The Tower of Babel

Genesis 11: 1 – 4: And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. 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 throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. 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.

The construction project of Babel and its tower, the capital of Nimrod’s empire, was begun in the time of Peleg, for the Bible tells us in Genesis 10: 25 that the earth was divided by the confusion of language following the Divine interruption of the work. Peleg was born 101 years after the Flood and lived for 239 years (Genesis 11: 16 – 19), so the great construction project was begun some two or three hundred years after the Flood. The scale of the intended city and tower was truly awesome. Various records of interest state that the circumference of the city was three days walk, having a computed extent of between one hundred and two hundred square miles, that forty-three years were spent building the city and tower, and that the height of the tower reached 5433 cubits or 8150 feet, which is 2400 metres! The plain or flat valley of Shinar (Iraq today) was considered sufficient space, and chosen as best suited for the intended building site.

The intent of the city and its tower was for man to climb above the floodwater level that had previously wiped out all civilization, should such a cataclysmic event occur again. These rebellious descendants of Noah also desired to ascend into Heaven via the tower so as to make war against God and dethrone Him, and establish their own gods in His place. This was a classic case of man trying to leave this world and enter into the next world without repentance. Such perverted ambition has repeated again in these last days with the building of a Space program to search for other planets that can be inhabited and colonized before planet Earth is destroyed. Furthermore, the quest to open up portals into the next dimension through highly advanced technologies is but another attempt to escape the impending doom prophesied upon this generation. But as the first Babel project ended in failure, so the latter Babel project will come to naught in man’s futile effort to outsmart and dethrone God.