give you any reason? Well that gets a wow.

Yes if course you need to be convinced. You've ruled that out already though.

I understand that you are a person that doesn't want to know. I can't relate to that at all.

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Are you referring to the "true-ness" characteristic that 2+2=4 has? Are you sayin that because 2+2 always equals 4, that true-ness is something you think needs an explanation for in a worldview, and to you, that explanation is God?

Yes the truth of what we can logically accept, if that is 2+2=4. In my considerations, that process leads to the conclusion that God is everything claimed of him in the bible.

That is also what makes him necessary.

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If the story of the Tower of Babel was completely accurate, and this is the reasoning god used to thwart the plans of the people building, then why hasn't god reached out his almighty hand of Justice to crush our current endeavors to go beyond earth, beyond the solar system, to where no one has gone before?

It's a story, not literal fact. The point being, once again, that people can't be good by subversive means /get to heaven by any other means than via God.

I saw a German linguist give a very lengthy talk supporting the idea that language development world wide did appear to emerge from a single source. So I guess you would easily find a fundy to discuss that with.