Genesis 11:5

Genesis 11:5 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.
• New International Version (NIV)But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower the people were building.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built.
• New King James Version (NKJV)But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.

Context of Genesis 11:5

3They began saying to each other, “Let’s make bricks and harden them with fire.” (In this region bricks were used instead of stone, and tar was used for mortar.) 4Then they said, “Come, let’s build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world.” But the Lord came down to look at the city and the tower the people were building. 6“Look!” he said. “The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them! 7Come, let’s go down and confuse the people with different languages. Then they won’t be able to understand each other.”

Genesis 11:5 word by word

וַיֵּ֣רֶד יְהוָ֔ה לִרְאֹ֥ת אֶת־הָעִ֖יר וְאֶת־הַמִּגְדָּ֑ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר בָּנ֖וּ בְּנֵ֥י הָאָדָֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• came downיָרַדyârad · to go downH3381
• to seeרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• the cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• and the towerמִגְדָּלmigdâl migdâlâh · towerH4026
• which the childrenבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• of menאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
• buildedבָּנָהbânâh · to buildH1129

Cross-references for Genesis 11:5

• Genesis 18:21I am going down to see if their actions are as wicked as I have heard. If not, I want to know.”
• Exodus 19:11Be sure they are ready on the third day, for on that day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai as all the people watch.
• Psalms 11:4But the Lord is in his holy Temple; the Lord still rules from heaven. He watches everyone closely, examining every person on earth.
• Psalms 33:13The Lord looks down from heaven and sees the whole human race.
• Jeremiah 23:23Am I a God who is only close at hand?” says the Lord. “No, I am far away at the same time.
• John 3:13No one has ever gone to heaven and returned. But the Son of Man has come down from heaven.
• Hebrews 4:13Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable.

Commentaries on Genesis 11:5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5And the Lord came down - A lesson, says an ancient Jewish commentator, to magistrates to examine every evidence before they decree judgment and execute justice.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-9Verses 1-9 - The Confusion of Tongues 1. נסע nāsa‛ “pluck out, break up, journey.” מקדם mı̂qedem “eastward, or on the east side” as in Genesis 2:14; Genesis 13:11; Isaiah 9:11 (12). 6. החלם hachı̂lām “their beginning”, for החלם hăchı̂lām the regular form of this infinitive with a suffix. יזמוּ yāzmû as if from יזם yāzam = זמם zāmam נבלה nābelâh usually said to be for נבלה nābolâh from בלל bālal but evidently designed by the punctuator to be…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-9Verses 5-9 Here is an expression after the manner of men; The Lord came down to see the city. God is just and fair in all he does against sin and sinners, and condemns none unheard. Pious Eber is not found among this ungodly crew; for he and his are called the children of God; their souls joined not themselves to the assembly of these children of men. God suffered them to go on some way, that the works of their hands, from which they promised themselves…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5came down: The tower was a human attempt to reach up to God’s realm (God’s dwelling place; see Deuteronomy 26:15; Psalms 2:4; 103:19; 115:16). This effort was foolish. God had to “come down” to see what they were building, which shows how small and weak their work really was.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-321. the whole earth was of one language. The descendants of Noah, united by the strong bond of a common language, had not separated, and notwithstanding the divine command to replenish the earth, were unwilling to separate. The more pious and well-disposed would of course obey the divine will; but a numerous body, seemingly the aggressive horde mentioned (Ge 10:10), determined to please themselves by occupying the fairest region they came to.Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 11:5

• Anthropomorphisms
• Babel
• Babylon
• Confusion
• Dispersion
• Language
• Miracles
• Tongue
• Tower

In the dictionaries

• Babel, tower of
• Begin
• Confound
• Earth
• Mesopotamia
• Noah
• Scatter
• Shinar, The Land of
• Slime
• Tongues, Confusion of

Commentaries on Genesis 11

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings