Language in general is really a strange concept when you
pause to ponder it. Various sounds are put together in numerous ways to form
words to which we attribute meaning, and those words are arranged in things we
call sentences to communicate more complex meanings. And those sounds and words
and sentences can be represented by symbols, which we call letters that make up
alphabets that are the tools of “written language.” And somehow we are able to
understand one another—at least partially, at least enough to work together
toward shared endeavors.
Such was the case for the ancient people of Babel, whom we
read about in Genesis 11. Moses tells us that “the whole earth had one language
and the same words” (Gen. 11:1, ESV). That would have been a pretty remarkable
time to be alive. No matter whom you talked to, you could understand them and
be understood by them. Nothing would get lost in translation. This single
language made it possible for the people to band together and decide to build a
city with a huge tower.
Why would they want to do that? For two reasons, which can
be found in verse 4: “and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be
dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” First of all, they started to get
a big head. Look at us! We’re so intelligent and resourceful, and if we all
work together, there’s nothing we can’t do! We can even reach to the heavens! In
other words, pride filled their hearts, and that’s a problem. But secondly,
they wanted to build a city, so they wouldn’t be scattered across the globe. That
reason might not seem like that much of a problem—until we remember Genesis 9,
that is.
After the Flood, there were only eight human beings alive on
the earth—Noah and his three sons and their four wives. When God established
His covenant with Noah and his sons, He explicitly commanded them to “fill the
earth” as they obeyed the command to “be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 9:1).
All the people at Babel were descendants of these four couples, so for them to do
something intentionally to prevent people from “dispersing” (a.k.a. filling the
earth), was in direct disobedience to God.
So what were the consequences of their pride and
disobedience? God “confused the language of all the earth. And from there the
LORD dispersed them over the face of all the earth” (Gen. 11:9, ESV). He took
away their ability to understand one another, thereby making it necessary for
them to go their separate ways and fulfill His command. In essence, He created
multiple languages instantaneously. We often think of God as Creator in general
terms, or perhaps in more specific terms related to the creation of the earth,
plants, animals, humans, etc. But think about the implications of a God who
created language.
The fact that God created language in general means He is
communicative and therefore relational. He desires to communicate with us, and
He has created us to be able to communicate with Him and with each other. And
even though He created multiple languages, their overall similarity is a
testament to His organization and logic. Stephen R. Anderson writes for the
Linguistic Society of America:
Human language differs from the communicative behavior of every
other known organism in a number of fundamental ways, all shared across
languages. By comparison with the communicative
devices of herring gulls, honey bees, dolphins or any other non-human animal,
language provides us with a system that is not stimulus bound and ranges over
an infinity of possible distinct messages. It achieves this with a
limited, finite system of units that combine hierarchically and recursively
into larger units. The words themselves are structured from a small inventory
of sounds basic to the language, individually meaningless elements combined
according to a system completely independent of the way words combine into
phrases and sentences. […] And the principles governing these systems of
sounds, words and meanings are largely common across languages, with only
limited possibilities for difference (the parameters described above).[i]
So even with the many languages in existence, they are
similar at the core, and this reflects how they all came from the same place—or
rather, from the same Person—a Person whose infinite creativity and ordered
constancy express themselves in the creation of humans and their languages as
distinct from the rest of creation yet fundamentally the same amongst each
other.
But the fact that God created multiple languages also
reminds us of another aspect of His nature—His omniscience. He designed
language itself, so He knows all there is to know about each and every language
in existence—past, present, and future. This means that even if no one else can
understand us, God can and does. Any meaning that we create from words, He
already knows. He is the one who Created us with the capability to craft
meaning and, in doing so, to reflect His image as Creator. And even when words
fail us, God tells us that His Spirit understands our thoughts and feelings
(see Romans 8:26-27). There is great comfort in knowing that there is Someone
who will never misunderstand us.
So the next time you hear someone speak a language different from your own, remember the people of Babel, but more importantly, remember the one and only God, the Lord of language, whose power and grace even in disciplining His creatures, gave us the beauty of similar yet diverse languages all across the world. Remember that this God, the Lord of language, sees, hears, and understands your very heart. And remember that this very same God, the Lord of language, has spoken to you through the written word and through sending the Word Himself, Jesus Christ, to communicate to you the best message of all—that God has taken on flesh and made it possible for you to be in right relationship with Him now and forevermore.
[i]
Stephen R. Anderson, “How many languages are there in the world?” Linguistic
Society of America, https://www.linguisticsociety.org/content/how-many-languages-are-there-world
: accessed 2 December 2021.
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