The Tower of Babel
The Tower of Babel has been viewed by many scholars,
researchers, archeologists and Bible students to be one of the most fascinating
and incredible stories in the Bible.[1] A story
of a united people, whose aim was to build this massive tower that reached the
highest heights in the sky, and to become the greatest accomplishment ever
known to man, was well on its way to success.[2]
But God stops them in their tracks, which prevented their desired masterpiece from
coming to fruition. He does something that had never been done before – resulting in an intentional mass confusion
and sabotage where the completion of the tower had to be totally
abandoned and never reached its completion.[3] They
were inundated with speaking different languages where they could no longer
understand each other. Some scholars believe that the tower’s story is not an
actual piece of history but was used to explain why certain things came to be,
while others sought to prove that there indeed was an actual tower of Babel and
the proof could be solidified.
Tower of Babel
God’s Problem versus Man’s
Rebellion
The biblical account of the Tower of
Babel determines that it was the only time that people everywhere were united
in mind to obtain a common goal; therefore, they spoke with one voice and with
one language.[4] Their
goal was to make their tower reach into the heavens. God became aware of their
actions and was totally displeased for this went against what He had originally
instructed Adam to do.[5] The
Bible says, “God blessed them and said to
them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue
it’ ” (Genesis 1:28a).[6]
God wanted man to fill the earth and populate it. He also gave the same command
to Noah after the flood.[7]
God did not intend for man to live
together in just one place, but He wanted man and animals to spread out over
the earth that He had created. God came down for a full view to see what see
what they were building.[8]
God, however, did not approve and was determined to do something about it.
From the
very beginning, when Lucifer was in Heaven, he has tried to get God’s created
beings to oppose Him and do what was contrary to His will. The Bible says that
Lucifer was full of pride and wanted to be like the Most High – not in an act of humility or reverence but
as God’s replacement.[9]
One can read the Book of Isaiah and find a very close comparison between the
builders of the Tower of Babel and Lucifer. It was Lucifer’s goal to rise and
reside in Heaven; elevate his throne to dethrone God’s; sit on the sacred
mountain to be worshiped; reign above the clouds that God created, and in so
doing, make a name for himself.[10]
Therefore, it would be safe to say that Satan was the one who put the idea in
their minds to attempt to do what he had been unsuccessful in doing the first
time.
The builders tried to build the tower to reach Heaven. They
wanted a one-rule government unto themselves with total autonomy.[11]
They desired a city and tower to glorify their egotism. They sought to make a
name for themselves amongst the heavens and on the earth instead of honoring the One True God.[12]
Their attempt to defy God was an act of self-worship, pride, arrogance and
foolishness to think that they could match wits with God. They, nevertheless,
were shown that they were of no match for God when confusion disabled their
plans.[13]
Man had already established himself as being wicked which
caused God to destroy the world by flood during Noah’s day.[14] Man
still continued in his state of rebellion and desired to that which was
contrary to his Creator. Therefore, God decided that He would not allow them to
unite in their plans against Him an
would cause them to speak in different languages for the first time so that
they would not understand one another.[15]
God’s plan worked, and the people were scattered all throughout the parts of
the earth as God had originally intended.[16]
Archeologists’ Attempt to Find Proof of Nimrod
Many people
have sought to disprove the stories in the Bible through various theories, fabricated
myths and suggestive fables.[17]
Nevertheless, God has allowed for much of what is in the Bible to be discovered
through the research of archeologists and others in science. The Bible says, “For since the creation of the world God's
invisible qualities--his eternal power
and divine nature--have been clearly
seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse”
(Romans 1:20).[18] God
has allowed for His Word to be proven true so even skeptics would have to know
that He does exists even if they still try to deny Him. Many scholars, however,
would not suggest that a researcher invest time into trying to prove stories in
the Bible such as the Tower of Babel because they believe them to be just that – stories.[19] Nonetheless,
there are some researchers, such as researcher,
Egyptologist, and archeologist David Rohl, who have been determined to analyze
the Bible to find answers to their questions, locations, and fossils to prove
beyond a reasonable doubt that the Bible is more than just a book of
questionable reading material. [20]
The question
that researchers wanted to know is why the world is the way that it is, the
history of the races, and why do people speak in so many languages.[21] They
explored beyond the traditional way that researchers does an inquiry to answer
the question as to why the Bible is treated different than other ancient historical writings.[22] Therefore,
they searched the biblical text for clues as to who the builders of the Tower
of Babel were, when and where it was built. Scholars have determined that the
precise dates of the Genesis stories are unknown but are generally believed to
have taken place within the 3rd and 4th B.C. era.[23]
This time is also believed to be the beginning of ancient Egypt and the
foundation of the first city civilization – ancient
Mesopotamia, which was the home of the Babylonian empires.[24]
In order to find out a location and time, scholars looked at the Table of
Nations that is listed in the chapter preceding Genesis 11.[25]
The Table of
Nations lists the descendants of Noah’s three sons
– Shem, Ham, and Japheth.[26] The
Bible shows that after the flood, they repopulated the earth and mankind was
therefore linked to them.[27] The
scholars noticed that Babel is credited to a warrior named Nimrod who was a
descendant of Ham. It is believed that he lived around the 3 B.C. millennium.[28] Nimrod
was known to be a great king who lived a generation after the flood.[29]
Although he was credited with the foundation of Babel as a city, some scholars
do not believe that he was to be credited with the tower itself, while others
disagree and believe that he could have been the tower’s main architect.[30] The
Bible, however, does not give a lot of information concerning this character.
