The Tower of Babel in Genesis

The central theme of the Tower of Babel narrative is rebellion. A review of the narrative brings to light this conclusion. Genesis 11:4 reeks of rebellion. This is not the only verse that demonstrates the desire to rebel. Longman and Dillard comment that numerous words and phrases in the Hebrew version of the narrative are presented “with the consonant cluster lbn, all referring to the human rebellion against God.”
The reader will notice the mindset of the tower builders, and the emphasis on personal accomplishments over divine obedience. God is not mentioned in all of their deliberations. They offer no gratitude for His gifts, no obeisance to His will, and in fact exclude Him from all their calculations. In Wright’s words, “The Babel story presents people who seem intent on reaching the heavens while resisting God’s will for them on earth.” Matthews comments, “The overarching message is that human pride resulted in the Lord’s punishment of dispersal.”
The Tower-builders desired to “do” something to change their name and status. The actions involved gathering in one place and creating bricks. The temporary and transient dirt, in the hands and ovens of rebellious masses, became as hard as their collective heart.
Johann Peter Lange commented that the Tower builders had “no concern that God’s name be hallowed, but all their care and planning turns to this, that their own name may become great and celebrated on the earth.” This became in effect “an outward artificial substitute for the inner union before God, and in God.”
The bricks created by rebel hands were brought together in order to build a city and tower. The decision to build was not anathema, but the decision to do so as an act of rebellion was accursed. This progression of rebellion ended before they could complete their building project.
God said, “Fill the Earth,” and they said, “We will remain here.” God is not pained by large, courageous undertakings, but by the spirit behind them. When humanity begins a plan with the words “let us,” rebellion is not far behind. The proper response to God is “Thy will be done.” As an example to humanity, Jesus’ used those exact words at the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:39), and Jesus commanded His disciples to pray in the content of the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:10). 
That a tower was built seems clear. That the intended target was to reach heaven is debatable, but the intention to get as lofted as possible seems plausible. As has been suggested by some, the tower builders may have simply been trying to create a holy mountain. The picture of manmade mountains seems to have become embedded in the mind of humanity. It was a symbol that humanity could create its own destiny and ascend to its own heights rather than pursuing Godly pursuits.
The fact that it was an inferior edifice seems clear, since from the perspective of the Divine, it was so miniscule that the compiler states God had to “come down” just to see it. In what the compiler must have intended to an “ironical imitation” of the same expression in Genesis 11:3 and 4, God said, “Come. We will go down” (habah) or “grant attention you” (nerdah) we shall descend.
Some postulate that the tower was not intended to lift humanity up to the domain of the Divine, but it served rather to bring God down to humanity’s level. Walton says, the wording of Genesis 11:1-9 indicate that the Tower builders wanted “god to come down to his temple, receive worship, and bless his people. The key for this passage is to realize that the tower was not built so that people could ascend to heaven, but so that deity could descent to earth.”
This idea is almost more offensive than trying to ascend to heaven by human means. To affront God with the idea that humanity must make a gateway for Him is deplorable. The sense seems to be that God in heaven is no different from the capricious gods worshipped throughout history. God is made to be no more than an ascended human is, and burdened with all the human limitations as well.
Jacob saw a ladder in his vision at Bethel. This story, located in Genesis 28:12, uses the word “ladder” to describe what Jacob saw “set up on earth, and its top reached to heaven.” The NIV uses the word “stairway;” whereas the NRSV makes note that “stairway” and “ramp”  are both appropriate.  The interesting thing about all these translations is either in the text or notation, each show that God stood “above” this “ladder,” “stairway,” or “ramp.” The message is clearly given that no matter how high a tower is built, God will still be above it all. If there is any correlation between Jacob’s Ladder and the Tower of Babel, then one should see that the ladder (some translations say stairway) was only ascendable and descendible by the angels, and God hovered at the top (unreachable even from the top of the ladder). God did not descend, nor did any person ascend.
Whether humanity was trying to lift itself to God’s realms or pull Him down to theirs, the result was the same. The actions of the Tower builders brought God’s judgment down upon them. Their actions also resulted in a name change. Names represent another significant theme in the Tower of Babel narrative.

From an exegetical perspective, the Tower of Babel is a wonderful story filled with parallelisms, poetic constructs, and compelling concepts. It is a joyful Bible study for reflection and devotion. Children love it as a bedtime story. It was artfully written, but artful design does not guarantee its relevance. What is relevant is that the compiler did his best to represent the story in light of Genesis 1-10 and as a transitional narrative to Genesis 12-50.
The Tower of Babel belongs in Scripture. Moreover, it belongs exactly where it is placed, with genealogies to set the stage of the event and to trace its impact. Important motifs in the Tower of Babel narrative emerge from its nine short verses, all of which highlight the essential value of the narrative and its contribution to the theology of Genesis.