Why Was the Tower of Babel Built?

The story of the Tower of Babel, as related in Genesis 10–11, is often known even outside of the Christian faith. Sometimes it’s used as an allegory, like the story of Icarus who flew so high into the sun that his wings melted and he plummeted to the earth. But in the Genesis 11 narrative about the Tower of Babel, it’s not a person who falls because of his pride, but rather all people.

Before we get to why the Tower was built, some background information is in order.

When Was the Tower of Babel Built?

The Tower of Babel was built approximately 1,750 years after creation, or about one hundred years after the flood. Based on the genealogical records within the Bible starting with Adam’s nine-hundred-year lifespan, we can estimate that the building of the Tower of Babel, the confounding of languages, and the scattering of peoples happened around 1,750 years after creation. Based on the genealogies of Noah and his three sons following the flood, we can deduce that the events of Genesis 11 took place approximately one hundred years after the flood. By then, a century equated to the lifespans of three new generations.

Within the narrative structure of the Bible, the story of the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11 takes place during the events of Genesis 10.

Genealogies within the Bible serve as bridges from one important story to the next while always reminding us of the central character’s link to the promise of Genesis 3:15, that a redeemer would one day be born to crush the serpent’s head. Thus, the genealogies of Genesis 10 bridges the time from the flood to the construction of the Tower of Babel.

Genesis 10 essentially provides a broad overview of a long swath of passed time. Genesis 11 delves into one particular story that occurred during that time period. The Bible repeatedly uses this big-picture/small-picture literary technique to provide greater context to its narratives.

But how can we know for sure that the events of Genesis 11 take place within the timeline of Genesis 10? Read Genesis 10:5 closely: “By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations” (emphasis added). How else could multiple languages exist in Genesis 10:5 unless God had already “confounded” their language? And in case we missed the point, Genesis 10:20 echoes the description: “These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations” (emphasis added).

Why Was the Tower of Babel Built?

The Tower of Babel was built because people sought to construct a tower to reach the heavens.

But there’s something off about our general interpretation of their intent. When Genesis 11:4 says that they wanted to build a tower “whose top may reach unto heaven,” that doesn’t mean they thought they were building an edifice to get to heaven. They weren’t so naive to believe they could accomplish something that even our present-day skyscraper engineers in New York City or Dubai know is impossible. We know this to be true because God respects their collective intellect. When he sees what they’re aiming to do, he says “now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do” (Genesis 11:6).

Rather, the Hebrew word for “whose top may reach unto heaven” would be better rendered as “on top of which will be the heavens.” Towers of worship called ziggurats still stand today in present-day Iraq, which is where the Tower of Babel was first erected in the ancient city of Babylon (also called Shinar in Genesis 11:2 and elsewhere, particularly Revelation). Zodiacs, which are depictions of the heavens, sit atop these ziggurats.

In other words, the heavens rest on the towers’ highest points. They didn’t build the Tower of Babel to get to heaven; they built it to bring heaven to them.

Additionally, I believe the building of the Tower was also the creation of something much worse: big government—a topic for a future article.

The preceding post is an adapted excerpt from my upcoming book, 30 Things You Need to Know about Your Bible (If You Claim to Know Your Bible).