Genesis — The Bible Teaching Commentary
Genesis 10-11 Unity & Diversity – The Bible Teacher's Commentary
The Destruction of Cultures
Cultural Decay
Cultures are protected from fast decay because of an agreement on standards and stories which serve to uphold those values. Cultures begin to break down when outside ‘stories’ are introduced and different ways of life seem possible.
The isolation of different groups has restrained the growth of wickedness by establishing many different cultures across the globe.
Each holds and protects its own values. The isolation of these cultures originated at the Tower of Babel. What has happened in the last generation is a fast degeneration of these many diverse cultures.
Further accelerating the speed of wickedness is the force of creating a world culture. People from different cultures are able to communicate with people from different areas. Education has increased the usage of world languages like English. Automatic translation services on the web and elsewhere are rapidly enabling others to transfer information to others. These ‘impurities’ seeping into each culture bring each culture closer and closer into the world. We need to be careful as we step into the 7th millennium!
Dangers of Modern World Culture
When we look back at Genesis 11:1-9, we find the isolationism of many cultures is being destroyed. Wickedness is increasing but so is the Gospel. 4000 new churches in the Ukraine in the past ten years. India with its vast number of isolated villages with their own languages are fast become evangelized. 
Over the last twenty years an amazing 400,000 churches have started. Fast increasing urban populations which are international, multilingual, tolerant to modern standards and shaped through the modern educational system spread their ideas over the world wide web. It is incredible to see the places people can now access this web even in the poorest countries in the world. God’s wrath might not be held off much longer.
The development of these tall towers in the ancient world is significant. Each tower results from the ambition of man to show himself as greater than his neighbor. The destruction of the Twin Towers is at least a warning from God not to glory in himself. This does not restrain man, however, bigger and taller with Dubai the biggest bidder now.
Applications
• Diverse cultures are reminders of God’s way of preserving mankind so that God’s plan of redemption will be worked out in earth’s history through our Savior Christ Jesus.
• We should not be fooled into thinking one culture is better than another. Each have their positive and negative traits. Instead we should remember that the problem of each of these cultures is no different from the sin that has entered the human race through Adam and that was passed on through Noah’s sons through Noah himself.
• Time is now short. War and disease can devastate large numbers of the people on earth but unless technology is taken away from us, we have the capability of combining our arrogance in a secular world culture. Temptation will increase. How can we escape the word’s culture encroaching into our lives? Our children? Home schooling is one means but in the end it starts and remains with the purity of the heart and how much we have kept the world out.
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Reflections
• The battle with temptation will increase as this modern 'one world' society grows. What spiritual disciplines help protect you from these worldly intrusions upon your love for God and His ways? Be specific. You can also mention what plans you have to initiate these spiritual disciplines.
• How do you respond when people are prejudice against you or despise you for something about you? Reflect a bit on what place God has put you in this modern society (In other words you have access to communication and travel and riches - many don't). What does God want to do through you because of who you are and what you have? Write down your reflections.
Make sure you take a look at the two Bible studies on Genesis 10-11.