11:1那时，天下人的口音，言语，都是一样。

And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.

11:2他们往东边迁移的时候，在示拿地遇见一片平原，就住在那里。

And it came about that in their wandering from the east, they came to a stretch of flat country in the land of Shinar, and there they made their living-place.

11:3他们彼此商量说，来吧，我们要作砖，把砖烧透了。他们就拿砖当石头，又拿石漆当灰泥。

And they said one to another, Come, let us make bricks, burning them well. And they had bricks for stone, putting them together with sticky earth.

11:4他们说，来吧，我们要建造一座城和一座塔，塔顶通天，为要传扬我们的名，免得我们分散在全地上。

And they said, Come, let us make a town, and a tower whose top will go up as high as heaven; and let us make a great name for ourselves, so that we may not be wanderers over the face of the earth.

11:5耶和华降临，要看看世人所建造的城和塔。

And the Lord came down to see the town and the tower which the children of men were building.

11:6耶和华说，看哪，他们成为一样的人民，都是一样的言语，如今既作起这事来，以后他们所要作的事就没有不成就的了。

And the Lord said, See, they are all one people and have all one language; and this is only the start of what they may do: and now it will not be possible to keep them from any purpose of theirs.

11:7我们下去，在那里变乱他们的口音，使他们的言语彼此不通。

Come, let us go down and take away the sense of their language, so that they will not be able to make themselves clear to one another.

11:8于是，耶和华使他们从那里分散在全地上。他们就停工，不造那城了。

So the Lord God sent them away into every part of the earth: and they gave up building their town.

11:9因为耶和华在那里变乱天下人的言语，使众人分散在全 地上，所以那城名叫巴别（就是变乱的意思）。

So it was named Babel, because there the Lord took away the sense of all languages and from there the Lord sent them away over all the face of the earth.

读后感：

首先，我们搞清language和speech的关系。

英英解释为：Language is the system of communication in speech and writing that is used by people of a particular country.

语言(language)是由话语(speech)和文字(writing)组成的人际交流体系。语言被特定国家的人民所使用。

据《圣经》创世纪11章1-9节记载：人类在建通天塔（《圣经》称巴列塔）时，语言统一，齐心协力。

人类因何冒犯了上帝？

他们说：“我们要建造一座城和一座塔，塔顶通天，为要传扬我们的名，免得我们分散在全地上。”

人类是何等的自夸与狂傲！

耶和华在那里变乱天下人的言语，使众人分散在全球各地，所以那城名叫巴别（就是变乱的意思）。

《圣经》上说，上帝只是变乱天下人的言语(speech)，并没有提到文字。可能那时并没有文字。因为文字的出现在约8000年前。

感谢上帝！当初如果他不这么做，世间也就不会有外语这个概念了。

人类为此付出了漫长的代价！

公元2000年，即千禧年，联合国教科文组织指出：各国不应该再把英语视作外国语，而是将其作为一门学科或全球交流的工具。

这标志着人类的觉醒。

因为，世界的末日必将到来。末世后的社会秩序必然要整顿，即将呈现一个崭新的、官方语统一、只有一个信仰、井然有序、没有邪恶和充满爱的世界。

现代人掌握英语（计算机、互联网的首选输入符号）这个全球交流工具，传福音，就会蒙恩。所以，学英语也是一种救赎。那时，人人都有上帝的封印。