圣经典故之巴别塔　
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巴别塔（The Tower of Babel）取自《圣经》旧约全书中的《创世纪》，讲的是在大洪水以后诺亚的后人来到一个叫西纳的地方居住，突然间心血来潮想建一座高可通天的宝塔，以纪念人类在地球上所创下的丰功伟绩。上帝得知这个消息后很是不高兴，于是就变乱了他们的语言（这之前地球上的人们只会讲一种语言，估计这种语言已经失传）。由于每个人说的话其他人都听不懂，当时也没翻译这种职业，所以人们根本就没办法把塔盖起来，这座塔也就永远地停工了。这些人同时又觉得再也没有生活在一起的必要，于是就分道扬镳了，分散到了世界的各个角落，分别成为我们七大洲的祖先。唉，人们当时要是不冲动该多好，大家现在也就用不着学英语了。就像人类渴望能重回伊甸园，把另一个树上的果子也偷来吃以长生而不老那样，人类也无时无刻不梦想着能拥有一种每个人都能懂的语言。当然，这则典故所带给我们的启示远非如此的简单，想了解更多，请欣赏下面的两篇文章。

（一）Bible stories for adults: The Tower of Babel

What is the significance of the story of the tower of Babel? Why did it cause God to confound the language of people, giving them each a new tongue? What message does the story have for us today?

The story of the tower of Babel is about disobedience and arrogance and the human need to erect symbols of our achievement. The story takes place after the flood that destroyed all but Noah and his family. The world was still united by language and probably tradition. “And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.” (Genesis 11:1)

Those who lived in the region of Shinar, (Sumer in ancient Babylonia) “… said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar. 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.” (Genesis 11:3-4) This building they set out to create was probably to be a ziggurat, a multi-storied tower/temple. These buildings were pyramid-like and reached as much as 300 feet. Stone steps lead up each side of the structure to a temple.

However, this was not a temple for God that they were building, it was a monument to themselves. Their intention was to reach heaven with it and proclaim themselves gods. This didn’t please God in the least. “And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.” (Genesis 11:5-6)

God’s concern was not for Himself; He knew these people could not capture His throne. His concern was for them and what else they might attempt in their arrogance. Out of mercy and a desire to prevent them from causing themselves pain and suffering, God took action. “Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.” (Genesis 11:7)

By disrupting the Babylonians speech, God was able to slow down more than just their progress on the tower. It effectively split up their entire society. “So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city.” (Genesis 11:8) Common language is a key element in commerce, relationships and every other important aspect of life. Without that common ground, their common society couldn’t function.

We may wonder what the big deal was in this story. What kind of problem could a tower possibly be? There was never any chance that it could actually reach heaven, so what was God’s big worry? With sin, it’s seldom the actual deed that is the big problem; it’s the attitude that is troubling. The Babylonians were arrogant believing themselves to be creators and denying the power of the Creator. We don’t have to look far to see similar arrogance in the modern world.

If we look back only 60 years, we can see evidence of terrible arrogance that lead to devastating destruction. Nazi Germany’s fascination with creating and sustaining a master race lead them to horrendous experiments in the guise of science. Few would consider their actions appropriate or scientific. The arrogance of the Nazi’s destroyed millions of people. The people of Babel were on this same kind of path; believing that there were no boundaries on what they could do.

But we don’t even have to look at history to see the arrogance of man played out in the field of technology. A glance at the newspaper on any given day will reveal a similar attitude of superiority. We pride ourselves on our technological advancement and indeed, technology has done wonders for our society. Yet, destruction and devastated lives are harvested every day from seeds of arrogance sown by humans believing that there are no boundaries.

Life must have boundaries to continue safely. In everything, we have to come to a point where we say, “This is too far,” or we risk destroying ourselves, on a personal or global level. Scientists play with the building blocks of life like they were children’s toys even when they don’t have clear-cut understanding of the consequences of their work. This is not to say that we shouldn’t learn, experiment and develop but we must do so with humility, bowing to a knowledge greater than our own.

It is not just on a global or national level that we demonstrate our arrogance, though. Each of us is guilty of this kind of pride to a degree. All of us at one time or another have built a personal tower of Babel as a symbol of our greatness. For some, the tower is fancy homes or cars; others have towers built on a string of ‘good’ deeds. These things are not bad, it’s when we use them to define who we are and show others how special we are that the things become personal towers of Babel. It’s our attitude, not the tower that is a problem.

Arrogance is our way of telling God, “I don’t need you and I don’t have to answer to you.” We put ourselves on the throne and we suffer for it. God confounded the language of these early people to try and spare them the consequences of their behavior. It certainly must have been a wake up call to them proving that they were not gods. By dividing them, God reminded them who they were and Who He is.

