One night not long ago, I woke up with the thought of balloons, and promptly went back to sleep. But the thought of balloons followed me for several days. I thought about helium-filled balloons being let loose to float up and around in the sky. I wondered what happened to them, and my brother told me that they eventually go high enough that they implode.
That started me thinking about the Tower of Babel. I couldn’t really make a spiritual connection between balloons and the Tower of Babel, so I dropped the balloons and focused on the Tower of Babel.
I don’t know how high the people building the Tower of Babel thought they could go, but their purpose was clear. So, let’s take a short look at why they built it.
The Flood happened because mankind had become so evil that God regretted creating them (Genesis 6:5–7). Think about that! A merciful, patient, and loving Father, driven to regret by the actions of His children.
While the Bible isn’t specific concerning the length of time, most religious scholars accept that the tower was built more than 200 years, or approximately three generations, after the Flood. These people knew of the Flood by word of mouth, passed down from one generation to the next; but it was still a significant event in their history.
Many of the descendants of Noah followed his example and obeyed God’s commandments, but some apostatized. They were unbelieving and rebellious, even disbelieving in the existence of God, attributing the Flood to natural causes. Convicted on a daily basis by the righteous conversation and godly lives of those who loved and followed God, these enemies of God decided to separate themselves from the faithful.
They journeyed until they found a large plain, and there they built a city and ultimately, the Tower of Babel. The Bible says they built their city in the Plain of Shinar located in present-day Iraq, but just exactly where in the Plain, we do not know.
They intended to dwell there together and not be scattered all about. They also reasoned that if they built the Tower high enough, if another flood came, they could save themselves by climbing to its upper reaches. They believed that the world would honor them and look upon them as gods, and they would rule over all the people.
The tower was designed to exalt its builders and intended to make God’s promise to never destroy the world again with a flood of none effect. Who did they think they were? They built a tower with the intention of turning the attention of the world to themselves and their idolatry, and away from God. They intended to be worshiped as gods.
They built their tower to a great height, but God would not allow them to complete their work. He sent two angels to confound their language and all work stopped. All the people of Babel spread out across the land.
God then sent lightning from heaven and broke off the top of the tower, as an expression of His wrath, and to show rebellious mankind that He is supreme (The Story of Redemption, 72–74).
Dear Lord, help us to take to heart the Bible stories that You have especially included in Your book so that we can remember that You are Supreme in this universe, so that we can be drawn nearer to You, becoming more Christlike in character.