What if the Tower of Babel isn’t about a skyscraper at all, or trying to ‘reach God,’ but about language, thought and power? We begin our series with the strange little story - consisting of only nine verses- situated between the Noah episode and the great patriarch Abraham — and why it might be one of the few (if any) political passages in the Bible.

In the series, we’ll be taking a deep dive into Genesis 11 (1-9) the Babel story to open up its valuable teaching. We’ll discover the Bible’s take on free speech, freedom, and human flourishing. We’ll encounter God in sarcastic mode, and we’ll consider whether or not the people in the story were actually punished or not. We will consider how the story speaks so clearly to us today – with some surprising conclusions about the way we live and the choices we make. And the danger we are in.

In this episode, we take a look at the art inspired by the Babel story. The Tower of Babel story has inspired and influenced all kinds of human creativity and works of art. Paintings, literature, fiction, and films. And even philosophy.

Babel has not simply been reproduced as a biblical story. It has been reinterpreted as a cultural metaphor, especially for things like technological ambition or even technology worship, technocratic centralisation, aspects of communication and language, and the unintended consequences of attempts to impose certain kinds of forced unity upon people. This episode takes a look at Bruegel’s work and the influence this has had on other interpretations, including political commentary and science fiction films.

Images are AI adaptations of the author’s own sketches and drawings, in addition to adaptations from Breugel’s renowned paintings of the Tower of Babel. Other images posted above are obtained using Google searches, or are derivatives of the author’s own work.

Music is Stars and Laurels by Shane Ivers for Silverman Sounds.

https://www.silvermansound.com

Dr Caroline Kaye (The Sideways Thinker) presents this series aimed at non believers and believers alike exploring the West’s foundational texts - in order to see them anew. Dr Kaye holds graduate and post graduate qualifications in Religions and Theology from the University of Wales Trinity St. David and the University of Manchester She also holds an interdisciplinary PhD in Art History with Biblical themes from the Manchester Metropolitan University.

Books and references consulted for this episode:

James Austin, The Tower of Babel in Genesis: How the Tower of Babel Narrative Influences the Theology of Genesis and the Bible, Bloomington, Westbow Press, 2012.

Tom de Bruin, "The Tower of Babel," in Biblical Themes in Science Fiction, ed. Nicole L. Tilford and Kelly J. Murphy (Atlanta: SBL Press, 2023), 35–56.

Daniel Gordis, “The Tower of Babel and the Birth of Nationhood,” Azure 40 (Spring 2010) pp 19-36.

Yoram Hazony, The Philosophy of Hebrew Scripture, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2012

Leon R. Kass, The Beginning of Wisdom:Reading Genesis, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 2006.

Judy Klitsner, Subversive Sequels in the Bible: How Biblical Stories Mine and Undermine Each Other, Philadelphia, JPS, 2009.

Thank you for listening. Please feel free to comment and share. If you find my work interesting and worthwhile, I would be glad to receive one-off donations through the Buy me a Coffee scheme. Do subscribe if you haven’t already, subscribing alone supports my work.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SidewaysThm

What if the Tower of Babel isn’t about a skyscraper at all, or trying to ‘reach God,’ but about language, thought and power? We begin our series with the strange little story - consisting of only nine verses- situated between the Noah episode and the great patriarch Abraham — and why it might be one of the few (if any) political passages in the Bible.

In the series, we’ll be taking a deep dive into Genesis 11 (1-9) the Babel story to open up its valuable teaching. We’ll discover the Bible’s take on free speech, freedom, and human flourishing. We’ll encounter God in sarcastic mode, and we’ll consider whether or not the people in the story were actually punished or not. We will consider how the story speaks so clearly to us today – with some surprising conclusions about the way we live and the choices we make. And the danger we are in.

In this episode, we will make some links across different Biblical stories to see how they connect and build upon their various themes. In particular, the Exodus and Pentecost in the New Testament.

Very often when people study the Bible, they tend to look at discrete stories, as self-contained pericopes. And there’s nothing wrong with that because each story has something very important to offer.

However, it can be really fruitful if we decide to join up the ideas and themes within and across the stories and see the important links that are made between the different parts of the Bible. This way, we see a bigger picture unfolding, a bigger story unfolding, a longer deeper more radical point to the whole narrative.

Images are AI adaptations of the author’s own sketches and drawings, in addition to adaptations from Breugel’s renowned paintings of the Tower of Babel.

Music is Stars and Laurels by Shane Ivers for Silverman Sounds.

https://www.silvermansound.com

Dr Caroline Kaye (The Sideways Thinker) presents this series aimed at non believers and believers alike exploring the West’s foundational texts - in order to see them anew. Dr Kaye holds graduate and post graduate qualifications in Religions and Theology from the University of Wales Trinity St. David and the University of Manchester She also holds an interdisciplinary PhD in Art History with Biblical themes from the Manchester Metropolitan University.

