“And the LORD said, ‘Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another’s speech.’ So the LORD dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city.”
(Genesis 11:6–8 ESV)
In Genesis 11, we witness humanity’s third great rebellion. After the fall in Eden and the corruption of the earth before the flood, the tower of Babel marks another attempt to seize what God had promised — but on humanity’s terms. The builders of Babel sought to reach the heavens by constructing a temple-tower, a ziggurat designed to draw divine presence down once more. They longed for what was lost in Eden — the nearness of God — yet they wanted it without repentance, without holiness, and without submission.
The unity they achieved was indeed powerful — so powerful that God himself said, “Nothing they propose to do will now be impossible for them.” But it was a unity driven by pride and empowered by dark spiritual forces. Their ambition was not to host God’s presence but to use it to control the rest of humanity. So God intervened, confusing their language and scattering them across the earth. What looked like a setback for humanity was actually an act of mercy: divine disruption to prevent deeper destruction.
From Rebellion to Redemption
This moment in Babel explains far more than why we speak different languages — it reveals why the nations themselves were spiritually divided. It’s the backdrop to God’s call of Abram in the very next chapter.
Deuteronomy 32:8–9 sheds divine light on what happened at that time:
“When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance,
when he divided mankind,
he fixed the borders of the peoples
according to the number of the sons of God.
But the LORD’s portion is his people,
Jacob his allotted heritage.”
(Deut. 32:8–9)
When God divided the nations at Babel, he allotted their territories under the oversight of spiritual beings — “sons of God,” divine agents intended to steward the nations on his behalf. Yet over time, these beings rebelled. They began to crave worship, to claim glory for themselves, and to enslave the peoples they were meant to serve. The result was a world fragmented not only by language and culture, but also by idolatry and spiritual oppression.
Israel: God’s Rescue Plan
Out of this global rebellion, God chose one man — Abram — and one nation — Israel — to be his “portion,” the family through whom he would reclaim the nations. Israel’s calling was priestly: to represent God among the nations and bring humanity back into covenant relationship with him.
But the powers didn’t easily relinquish their influence. The rebellious “sons of God” are still exerting influence, even though Jesus has already disarmed them at the cross (Col.2:15). They turn up in the New Testament narrative as the principalities and powers Paul describes in Ephesians 6 — spiritual rulers that still exercise geographical control over people in their area and resist God’s purposes. Yet Scripture promises that one day they will be judged. Psalm 82 opens the curtain on a divine courtroom where God will call these beings to account:
“You are gods,
sons of the Most High, all of you;
nevertheless, like men you shall die,
and fall like any prince.”
(Ps. 82:6–7)
Their time is short. Their rule will end.
The Hope of Restoration
The story of Babel is not just about the confusion of human languages. It’s about God’s plan to heal what was broken. What began as scattering will end in gathering. The nations that were once divided and placed outside of YHWH’s inheritance are being reclaimed through the gospel of Jesus the Messiah.
At Pentecost, the Spirit descended and started to reverse the curse of Babel. Jewish people from every nation in the diaspora heard the wonders of God in their own language — the beginning of a new humanity, united not by human ambition but by divine grace. After diaspora Jews found their way back into God’s inheritance, time came for the Samaritans to find their way back (Acts 8 ff), and then the rest of the nations (Acts 10 ff). They were all reclaimed from the power of the evil spiritual rulers, the rebellious “sons of God.”
Through Messiah, God is taking back the nations. The rebellious spiritual powers will fall and be judged, and the whole earth will once again become the dwelling place of God. The rebellion of Babel will give way to a restoration centered in Zion — and the glory of the Lord will fill the earth as the waters cover the sea.
All Things Restored
This is the story of all things restored — from Babel’s confusion to Pentecost’s renewal. God’s purpose has never changed: to dwell with his people and to bless all nations through them. Every story of rebellion only reveals a greater story of redemption. The same God who scattered humanity in judgment is now gathering us again in mercy — one family, one faith, one Messiah, and one Kingdom that will never end.
Scholarly Note on Deuteronomy 32:8–9
The textual variant in Deuteronomy 32:8–9 is pivotal for understanding the biblical theology of nations and divine inheritance. The Masoretic Text (MT) reads:
“When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel (בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל). But the LORD’s portion (חֵלֶק) is his people, Jacob his allotted inheritance (נַחֲלָתוֹ).”
The problem is chronological: the division of the nations (Gen. 11) precedes the birth of Jacob or the existence of Israel by several generations. Moreover, the reference to “borders of the peoples” (גְּבֻלֹת עַמִּים) clearly recalls the Babel event, when humanity was divided by language and geography.
The Dead Sea Scrolls (4QDeut j; 4QDeut q) and the Septuagint (LXX) preserve an older and more coherent reading:
“He fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God (בְּנֵי אֵל / κατὰ ἀριθμὸν υἱῶν θεοῦ / ἀγγέλων θεοῦ).”
This variant aligns with the divine council worldview reflected elsewhere in Scripture (cf. Job 1:6; Ps. 82:1, 6; Dan. 10:13, 20–21). According to this reading, when God divided the nations at Babel, he allotted their territories to lesser divine beings—“sons of God”—who were to rule them under his authority. But only one nation, Israel, was reserved for Yahweh himself: “the LORD’s portion is his people.”
The term ḥēleq (“portion”) and the parallel naḥalāh (“inheritance”) are covenantal and territorial terms, evoking the language of land allotment (cf. Deut. 4:20; 9:29; 32:9; Josh. 14:1–5). In this context, God’s “portion” is not land but a people—his covenant possession—while the nations are temporarily under other spiritual authorities. The reversal of Babel thus becomes an inheritance theme: God will one day reclaim what is his.
Michael S. Heiser argues that this older reading preserves the original worldview of ancient Israel and explains the background for the New Testament’s depiction of rulers and authorities (Eph. 6:12; Col. 1:16; 2:15). The “sons of God” who ruled the nations became corrupt, demanding worship for themselves and fostering idolatry. Psalm 82 portrays God’s judgment on these beings: “You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you; nevertheless, like men you shall die” (Ps. 82:6–7).1
Modern critical editions such as BHQ and BHS generally regard בְּנֵי אֵל (“sons of God”) as the original reading, given both its superior antiquity and its explanatory power within the biblical metanarrative. Many modern translations reflect this in footnotes (e.g., ESV, NRSV, NET). Theologically, the passage underlines the missional logic of God’s call to Abraham in Genesis 12: having scattered the nations at Babel, God now begins the process of reclaiming them through his chosen “portion,” Israel—a mission ultimately fulfilled in Messiah, who inherits the nations (Ps. 2:8; Rev. 11:15).
- Michael S. Heiser, The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2015), 113–118; cf. Demons: What the Bible Really Says About the Powers of Darkness (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020), 46–54. See also John H. Walton, The Lost World of Genesis One (Downers Grove: IVP, 2009), 172–173, and Daniel I. Block, Deuteronomy (NIVAC; Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012), 748–750, for complementary discussions of divine inheritance language.
Featured image: The Great Tower of Babel by Pieter Bruegel the Elder (c.1563, oil on wood panel)
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