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how does the old testament speak about the roots of human division and conflict?

The passage, plainly, with room to sit with it.

Genesis 11:7-8

Come, let’s go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.” So Yahweh scattered them abroad from there on the surface of all the earth. They stopped building the city.

This passage comes from the early chapters of Genesis, following the flood narrative. Humanity, speaking one language, gathers in Shinar with the ambition to build a city and a tower reaching to the heavens, to "make a name for themselves" and avoid being scattered. This excerpt describes God's response to their unified, self-directed ambition.

What does a shared purpose look like when it serves connection rather than self-exaltation?

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Read alongside it

  • Genesis 3:16-19

    Describes the first divisions and conflicts between humanity and creation after the garden.

  • Isaiah 2:2-4

    Envisions a future where nations come together for peace, contrasting with Babel's division.

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