The Tower of Babel - Genesis 11:1-11:9

Some time after the flood, populations began to expand and people moved East into what would be modern day Iraq.  A quick look at the map and you will see a fertile region that roughly extends from Baghdad to the Persian Gulf.  The story of the Tower of Babel takes place in the southern part of this region.

Let's have a quick look at verse 11:3-4.  It says:

They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar.  Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

The choice of building materials is interesting.  It says they used brick instead of stone and tar for mortar.  Reading around the internet, the general consensus is that this river-rich region has a lot of clay and very little stone.  The phrasing seems to hint that stone would have been a preferable material and that they are using brick out of desperate necessity.  And why desperate?  The second half of the passage betrays an undercurrent of fear.  They are afraid of being spread out.  

Or perhaps their fortified city is a way to feel secure against another flood.  Perhaps baked bricks and waterproof tar for mortar would not crumble in a flood.  Similarly, a tall tower would allow them to escape another flood.  I'm speculating about this, but, consider the implications.  If this is true, it means there was a general mistrust of God among these people.  They didn't believe his promise to never eradicate life through a flood (from Genesis 9:15).  Or, even more speculative, they knew that God flooded the earth because of human corruption and were taking measures to protect themselves from a similar fate (so they could safely sin however they pleased).

Also consider their stated purpose.  They want to make a name for themselves.  They want to be considered great.  There is an attitude of pride alongside their insecurity.

If they wanted to stand up to God and sought security through their numbers, God's solution was to divide them (verse 8).  God confuses their language and they are scattered.  But consider God's statement in verse 6, "nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them".  If, in fact, they are fear and pride driven, I wonder if there is some sarcasm implied here.  Their choice of building materials and their grandiose plans to build "a tower that reaches to the heavens" makes me think that God was showing mercy when he halted them.