Similarly, God gives us wake up calls when our arrogance gets out of hand. If we look closely at our lives, we can see times when we have been slapped off of our own pedestals and reminded that we weren’t ‘all that’. Sometimes it takes a big slap before we get the message and that can be very painful. We’re better off keeping a check on our attitude and being on the look out for signs of bricklaying in our own backyard. Once we get started on a tower of Babel it’s easy to get carried away with the project and forget that we’re not the master builders we believe we are.

（二）What is the Tower of Babel?
Along with the crossing of the Red Sea and Jonah and the Whale, the Tower of Babel is an incredible story that has grabbed imaginations throughout history. Atheists point with glee to this tall tale from the ancient past as an example of another preposterous explanation for the world as we find it. How can you take seriously a book that explains the existence of many languages with a fairy tale like this? Of course, that depends on the purpose of the book and the purpose of the story.

The story of the Tower of Babel doesn't take place in a vacuum. It falls in between Noah's flood and the call of Abraham. In the case of the flood, God has initially given up on the whole human race. Mankind had become wicked and his thoughts and inclinations were always evil. God finds in Noah hope for a new beginning, and so we get another shot at it. The rainbow is God's promise to all of the earth that a flood will never again be the tool of judgement.

The call of Abraham comes about as God decides to form a people of his own to carry the knowledge and worship of Him into the world. The Flood did not stem man's evil ways and the activities around the Tower of Babel showed that man loves himself more than any God. The glory of man is what was sought with that tower, not the glory of God. So, in Abraham, God forms a people who will glorify Him.

The story of Babel comes at a point after the flood where everyone is seen as a descendant of Noah. Genesis 10 and 11 is a genealogy from Noah to Abraham and an attempt to classify everyone in the known world as a descendant. I say "known" world because as far as these early Hebrews were concerned the world was flat and rested on pillars. The sky was a shell with stars fastened to it. Ethiopia was as far south as they could identify, Iran to the east, Armenia to the north and Greece to the west. They had heard of a place called Tarshish (Spain) but weren't sure. Jonah had tried to go there because it was as far as he could imagine going.

The whole story of Babel lasts for only nine verses, Genesis 11: 1-9. Its fame has far exceeded the space that the compilers of Genesis have given it in the Holy Scriptures. Just before we are given the names of the descendants of Shem (Shemites or Semites) whose line brings us to Abraham, the story of the Tower of Babel is inserted. What could be the significance of this little parable at this point in Bible history?

Of course, the ancients wanted to know why and how we all came to be speaking different languages. If Noah and his sons repopulated the world shouldn't we all speak their language? Verses ten to twenty six bring us from Shem to Abraham. The story of Babel is there to explain to a primitive society how we get from Noah to Abraham with so many different languages having developed in so short a time. What could be the cause of this impediment to human cooperation and understanding?

The choice of the name "Babel" is not an accident. The reference to Babylon reflects the way that Babylon was abhorred by Hebrew society. Babylon represented everything that was wrong with humanity. As a city, Babylon was both envied and loathed. The city was beautiful and graced with streets and palaces. The hanging gardens of Babylon are one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Writing and science were developing there. In the meantime, the Hebrews were a nomadic society concerned with day to day survival. Babylon represented oppression, cruelty and violence by which it remained powerful.

So Babel (Babylon) is portrayed as a society where everyone speaks with the same language and through human cooperation attempt to climb to heaven on a tower. This is not a God centered society but a fellowship of men dedicated to elevating man to his proper position as God of this world. This is a theme often repeated in the Bible. The ziggurats stand as evidence against them. So Babylon gets the blame for confusion because they try to get up to God's level. The disdain that ancient Israel felt for Babylon is reflected in the Tower story.

So, is this science or theology? There is no science in the Bible. There is no point looking for it there. The Bible is a theological manuscript. It is the story of God's dealings with humans from the viewpoint of an ancient society. Is Babel the reason for all of the various languages in the world? Of course it isn't. Is Babel a parable? The story of the Tower of Babel is a parable about mankind, where his heart is and how God feels about it.

The account of Babel's tower is lousy history and terrible science. It is terrific theology. The final judgement against any society is its willingness to press forward in the name of progress without reference to or respect for God. The parable tells us that the road without God is doomed to disaster. The citizens of Babel thought that they were able, technologically, to challenge God's leadership. Man's pride, vanity and lust for power need to come under God's authority. That is the theological lesson of this section of scripture. They are the only kinds of lessons the Bible gives.