Scholars are
unsure as to when the story of Babel was first penned, but most experts believe
that it was between 500 and 1000 B.C., but it was found that the story was
rewritten around 94 A.D.[31]
It was written by a Jewish historian, Josephus, who wrote Antiquities of the Jews.[32]
This work was written as an explanation to the Romans as to why Jews believed
and acted in the manner they did.[33] Josephus
work is compiled by other historical accounts in which he connected Nimrod to
the construction of the Tower of Babel and this is mentioned in the apocryphal
book of Jasher.[34] Josephus
wrote that Nimrod built the tower to act as an asylum just in case God decided
to send another flood.[35]
Scholars
continue their research in trying to prove the connection between Nimrod and
the construction of the tower of Babel when they come across an artifact at a
museum in Oxford called the Sumerian King’s list.[36]
They found no mention of the name Nimrod
but the name of another king who ruled in the third millennium name Enmerkar.[37] He
is said to have founded a city called Uruk in which other ancient texts
describes this account.[38] Scholars
began to dive deeper into Enmerkar’s name to see if he and Nimrod were one in the same due to the similarities and
timeline that they both lived according to ancient texts.[39] Therefore,
they had to explore ancient Hebrew texts to understand Hebrew names as they
were written and found that the names of both Enmerkar and Nimrod matched almost
perfectly with the exception of the “d” acting as a consonant.[40]
The name Nimrod was understood by scholars to mean rebellion, which operated as a verb once
the scribe took the “d” and added it to
the name.[41] A
consonant in Hebrew changes the meaning of words which is why Nimrod was not
understood in many biblical texts as operating in the verb tense.[42] Consequently,
the “d” is believed to have caused the
name to have a dual meaning “we shall
rebel” in the spelling of Nimrod as written in the biblical text, but is also
known as the man, king, and hunter Enmerkar
according to the Sumerian text.[43]
Therefore, in the name Nimrod
(Enmerkar), scholars found the evidence needed to support his rebellion against
God for destroying the world by building the tower in defiance.[44]
Babylon
Babylon was
known for is mass beauty and splendor
that is believed to have first appeared around 2000 B.C. It was known for its
hanging gardens around 1500 to 500 B.C. It was considered the center of the
world and for most historians, it was the promising place to start research to
explain the Tower of Babel.[45] Scholars
found that Babylon was the home of a grand ancient temple called a ziggurat.[46] Many
scholars believe that this structure was comparable in likeness to the tower.
The tower was able to be reconstructed on computers by reading the ancient
texts’ descriptions.[47] Nevertheless,
not all scholars agree that the Tower of Babel was constructed in Babylon
because Enmarkar was king 1,000 years
before Babylon’s origin.[48]
The question
among scholars was if Babel had been confused with Babylon in the scribes’
writings. In Sumerian, Numki
describes a great and powerful city and is the name that was used for Babylon.[49] Although,
scholars found another city that was also called Numki for there were various
languages where scribes could have mixed up certain names according to scholars.[50] Therefore,
there was a Numki in the north and south. The Numki in the south, also known as
Eridu, was thousands of years older than Numki in the north otherwise known as
Babylon. This caused some scholars to believe that the Tower of Babel was not
in Babylon but in Eridu.[51]
Similar to
Babel, Eridu was known to be the first city. According to the Sumerian text,
Eridu was the first city known to have kingship.[52] Eridu
was the place where a thriving citizenship was taking place unlike other parts
of the region. The question that scholars had to answer was why the tower was
not known as the tower of Eridu instead of Babel, but the most comprehensible
answer was that the scribes mixed up the two Numki by writing 2,000 years later
where Babylon was then in existence.[53] Therefore,
Eridu is believed to be the place where the Tower of Babel was built.
