Genesis 11 · The Lantern

Now the earth was of one language and of the same speech.

And in the three and thirtieth jubilee, in the first year in the second week, Peleg took to himself a wife, whose name was Lomna the daughter of Sina'ar, and she bare him a son in the fourth year of this week, and he called his name Reu; for he said: 'Behold the children of men have become evil through the wicked purpose of building for themselves a city and a tower in the land…

And they arose and came from the land of the east; and, as they went through the land, they chanced upon the land of Shinar, which was exceeding broad; where they took in hand to build a tower. They sought means thereby to go up to heaven, and be able to leave their work as a memorial to those men who should come after them.

Now the whole earth had one language and the same words, as long as men remained in the East: but when they moved from the East, soon because of the words or deeds of pride, they were separated from each other and were expelled further from their Creator.

And when they were advancing from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt in it.

And each one said to his neighbor, “Come, let us make bricks, and bake them with fire.” And they had bricks instead of stones, and pitch instead of mortar.

And they said: “Come, let us make a city and a tower, so that its height may reach to heaven. And let us make our name famous before we are divided into all the lands.”

They foolishly began to build a tower that touched the stars and thought they might be able to climb the skies with it. But God, seeing that their work proceeded because they spoke the same language, intervened and caused them to speak different languages. Then he scattered them by isolating them in the islands of the earth, so that nations speaking different tongues arose.

After the flood, as if striving to fortify themselves against God, as if there could be anything high for God or anything secure for pride, certain proud men built a tower, ostensibly so that they might not be destroyed by a flood if one came later. For they had heard and recalled that all iniquity had been destroyed by the flood. They were unwilling to abstain from iniquity.

Come, he said, let us build ourselves a city and a tower whose top may reach to heaven. The wicked teachers make a city for themselves when, having left the heavenly city, whose architect and builder is God—that is, the holy Church—they gather their own assemblies.

Then the Lord descended to see the city and the tower, which the sons of Adam were building.

And he said: “Behold, the people are united, and all have one tongue. And since they have begun to do this, they will not desist from their plans, until they have completed their work.

Therefore, come, let us descend, and in that place confound their tongue, so that they may not listen, each one to the voice of his neighbor.”

This in fact is the way the Lord is accustomed to behave. This is what he did in the beginning in the case of the [first] woman as well. She had abused the status conferred on her, and for that reason he subjected her to her husband.

But after some time had elapsed, He is again found using an expression more distinctly plural when He says: Come, let us go down and confound their language—an expression which can no longer be thought applicable to two only, but to three or more.

Come, let us go down and there confuse their language. It is said to those who were present: Come, because indeed this itself never decreases from divine contemplation, and it is always to increase in divine contemplation; and never to withdraw from the heart is always to come by a certain stable motion. To whom he also says: Let us go down and confuse their language there.

And so the Lord divided them from that place into all the lands, and they ceased to build the city.

And for this reason, its name was called ‘Babel,’ because in that place the language of the whole earth became confused. And from then on, the Lord scattered them across the face of every region.

It is likely that they lost their common language when they received these new languages. For if their original language had not perished their first deed would not have come to nothing. It was when they lost their original language, which was lost by all the nations, with one exception, that their first building came to nought.

Just as when holy men live together, it is a great grace and blessing; so, likewise, that congregation is the worst kind when sinners dwell together. The more sinners there are at one time, the worse they are. Indeed, when the tower was being built up against God, those who were building it were disbanded for their own welfare. The conspiracy was evil.

And so the Lord scattered them from that place over all the earth, and they ceased to build the city; and therefore it was called Babel, because there the language of the whole earth was confused.

These are the generations of Shem. Shem was one hundred years old when he conceived Arphaxad, two years after the great flood.

And after he conceived Arphaxad, Shem lived for five hundred years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

Next, Arphaxad lived for thirty-five years, and then he conceived Shelah.

And after he conceived Shelah, Arphaxad lived for three hundred and three years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

Likewise, Shelah lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Eber.

And after he conceived Eber, Shelah lived for four hundred and three years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

Then Eber lived for thirty-four years, and he conceived Peleg.

And after he conceived Peleg, Eber lived for four hundred and thirty years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

Likewise, Peleg lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Reu.

And after he conceived Reu, Peleg lived for two hundred and nine years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

Then Reu lived for thirty-two years, and then he conceived Serug.

Likewise, after he conceived Serug, Reu lived for two hundred and seven years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

In truth, Serug lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Nahor.

And after he conceived Nahor, Serug lived for two hundred years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

And so Nahor lived for twenty-nine years, and then he conceived Terah.

And after he conceived Terah, Nahor lived for one hundred and nineteen years, and he conceived sons and daughters.

And Terah lived for seventy years, and then he conceived Abram, and Nahor, and Haran.

And these are the generations of Terah. Terah conceived Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Next Haran conceived Lot.

And Haran died before his father Terah, in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldeans.

Then Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai. And the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah.

(Verse 29) And Abram and Nachor took wives for themselves. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of Nachor's wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran. The father of Milcah was also the father of Iscah. Haran fathered two daughters, Milcah and Iscah, who were both called by the same name. Of these, Milcah became the wife of Nachor, and Sarai became the wife of Abram.

"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." This Iscah is supposed to be the same as Sarai, Abraham's wife.

Abram and Nachor took wives. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of Nachor's wife was Melcha, the daughter of Aran, the father of Melcha and the father of Jescha. Our elders say that Jescha is the same as Sarai, the wife of Abraham, since evidently the brothers Abraham and Nachor had two sisters, the daughters of Aran, as wives.

But Sarai was barren and had no children.

And so Terah took his son Abram, and his grandson Lot, the son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and he led them away from Ur of the Chaldeans, to go into the land of Canaan. And they approached as far as Haran, and they dwelt there.

Since, however, I have made mention of the patriarch, let us put before your good selves today's reading, if you do not mind, so as to explain it and thus see the extraordinary degree of the good man's virtue.

But afterwards, when Abraham sent his servant to take a wife for his son Isaac, we find it thus written: "And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his lord, and of all the goods of his lord, with him; and arose, and went into Mesopotamia, into the city of Nahor." This and other testimonies of this sacred history show that Nahor, Abraham's brother, had also left the regi…

So Thare took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his son's son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, the wife of Abram his son, and brought them out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to go into the land of Canaan. The old translation has, "he brought them out of the region of the Chaldeans," which poses no question at all.

And the days of Terah that passed were two hundred and five years, and then he died in Haran.

Genesis11