Deeper Reflection
THE PEOPLE IN THE LAND OF SHINAR WERE BUILDING “a tower whose top will reach into heaven” to connect with the gods in heaven³⁶ (Gen 11:4). Man-made religions have this same common aim. The builders of the tower at Babel thought their temple tower reached into heaven. But the irony is, it was so low that God had to “come down” from heaven just to see it (Gen 11:5). Humans by themselves can never reach up to God in heaven. It has to be God Himself coming down from heaven to reach out to us on earth.Paul describes “the coming of the Lord” (v.15) as “the Lord Himself will descend from heaven” (v.16). The God of the Bible is the God who comes down to us. It is of great significance for us to reflect on the divine coming down movements in Scripture. Moses led Israel out of the Egyptian bondage to Mount Sinai “to meet God” (Exo 19:1, 17). And for that to happen “the Lord came down” from heaven “on Mount Sinai” (Exo 19:11, 18, 20). Then God descended from Mount Sinai to the Tabernacle to dwell among His people (Exo 25:8; 40:34-35). The most definitive divine coming down to humanity is Jesus “emptied Himself ” of His “equality with God” and became human and took on the “form of a bond-servant” (Phil 2:6-7). This humble divine coming down went further down: “death, even death on a cross” (Phil 2:8).How will you respond to this God who comes down to you with such humility and grace?

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³⁶ Bruce K. Waltke with Cathi J. Fredricks, , Genesis: A Commentary (Zondervan, 2001), 179