During the
20th century, Mesopotamia had been home for many archeological research
and findings. An Iraqi archeologist discovered the remains of a ziggurat.[54]
It was found to have existed during Enmerkar’s reign. Scholars had to study
what was found to see if there was any evidence as to the temple being
abandoned and incomplete. They believed
that the evidence pointed to what was the Tower of Babel having been built in
Eridu.[55]
Confusion of Languages
Scholars
believe that similar to modern migration and immigration, history tells of
people operating in the same manner.[56] With
them came new ideas, customs, beliefs and discoveries. Researchers are of the
mind that migrants influxed the area due
to the stories of wealth and prosperity in the region.[57]
They think that there was a clash of languages and people which caused the
people living in that region to scatter as
given in the biblical account.[58]
A thousand
miles from Mesopotamia is a desert that was from the time of the first
dynasties. There, scholars searched for clues as to where the people may have
relocated to once they abandoned the tower.[59] This
led them to research the beginnings of Egypt where they believe that the rulers
may have started out as foreigners. Egyptologists have a theory that these were
the people who became the Pharaohs. Scholars believe that many migrants moved
to Egypt due to the conservational stability of the River Nile.[60] They
believe that two main cultures created the great nation consisting of Africans
and Mesopotamians that created an increase in the Egyptian population.[61]
Many artifacts that derived from Mesopotamia was found in Egypt showing proof
that there was contact between them for buying, selling and trading. This
conclusion, however, is not accepted by all academics.[62]
Conclusion
There have
been many theories and beliefs when it comes to the Tower of Babel. Some have
been proven through archeological research and others have not as would be
considered credible by many biblical scholars.[63]
What one can know and rely on is that there was a Tower of Babel that was
created in defiance to the commands of God.
The mastermind and builders of this tower did so with the purpose of trying to
outsmart God.[64]
Nevertheless, just as no one could stop God from destroying the world, they were
unsuccessful in their attempt to offset His plans. As a result, man found
himself with many different languages
and scattered all across the world.[65]
Satan has
not given up on his plans to have man defy
God. Once again, he will place in man’s minds to establish a one-world
government, which will result in many taking the Mark of the Beast in
accordance to the prophecy Jesus gave the Apostle John in the Book of
Revelation. The foundation is being set and the choice will have to be made by
those who profess to be followers of the One
True God as to whom they will worship. Those whose names are not written in the
Book of Life will succumb and find themselves lost for all eternity. What Satan
could not do in Heaven, he continues to do on earth for he knows that this is
the only kingdom that he will ever have. Therefore, he is attempting to take
down as many as he can to keep them out of Heaven.
Rather one
looks at Babel or Babylon, they are both representations of confusion. The
Babylon of old was destroyed by the Medes and Persians and will the present Babylon
that controls the world. A nation and people cannot claim to be great independent of their Creator. The whole
world is in defiance of God and the earth is moaning and groaning due to the
sin that is taking place. Many Bible
believing Christians believe that America is the modern-day Babylon as
described in Jeremiah 51 and Revelation 18. The abortions, gay marriages, child
pedophilia, pornography, comatose churches, racial tensions and corrupt
politics are all signs of the times that things are soon to come to an end. Division
in the streets and confusion in this nation alone speaks of a nation that has
totally rejected God regardless of how many “God bless Americas” that are said
across the screen. Therefore, just as those in Babel were unable to unite,
there will be no unity and no peace until the Prince of peace returns. The
Tower of Babel is in the hearts and minds of many but one day that tower will
come crumbling down.
[1] Theodore Hiebert, "The Tower of Babel and
the Origin of the World's Cultures," Journal of Biblical Literature
126, no. 1 (Spring 2007): 29-30,
http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/214612820?accountid=12085.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Andreas Hock, "From Babel to the New
Jerusalem (Gen 11,1-9 and Rev 21,1-22,5)," Biblica 89, no. 1
(2008): 109-111.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Gen. 1:28a (New International Version).
[7] Gen. 9:7 (New International Version).
[8] Gen. 11:5 (New International Version).
[9] Isa. 14:13-15 (New International Version).
[10] Ibid.
[11] Hiebert, "The Tower,"
30-31.
[12] Hiebert, "Tower,"
29-58.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Andreas Hock, "From Babel to the New
Jerusalem (Gen 11,1-9 and Rev 21,1-22,5)," Biblica 89, no. 1
(2008): 110-112.
[15] Hodie Hodge, Tower of Babel: The Cultural
History of Our Ancestors (Green Forest: New Leaf Publishing Group, Inc,
2013), 25-30.
