The Man Who Created the Economy: Tracing the Foundation of Scarcity and Competition

We're conditioned from a young age to compete.From the moment we enter the classroom, we are taught to contend. We compete for the highest grades, the best university spots, and for job opportunities. Those who make it to the workplace go on to contend for promotions, raises, and sometimes , even the right to keep their jobs. Our entire lives are defined by this constant, exhausting struggle to survive against one another.

But why? Why is our existence defined by this perpetual competition?

The system that demands this of us is none other than the economy. At its simplest, the economy is the system by which goods and services are produced, distributed, and consumed within a society.Adam Smith is widely revered as the pioneer of the field of Modern Economics , but few of us  actually know the ancient figure who caused the creation of the economic system in the first place .Today, with the help of the the book of Genesis ,  we are going to realize that the foundations of the modern economic system are as old as the famous Tower of Babel itself .

 The Tower of Babel

After the Great Flood, God's command to humanity was clear: “Now as for you, be productive and multiply; spread out over the land and multiply throughout it."(Genesis 9:1-2 ISV). This was a command to  disperse across  the vast available space.Earth had ample space and enough land and resources to easily support all of humanity.

But humanity defied this divine mandate.  Instead of spreading out to fill the earth , they clustered together on a single piece of land :

"And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly... And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth."(Genesis 11:3-4 KJV)

Forsaking the spacious, never-ending expanse of nature, they chose a plain in Shinar and there started building a  towering city of Babel tower " to prevent human dispersion .

Urbanization

Geographers call the movement away from free and  spacious rural land  to concrentrate in a relatively small piece of land to form a city , urbanization . UNESCO , officialy defines  urbanization as " the process by which an increasing proportion of a population moves from rural areas to urban centers, resulting in the growth of cities .” Why did humanity suddenly change course ?WHo was behind this movement ?
 

The Ring Leader 

The ringleader who spearheaded this rebellion against God's will for humanity was Nimrod. This Rebel was interested in the concentration of people onto a smaller, demarcated pieces of land called cities . The Bible introduces him as the great-grandson of Noah and the founder of the city of Babel—the first of many cities he established in the land of Shinar (Genesis 10:8–10). 

The renowned Jewish historian Josephus  describes Nimrod as a bold leader who stirred the emotions of ancient humanity, triggering  in them a spirit of outrage and hatred against God (Antiquities of the Jews 1.4.1–3).He suceeded in persuading people that their happiness and success were not derived from God, but were  from their own courage. He intentionally shifted humanity's focus from God to their own power. He proposed the construction of a great monument—the Tower of Babel—to showcase human glory.

 In a previous article of ours , we discuss that Nimrod was somewhat of an ancient mass pyschology experts .He took advantage of fallen mankind’s natural desire for status and recognition, knowing full well that a project offering them an opportunity to 'make a name for themselves' would be highly attractive. Ultimately, human ambition and a love for display motivated the people to devote their lives to this defiant project.  

Creating Scarcity: The Foundation of the Economy

When the masses flocked to concentrate their dwellings on relatively small, demarcated pockets of land, they did not realize that through them, Nimrod was laying the foundation of the economy.

An area of land can only support a so many people before it becomes overburdened. Nimrod knew that a high population density in an area would exert immense pressure on its natural resources.s. Under these conditions, resources are consumed faster than they can be replenished. This is compounded by the reality that urban development projects(like the great Babel project ) further reduce natural reserves through the introduction of artificial surfaces, deforestation, soil erosion, and water pollutiont etc.

By encouraging this overcrowding, Nimrod was intentionally creating scarcity.

This is the key: Scarcity is the foundation of the economy.

When resources are abundant, there is no need for a complex system of distribution. However, when you have limited resources and a dense population, you require a system to decide how those limited assets are distributed. This system evolved into what we define as the economy today. Nimrod's act of urbanization was the first instance of inducing artificial scarcity, thereby laying the foundation for the entire modern economic system.

Competing to Survive: The New Skillset

Scarcity meant that people had to compete with one another for access to a limited supply of resources. In this new environment, competition became the key to survival.

Before this, the people lived an agrarian lifestyle, planting and eating directly from the land. Their survival was rooted in a direct relationship with nature. But in Nimrod’s cities, a new skillset—and a new education system to support it—became mandatory. Competency had to be demonstrated in exchange for the very resources needed to stay alive.

Because Nimrod’s tower was the focal point of economic activity, not all skills were valued equally. The government’s interest was simple: "Who is most useful to the project?" Those with the highest capacity—physically or intellectually—to contribute to the growth of the tower were remunerated and granted access to the available resources. Those who could not compete were relegated to the class we now call "the poor."

These people were forced to work and compete for the same resources they would have easily accessed had they followed God’s command to scatter.

Do you see what Nimrod did? He created a system where survival required being useful to his project. The economy, therefore, is essentially a distribution game. It decides who eats and who doesn't, based on their willingness to follow suit and make themselves useful to the ambitions of the urban center.

Ultimately, Nimrod laid the foundation for the economy by positioning himself as the gatekeeper of survival in the city.

Keywords: Nimrod, Economy, Scarcity, Urbanization, Tower of Babel, Competition, Genesis 11, Josephus, Agrarian Lifestyle, Control.

References: [1]: # "Josephus, Flavius. Antiquities of the Jews. Book 1, Chapter 4. (Details Nimrod's role as a tyrant and his goal of constant dependence)."