- Babel
Babel ( _he. בָּבֶל; "Bavel") ( _ar. بابل; "Babel") is the name used in the
Hebrew Bible and theQur'an for the city ofBabylon (Akkadian Babilu), notable in Genesis as the location of theTower of Babel .In Gen. 11:9, the name of Babel is etymologized by association with the Hebrew verb "balal", "to confuse or confound": "Balal" is regarded as a contraction of earlier "*balbal". The name "bab-ilu" in Akkadian means "gate of god" (from "bab" "gate" + "ilu" "god"). The word "bab-el" can also be seen to mean "gate of god" (from "bab" "gate" + "el" "god").
Babel is mentioned in Genesis 10:10 as the home city of Nimrod:
[10] And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel (Persia), and
Erech , andAccad , andCalneh , in the land ofShinar . [11] Out of that land went forthAsshur , and builtNineveh , and the cityRehoboth , andCalah , [12] AndResen between Nineveh and Calah: the same is a great city. (KJV )According to Genesis 11:1–9, humankind, after the deluge, traveled from the mountain where the ark had rested, and settled in "a plain in the land of Shinar." Here, they attempted to build a city and a tower whose top would be in the Heavens, the
Tower of Babel .The attempt to build the city of Babel with its tower, caused
God to respond. He confused the language of the people, ultimately halting the project, and scattered them across the earth.Babel features in the prophecies of
Jeremiah , andNebuchadnezzar 's siege ofJerusalem is told in2 Kings . TheBook of Daniel is set at time of theBabylonian captivity . Such later references to Babel are normally translated into the more familiar Greek form "Babylon".The Book of Mormon, a book of scripture used by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, features a story about a family who prayed that their language would not be confounded. Their prayers were answered and they were led to the Americas.
References
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