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נֹחַ
Noach
(Noah)

B’reshit [Genesis] 6:9-11:32

Today’s teaching is focused upon B’reshit (Genesis) 11:3-4.

The Ideology of Babylon

B’reshit (Genesis) 11:3-4
3 And they said one to another, “Come, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar.
4 And they said, “Come, let us build us a city, and a tower, whose top may reach to heaven, and let us make us a name; lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.”

It has occurred to me recently that before a person can actually come out of Babylon, he must first be able to accurately identify Babylon. This is not actually too difficult once the question is realized. The counterpart to identifying Babylon is correctly identifying Israel. It is these two people, these two systems that are diametrically opposed to each other in every way possible.

First, let us begin by examining the two verses above. In verse three we see that these people who had come together to build the first tower of Babylon did so by contractual agreement. First they agreed to make bricks. One of the intriguing aspects of the two verses above is the agreement to make bricks, apparently before they had even decided upon what they were actually building.

It is the order of these two statements that leads us to the conclusion that there were those who knew what was going on and there were those who did not know what was going on. Even here in the very beginning of Babylon there was a split, a caste system that was being erected, and those who were on the short end of this arrangement were not even aware of what was happening to them.

Those who are in the know, often make inclusive statements to give the hearer the idea that those speaking and those hearing are in the same set of circumstances. However, this is done by those speaking with the express purpose to deceive those hearing. What it really comes down to is a matter of control. One of the truths about Babylon is that there will always be a small group of people who desire to control the masses. It is always put forth in an altruistic manner; i.e., “for their own good”; the simple truth is that one group is simply enslaving the other group. Sometimes this is known and at other times those who have been enslaved do not even realize that they have been enslaved. Such is the case in western civilization today. The masses have been indentured to an elite class that is not even fully visible to them. This autonomy is purposefully designed to keep those who are enslaved from actually seeing the truth; for if they have no one to compare themselves to but each other, then they will remain happy and productive for a much longer time.

Then in verse four above we see the second statement recorded that was made by those who initiated
Babylon; they wanted to build a city and a tower. This tower was to be extraordinary in that its top was to reach into the very heavens. The single purpose of doing this was to make and establish a name for themselves. This is pride. Pride is sin. In essence, these people were shaking their fists in the face of an
Almighty Creator and saying that they didn’t care what His will was; they were going to do things according to their own way.

Once again we see the separation of men into classes: those who work and those who have the name.
But those who did the work did not truly see what was transpiring in their lives because of the way in which those who were making a name spoke to them. These workers thought that they also were making a name for themselves, when in fact they were only helping another to make a name for himself.

So it is still today in Babylon. Men design a building and that man is considered the builder of the building even though he most likely never raised a finger to actually help construct the building. These designers, architects, design buildings for looks and for name recognition. The function of the building is only a distant second in consideration. Primarily the design is to be a monument to that man’s name who designed it, but not really a monument to those men who built it.

Consider the current race to build the tallest building. Why do we need a building that is so very tall?
The truth is that we don’t. It is a monument to a man’s ability to build (design) it that tall.

Likewise, when you see a statue of a man, it quite literally is a “tower of Babel,” in that, its sole purpose is to make a name for a man, or rather so that a man’s name might not be forgotten; which is the whole purpose of making a name in the first place. But it is also by making a name for oneself that gives one control over another person; it tends to enslave one man to another man.

Consider, if you will, this: would you rather work for someone who was well known in any given field?

Or, someone who had just gotten out of school? Most would say the former. Please forgive me for asking this question in this manner, but this reveals to us the very nature of Babylonian thinking. How?
Because there is a third answer that is not considered, which is actually the correct answer. A very few would say neither, that they would rather work for YHWH. We will go into that in more detail below.

For now let us understand the Babylonian mindset of how slaves are created and held. And in our world much of the time this is done without the express knowledge of those being held in that captivity.

It is important to note that the end of the verse states the purpose was so that they would not be scattered over the face of the whole earth. But please take careful note of this next passage.

B’reshit (Genesis) 1:28
And Elohim blessed them; and Elohim said to them, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.”

We looked at this verse last week. In this verse the word replenish is used. Within this concept of replenishing the earth is the idea of filling the earth. Yet this is what those architects of Babylon did not want to have happen. They did not want the earth to be filled, rather they wanted all the people to be in one place under the control of a single entity, and that entity was not the Creator of the heavens and the earth.

The basic ideal of Babylon is to set oneself up as the supreme ruler, rather than submitting to the One who created him. This is the central theme of Babylon. When one sees this for what it truly is, then, it will help to identify those who are working for the kingdom of Babylon and those who are working for YHWH’s kingdom. Those working for the kingdom of Babylon are working to make a name for themselves. That person must be the one in control. That person must have the final say. That person is not willing to share authority with anyone else. It is at this point that pride enters in and puffs one up.

