The Holy Scriptures says that after the flood the whole earth used the same language and the same words. And they left the Orient and found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they lived there. And they said to one another: “Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly. And they used brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar. And they said, ‘Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let us make for ourselves a name; lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth” (Gen. 11:1-4).

“Jehovah came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men built” (Gen. 11:5). TO SEE? Did Jehovah become shortsighted? Did he develop astigmatism? He said by the mouth of Jeremiah: “Am I a God at hand, says Jehovah, and not a God afar off? Can any hide himself in secret places so that I shall not see him? says Jehovah. Don’t I fill heaven and earth? says Jehovah” (Jer. 23:23-24). And the Scriptures say more: “Jehovah looked down from heaven on the children of men, to see if there were any who did understand, who did seek after God. They have all gone aside. They have together become corrupt. There is none who does good, no, not one” (Ps. 14:2-3). The truth is that, this time, Jehovah had to come down to see it closely. And what did he see? “Jehovah said, ‘Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is what they begin to do. Now nothing will be withheld from them, which they intend to do’” (Gen. 11:6).

“Come, let’s go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. So Jehovah scattered them abroad from there on the surface of all the earth. They stopped building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there Jehovah confused the language of all the earth. From there, Jehovah scattered them abroad on the surface of all the earth” (Gen. 11:7-9). Jehovah is the god of confusion for the following reasons:

1.  It is not of Jehovah’s interest that men understand each other. He wants them ones against the others. For this reason Jeremiah says: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man, and makes flesh his arm” (Jer. 17:5). In the New Testament, though, John preached fellowship, in other words, that two opponents should love each other and have peace: “He who loves his brother remains in the light, and there is no occasion for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother is in the darkness, and walks in the darkness, and doesn’t know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes” (1 John 2:10-11). In the times of Jehovah Esau and Jacob were enemies from the womb of their mother (Gen. 25:22-23). In the times of Jesus it has to be different, for he said: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor, and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you, that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust’” (Matt. 5:43-45).

2.  It is not interesting to Jehovah that men are one, that is to say, that men have the same purpose, for when men are united, their strength multiplies, for union makes strength, according to the popular wisdom. Men got together with the purpose of reaching the sky (Gen. 11:4). Jehovah did not allow this purpose to become strong. The weapon used was confusion, for this is the meaning of the word BABEL, the name of the tower they were edifying. Babel became a synonym of mess, pandemonium, and total confusion. In the place were Babel was, in the land of Shinar, there rose the city of Babylon of the Chaldeans, enemies of the people of Israel.

We read in the book of Job that Jehovah was not pleased with Job being a righteous man, and did not have any profit in the perfection of his ways (Job 22:3). If Jehovah had any pleasure in the perfection of his people’s ways, he would not deliver them to the desires of their hearts (Ps. 81:11-12). He would not sell his people, increasing his wealth with their price, that is to say, the people was sold into captivity, and there they became worse than they were, for he added to his own wickedness the wickedness of the people he enslaved. If Jehovah had pleasure in that his people were righteous, he would not pollute them himself, in their gifts (Ezek. 20:26). If Jehovah had pleasure in that his people were righteous, he would not have given them statutes that were not good, judgments by which they would not live (Ezek. 20:25). If Jehovah took pleasure in the righteousness he would not himself lead them astray, and harden their hearts that they might not fear him (Is. 63:17). If Jehovah took pleasure in the holiness and righteousness of his people, he would not set his holy spirit as an enemy, fighting against Israel. The text says: “But they rebelled, and grieved his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, [and] himself fought against them” (Is. 63:10).

Now, every man is a sinner and destitute of the glory of god (Rom. 3:23). Therefore, man is more animal in nature than he is spiritual and, therefore, weak and without resources to resist evil. The very Paul testifies to this in Rom. 7:18-24.

Jesus, in his death, brought another Holy Spirit from heaven, that is to say, not the spirit that fights against the weak, as the one of Jehovah, but the Spirit that is the Paraclete (Greek word, not translated, which means INTERCESSOR, COUNSELOR, ADVOCATE). Because the Father has pleasure in that we become holy and righteous, he sent his Son Jesus in order to create in us a new being. Paul says: “That you put away, as concerning your former way of life, the old man, that grows corrupt after the lusts of deceit; and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new man, who in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of truth” (Eph. 4:22-24).

In the Old Testament, Jehovah promoted confusion.

We believe in the Bible as the word of God. We believe in the Old Testament and in the New Testament. We believe in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. But we do not believe in Jehovah, the usurper, as God the Father.

By Pastor Olavo Silveira Pereira