Common Mistakes

The people in Dor Haflagah made a big mistake. They decided to build a city for themselves, instead of spreading out like G-d wanted them to. They wanted to stick together and make a name for themselves. By the pasukim telling us that they wanted to make a name for themselves instead of for G-d, we can understand that they did not acknowledge the hierarchy in which they are under G-d. They do not recognize G-d's Omnipotent power and omniscience. This is similar to the time Adam and Chava sinned by not recognizing G-d's supreme power. They tried to hide from G-d, not realizing that He sees all.

At this time in the world there have already been many sins and punishments that have taken place. There have been many times that G-d has re-established Himself as G-d and made sure it was known among the people. By now, it should be clear that if you mess with G-d 's plan, there will be harsh consequences. These people were not stupid. They knew there was a G-d. And yet they did not try to fulfill His orders (of spreading out and populating the world). To us, they're actions seem dumb. How after Adam, Chava, and Kayin's sins could they still not recognize Hashem's power and obey his commands?

Well, as I usually do on these blogs, I will give my own answer:

I do not think these people are deliberately trying to disobey G-d's orders. They must know what G-d wants. Their actions do seem stupid considering what we know about the previous sins and punishments. But, when you look at the peoples' actions more closely, they really don't seem that crazy. The people wanted to stick together. The world was just created, they don't know what kind of dangers are awaiting them in foreign places. They are afraid of the unknown. That's normal for us too. Maybe they think they will be safer by just sticking together. When I'm in sketchy places for basketball games I definitely feel safer with a group. They also wanted to make a name for themselves. Who in this time doesn't want to make a name for themselves? Go on YouTube and you can see thousands of people displaying their talents hoping they will someday become famous. Clearly the people did not make the right decisions. They should have acknowledged G-d's supreme power and trusted that they were in good hands. They made a huge mistake. But, their actions are a part of human nature. We make the same mistakes today. We also have problems trusting Hashem, and sometimes think of ourselves before Him. This is all a part of human nature. Humans can be selfish and do not always trust/fear G-d the way we should, and we continue to work on getting rid of these traits every day.