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Nimrod

The great-grandson of Noah through the line of Cush was named Nimrod
(Genesis 10:8). Nimrod was one of the rst of the “mighty men” to appear on the
earth after the great ood (Genesis 6:4). The Bible calls Nimrod “a mighty hunter
before the Lord.”

Nimrod was also a giant of a man and an ambitious leader who established Babel
and other cities in the land of Shinar. He had great physical strength and men
followed him. Other giants in Scripture are listed as coming from the line of Ham
through Nimrod. Some examples in Scripture include when Moses sent the spies
into the land of Canaan and they reported seeing the “sons of Anak” and they felt
“like they were grasshoppers.” The Bible also speaks about the Rephaim and
David faced and defeated one of them, Goliath.
But above all, Nimrod was a rebel. As the founder and builder of Babel he was the
key instigator in leading the rebellion against God.

The Jewish historian Josephus recorded that Nimrod “said he would be revenged
on God, if he should have a mind to drown the world again; for that he would
build a tower too high for the waters to reach. And that he would avenge himself
on God for destroying their forefathers” (Antiquities of the Jews, Book 1, Chapter
4). The reason for the great ood of Noah’s day was because of mankind’s
wickedness and rebellion (Genesis 6:5–6), from which humanity refused to
repent. Like his antediluvian forebears, he was rebellious, and, according to
Josephus, he “persuaded his subjects not to ascribe their strength to God, as if it
were through His means they were happy, but to believe that it was their own
courage which procured that happiness. We can see this same train of thought in
many of today’s popular speakers and even religious programs—that it is our
own power of self-will or the authority of our words that accomplishes change.
But God was the one who demonstrated power by confusing the languages of the
people. Nimrod failed to understand that all of man’s strength and ability, even
the strength of the mightiest of men, is a gift from God. And God can take it away
at any moment He so chooses.

Nimrod is a character in the mythology of many ancient cultures; including
Hungarian, Greek, Arabic, Syrian, and Armenian legends. There is evidence that
the Epic of Gilgamesh and the myth of Hercules both nd their origins in Nimrod’s
life. Nimrod was undoubtedly a powerful, charismatic hero- gure of the ancient
world who actually attempted to build a tower to Heaven, hoping to thwart the
plans of God. It isn’t hard to see why so many myths and legends would spring up
in the wake of such a man. In the end, however, Nimrod’s power and glory came
to nothing, because God is stronger than even the mightiest of men, and He
cannot be thwarted. Nimrod was a mighty hunter before the Lord, but humility
before the Lord is the posture of the wise (Proverbs 3:34; 11:2; James 4:6; 1 Peter
5:5).

Reference: GotQuestions.org

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