Books and references consulted for this episode:

James Austin, The Tower of Babel in Genesis: How the Tower of Babel Narrative Influences the Theology of Genesis and the Bible, Bloomington, Westbow Press, 2012.

Daniel Gordis, “The Tower of Babel and the Birth of Nationhood,” Azure 40 (Spring 2010) pp 19-36.

J.P. Fokkelman, Narrative Art in Genesis: Specimens of Stylistic and Structural Analysis, 2nd Ed., Oregon, Wifpf & Stock, 1991.

Yoram Hazony, The Philosophy of Hebrew Scripture, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2012

Leon R. Kass, The Beginning of Wisdom:Reading Genesis, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 2006.

Judy Klitsner, Subversive Sequels in the Bible: How Biblical Stories Mine and Undermine Each Other, Philadelphia, JPS, 2009.

Jordan B.Peterson, We who Wrestle with God: Perceptions of the Divine, London, Allen Lane, 2024.

Dennis Prager, (Ed. Joseph Telushkin), Genesis: God, Creation and Destruction, The Rational Bible Series, Alperson Edition, Washington, Regenery Faith, 2019.

Nahum M. Sarna, Understanding Genesis: The World of the Bble in the light of History, New York, Schocken Books, 1966, reprinted 1970.

Thank you for listening. Please feel free to comment and share. If you find my work interesting and worthwhile, I would be glad to receive one-off donations through the Buy me a Coffee scheme. Do subscribe if you haven’t already, subscribing alone supports my work.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SidewaysThm

What if the Tower of Babel isn’t about a skyscraper at all, or trying to ‘reach God,’ but about language, thought and power? We begin our series with the strange little story - consisting of only nine verses- situated between the Noah episode and the great patriarch Abraham — and why it might be one of the few (if any) political passages in the Bible.

In the series, we’ll be taking a deep dive into Genesis 11 (1-9) the Babel story to open up its valuable teaching. We’ll discover the Bible’s take on free speech, freedom, and human flourishing. We’ll encounter God in sarcastic mode, and we’ll consider whether or not the people in the story were actually punished or not. We will consider how the story speaks so clearly to us today – with some surprising conclusions about the way we live and the choices we make. And the danger we are in.

In this episode, I want to develop Daniel Gordis’s arguments (previous episode) about nationhood further and ask a darker question about the Babel story. Can we understand the Babel story as a warning about totalitarianism? In the episode, e consider the commentary of two thinkers that deviate from traditional readings of the Babel story and demonstrate a highly sophisiticated warning from Genesis about totalising systems.

Images are AI adaptations of the author’s own sketches and drawings, in addition to adaptations from Breugel’s renowned paintings of the Tower of Babel.

Music is Stars and Laurels by Shane Ivers for Silverman Sounds.

https://www.silvermansound.com

Dr Caroline Kaye (The Sideways Thinker) presents this series aimed at non believers and believers alike exploring the West’s foundational texts - in order to see them anew. Dr Kaye holds graduate and post graduate qualifications in Religions and Theology from the University of Wales Trinity St. David and the University of Manchester She also holds an interdisciplinary PhD in Art History with Biblical themes from the Manchester Metropolitan University.

Books and references consulted or referred to in this episode:

James Austin, The Tower of Babel in Genesis: How the Tower of Babel Narrative Influences the Theology of Genesis and the Bible, Bloomington, Westbow Press, 2012.

Daniel Gordis, “The Tower of Babel and the Birth of Nationhood,” Azure 40 (Spring 2010) pp 19-36.

Yoram Hazony, The Philosophy of Hebrew Scripture, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2012.

Shai Held, “People have Names: The Torah’s Takedown of Totalitarianism,” Mechon Hadar, mechonhadar.org/ShaiHeld, 2015.

Leon R. Kass, The Beginning of Wisdom:Reading Genesis, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 2006.

Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin, (‘The Netziv’) Haamek Davar on Genesis, Vilna, c. 1879. Sefaria. sefaria.org.

Judy Klitsner, Subversive Sequels in the Bible: How Biblical Stories Mine and Undermine Each Other, Philadelphia, JPS, 2009.

Thank you for listening. Please feel free to comment and share. If you find my work interesting and worthwhile, I would be glad to receive one-off donations through the Buy me a Coffee scheme. Do subscribe if you haven’t already, subscribing alone supports my work.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SidewaysThm

What if the Tower of Babel isn’t about a skyscraper at all, or trying to ‘reach God,’ but about language, thought and power? We begin our series with the strange little story - consisting of only nine verses- situated between the Noah episode and the great patriarch Abraham — and why it might be one of the few (if any) political passages in the Bible.

In the series, we’ll be taking a deep dive into Genesis 11 (1-9) the Babel story to open up its valuable teaching. We’ll discover the Bible’s take on free speech, freedom, and human flourishing. We’ll encounter God in sarcastic mode, and we’ll consider whether or not the people in the story were actually punished or not. We will consider how the story speaks so clearly to us today – with some surprising conclusions about the way we live and the choices we make. And the danger we are in.