[16] Ibid.
[17] Joel S. Baden, "The Tower of Babel: A
Case Study in the Competing Methods of Historical and Modern Literary
Criticism," Journal of Biblical Literature 128, no. 2 (2009): 209-212, doi:10.2307/25610179.
[18] Rom. 1:20 (New International Version).
[19] Peter Martin, "How Myth Became
History," The Times & The Sunday Times, last modified October 13,
2002, https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/how-myth-became-history-5fsp2h652xc.
[20] David Rohl Rohl, "New Chronology Babble?
Is Egyptian History and Our Timeline Wrong?," Everything Is Electric, last
modified August 21, 2018, https://www.everythingselectric.com/babel/.
[21] Hock, "From Babel,"
110-111.
[22] Hiebert, "Tower,"
29-58.
[23] Ibid.
[24] Ibid.
[25] Ibid.
[26] Francis A Schaeffer, Genesis in Space &
Time; The Flow of Biblical History (Glendale, Calif: Regal Books, 1972), 150-152.
[27] Ibid.
[28] Rohl, "Babble."
[29] Lippman Bodoff, "The Tower of Babel: from
destruction to dispersion," Midstream 49, no. 1 (January 2003): 28-30,
http://link.galegroup.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/apps/doc/A96811044/AONE?u=vic_liberty&sid=AONE&xid=8d680f13.
[30] Ibid.
[31] Flavius Josephus, The Antiquities of the
Jews (First Rate Publishers, 2015), Chapter 1.
[32] Ibid.
[33] Sabrina Inowlocki, "Josephus' Rewriting of
the Babel Narrative (Gen 11:1-9)," Journal for the Study of Judaism
37, no. 2 (2006): 170-175,
doi:10.1163/157006306776564674.
[34] Tom Horn, The Researchers Library of
Ancient Texts. Includes Enoch, Jasher, & Jubilees. Volume 1, Volume 1
(Crane: Defender, 2011), Chapter 11.
[35] Bodoff, "Tower of Babel,"
28-30.
[36] Raúl López, "The Antediluvian Patriarchs
and the Sumerian King List," Answers in Genesis, last modified December 1,
1998,
https://answersingenesis.org/bible-history/the-antediluvian-patriarchs-and-the-sumerian-king-list/.
[37] David M Rohl, A Test of Time. Vol. 1, Vol.
1 (London: Arrow, 2001), 21-27.
[38] Rohl, Test, 11-17.
[39] Ibid., 1-17.
[40] Bodoff, "Tower of Babel,"
28-30.
[41] Ibid.
[42] Ibid.
[43][43]Strong's Hebrew, s.v. "Strong's Hebrew: 5248.
× ִמְרוֹד (Nimrod) -- a Son of Cush and Founder of the Bab. Kingdom," in Bible
Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages (Bible Hub, 2006),
accessed October 10, 2018, https://biblehub.com/hebrew/5248.htm.
[44] Hiebert, "Tower,"
29-58.
[45] Michael David Coogan and Bruce Manning Metzger,
The Oxford Guide to People & Places of the Bible (Oxford: Oxford
Univ. Press, 2004), 28.
[46] Isaac Asimov, Asimov's Guide to the Bible:
The Old and New Testaments (New York: Avon, 1981), 54-55.
[47] Ibid.
[48] The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica,
"Enmerkar | Mesopotamian Hero," Encyclopedia Britannica, accessed
October 10, 2018, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Enmerkar.
[49] Rohl, Test, 207-219.
[50] Ibid.
[51] Rohl, Test, 228-241.
[52] Ibid.
[53] Ibid., 261-287.
[54] Ibid.
[55] Ibid., 291-315.
[56] Mark Rathbone, "Interpretations of the
Tower of Babel Narrative in the African Context," Acta Theologica
34, no. 1 (2014): 170-177, doi:10.4314/actat.v34i1.10.
[57] Rathbone, "Interpretations,"
170-177.
[58] Ibid.
[59] Rohl, Test, 354-367.
[60] Ibid.
[61] Ibid.
[62] Ibid.
[63] Professor George Smith, Chaldean Account Of
Genesis: Containing the Description of the Creation, the Deluge, the... Tower
of Babel, the Destruction of Sodom, the Time ([S.l.]: Forgotten Books,
2017), 2-7.
[64] Morris Jastrow Jr. et al., "Babel, Tower
Of," JewishEncyclopedia.com, accessed October 10, 2018,
http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/2279-babel-tower-.
[65] Jastrow Jr., "Babel."
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