kingdom of their own fashion, and herded together for selfish
safety, instead of going forth to all the quarters of the world in a
natural way, according to their families, in their tribes, after
their nations, as the eleventh chapter of Genesis says they ought to
have done. "Let us build us a city and a tower, and make us a name,
lest," they said, "we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole
world." Here was one act of disobedience to God's order. But
besides this they had fallen into a slavish dread of the powers of
nature--they were afraid of another flood. They set to to build a
tower, on which they might worship the sun and stars, and the host
of heaven, and pray to them to send no more floods and tempests.
They thus fell into a slavish fear of the powers of nature, as well
as into a selfish and artificial civilisation. In short, they
utterly broke the covenant which God had made with Noah. But by
miraculously confounding their language, God drove them forth over
the face of the whole earth, and so forced them to do that which
they ought to have done willingly at first.

Now, we must remember that all this happened in the very country in
which Abraham lived. He must have heard of it all--for aught we
know he had seen the tower of Babel. So that, for good or for evil,
the whole Babel event must have produced a strong effect on the mind
of a thoughtful man like Abraham, and raised many strange
questionings in his heart, which God alone could answer for him, OR
FOR US. Now, what did God mean to teach Abraham by calling him out
of his country, and telling him, "I will make of thee a great
nation?" I think He meant to shew him, for one thing, that that
Babel plan of society was utterly absurd and accursed, certain to
come to naught, and so to lead him on to hope for a city which had
foundations, and to see that ITS builder and maker must be, not the