Session 9: The Stuff We're Made Of: Philosophical Reflections on Genesis 1-11

Genesis 10 and 11 constitute a synoptic account of the origin and scattering of the nations. In Genesis 10, we find a bottom-up genealogical account of God-given, intrinsic differentiation between people groups that cluster around three types of civilization: sea-faring, urban-agricultural, and nomadic. There is no hint of judgment in Genesis 10 – God just delights in there being different forms of culture and society. In Genesis 11, we encounter the dark option, potentially available to any people group, of pursuing empire as a resistance to the plurality and scattering of nations.