When this happens, then it is only a matter of time before that person falls to complete destruction.

The only thing that can prevent this is true, total, and complete repentance. The sad thing is that this actually rarely happens, because the person’s pride is so strongly entrenched in the person that he is unwilling to give it up. And of course when this fall comes, it is always someone else’s fault, never the person who is so full of pride that he cannot see it.

The Kingdom of Heaven

Matithyah (Matthew) 10:7
“And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”

The kingdom of YHWH has many names in Scripture, such as, “Israel,” “Kingdom of Elohim,” “Kingdom of Mashiach,” and others. What we want to understand is the essence of this kingdom and what makes this kingdom different from the kingdom of Babylon.

In Babylon, men swear allegiance to men, and especially to self. But this is contrasted to Israel in which we swear allegiance to our King, Yeshua, rather than to self. To work to build up anything or anyone else other than the work of our currently reigning King Yeshua is considered sedition and treason – in short, sin. But it is exactly at this point that unrighteous men enter in and attempt to muddy the line between these two kingdoms at war. Why do they do this? So that they can steal away His workers and subjects and bring these people into submission to the Babylonian kingdom and make them work in that kingdom as slaves. It is so the one who would do this can make a name for himself. It is a way in which he can have his own empire and wealth and all the things that this world would offer those who would not deny themselves.

Matithyah (Matthew) 16:24-26
24 Then said Yeshua to His disciples, “If any man would come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
25 For whosoever would save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life for My sake shall find it.
26 For what shall a man be profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and forfeit his life? Or, what shall a man give in exchange for his life?”

We live in an upside down world. What was created to be in authority and in power is not, and what was supposed to be brought into subjection, rather than being in subjection, rules in the hearts and lives of men. Humility, gentleness, love, compassion, mercy, and such things, are those things that YHWH intended to rule this world. However, these things do not currently rule this world. What rules this world is pride, lust, sensuality, greed, and such things that are not of His Spirit. It is the will of our Creator and heavenly Father that we come into His Kingdom and then bring the fullness of His Kingdom into this world by doing His will and by being the people that are like Mashiach in everything that we do.

This is done by denying oneself and living for Him.

The essence of the kingdom of Israel is peace within, thus making it possible to have peace with one’s neighbor. Peace within, can only come about by having peace with one’s Creator. This peace is not something that the world can give, nor even understand.

Yochanan (John) 14:27
“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, give I to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be fearful.”

What the Babylonian system does is to attempt to fill this void of peace with noise in order to camouflage the reality that something quite serious is missing. When YHWH fills us with His peace (shalom), then we can live, work and exist in such a manner that is totally outside of Babylon. This is the beginning of coming out of Babylon. But the question is then raised, how does one go about gaining this inner shalom (peace)?

Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:4-5
4 “Hear, Israel; YHWH our Elohim, YHWH is one;
5 and you shall love YHWH your Elohim with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.”

Yeshua taught us that this was the greatest and foremost commandment. Simply put, this is where we need to live every single day of our lives. If we are not living right here, then we have missed the kingdom of heaven. It is in this way, by loving YHWH with all of one’s being and making Him one’s Elohim that we will be at peace (shalom) with Him. Let us consider what this word “shalom” means from the Hebrew.

Shalom שלום means “to be complete.” This means that nothing is missing, nothing is broken, and everything is in harmony. It means that one is whole and complete in every sense of the word. It means that one is full and prosperous. This is why this word came to be used as a greeting for both when a person meets another person and when parting from another. In this way one is bestowing all the fullness of YHWH’s blessings upon another’s life. Now let us prayerfully consider what Yeshua taught us concerning this word.

Matithyah (Matthew) 10:12-14
12 “And as you enter into a house, shalom to the house.
13 And if the house be worthy, let your shalom come upon it; but if it be not worthy, let your shalom return to you.
14 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, as you go forth out of that house or that city, shake off the dust of your feet.”

It is in this way that we should be able to discern those who are walking according to the way (of YHWH) and those who walk according to the ways of Babylon.

Being in shalom with another does not necessarily mean that the two will be in one hundred percent agreement concerning what Scripture teaches. But there will still be love, acceptance and forbearance between the brothers.

Let us hide these truths deep in our hearts that they may not be dislodged during these days of sifting.

Let us purpose in our hearts and minds to always love YHWH our Elohim with our whole being, thus being able to walk away from Babylon without even looking back at all the tinsel, baubles and worthless trinkets left behind.

ABBA YHWH, open our eyes that we may come completely out of Babylon; in the name of Yeshua our Mashiach.  Amein.

Shabbat Shalom
Zerubbabel ben Emunah
www.onetorahforall.com
zerubbabel@onetorahforall.com

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