In this episode we consider the question: is Babel actually the Bible’s first political theory? From one world to many nations, Scripture suggests freedom might require limits on power, and that the idea of the nation might just be the way to limit tyrannical power and to ensure human flourishing overall. We might even consider how and why the very idea of the nation has served us so well.

In order to unpack this idea, we take a deep dive into the thesis of Daniel Gordis in a research article of 2010. His essay presents the idea that creation gives us biblical metaphysics, Eden theology, Cain and Abel ethics, while Babel introduces what Gordis calls the Bible's politics: nationhood, ethnicity, cultural difference and political particularity.

There is so much to discuss that the episode runs a little longer at around 42 minutes in total.

Images are AI adaptations of the author’s own sketches and drawings, in addition to adaptations from Breugel’s renowned paintings of the Tower of Babel.

Music is Stars and Laurels by Shane Ivers for Silverman Sounds.

https://www.silvermansound.com

Dr Caroline Kaye (The Sideways Thinker) presents this series aimed at non believers and believers alike exploring the West’s foundational texts - in order to see them anew. Dr Kaye holds graduate and post graduate qualifications in Religions and Theology from the University of Wales Trinity St. David and the University of Manchester She also holds an interdisciplinary PhD in Art History with Biblical themes from the Manchester Metropolitan University.

Books and references consulted or referred to in this episode:

James Austin, The Tower of Babel in Genesis: How the Tower of Babel Narrative Influences the Theology of Genesis and the Bible, Bloomington, Westbow Press, 2012.

Daniel Gordis, “The Tower of Babel and the Birth of Nationhood,” Azure 40 (Spring 2010) pp 19-36.

J.P. Fokkelman, Narrative Art in Genesis: Specimens of Stylistic and Structural Analysis, 2nd Ed., Oregon, Wifpf & Stock, 1991.

Yoram Hazony, The Philosophy of Hebrew Scripture, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2012

Leon R. Kass, The Beginning of Wisdom:Reading Genesis, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 2006.

Judy Klitsner, Subversive Sequels in the Bible: How Biblical Stories Mine and Undermine Each Other, Philadelphia, JPS, 2009.

Jordan B.Peterson, We who Wrestle with God: Perceptions of the Divine, London, Allen Lane, 2024.

Dennis Prager, (Ed. Joseph Telushkin), Genesis: God, Creation and Destruction, The Rational Bible Series, Alperson Edition, Washington, Regenery Faith, 2019.

Nahum M. Sarna, Understanding Genesis: The World of the Bble in the light of History, New York, Schocken Books, 1966, reprinted 1970.

Thank you for listening. Please feel free to comment and share. If you find my work interesting and worthwhile, I would be glad to receive one-off donations through the Buy me a Coffee scheme. Do subscribe if you haven’t already, subscribing alone supports my work.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SidewaysThm

What if the Tower of Babel isn’t about a skyscraper at all, or trying to ‘reach God,’ but about language, thought and power? We begin our series with the strange little story - consisting of only nine verses- situated between the Noah episode and the great patriarch Abraham — and why it might be one of the few (if any) political passages in the Bible.

In the series, we’ll be taking a deep dive into Genesis 11 (1-9) the Babel story to open up its valuable teaching. We’ll discover the Bible’s take on free speech, freedom, and human flourishing. We’ll encounter God in sarcastic mode, and we’ll consider whether or not the people in the story were actually punished or not. We will consider how the story speaks so clearly to us today – with some surprising conclusions about the way we live and the choices we make. And the danger we are in.

In this episode we are going to consider a line from the story where God comes down to see what’s going on. It is an interesting and surprising moment. I’ve always seen a little bit of sarcastic humour coming in here – on the part of God that is.

There is also irony here. The tower meant to reach heaven doesn’t seem tall enough to even notice. In order to see the significance of God coming down, we will need to consider the chiastic structure of the story.

The Babel story is arranged rather like a mirror. It begins with humanity moving together towards a single purpose, and then, after reaching the centre of the story, everything happens in reverse.

Images are AI adaptations of the author’s own sketches and drawings, in addition to adaptations from Breugel’s renowned paintings of the Tower of Babel.

Music is Stars and Laurels by Shane Ivers for Silverman Sounds.

https://www.silvermansound.com

Dr Caroline Kaye (The Sideways Thinker) presents this series aimed at non believers and believers alike exploring the West’s foundational texts - in order to see them anew. Dr Kaye holds graduate and post graduate qualifications in Religions and Theology from the University of Wales Trinity St. David and the University of Manchester She also holds an interdisciplinary PhD in Art History with Biblical themes from the Manchester Metropolitan University.

Books consulted or referred to in this episode:

James Austin, The Tower of Babel in Genesis: How the Tower of Babel Narrative Influences the Theology of Genesis and the Bible, Bloomington, Westbow Press, 2012.

J.P. Fokkelman, Narrative Art in Genesis: Specimens of Stylistic and Structural Analysis, 2nd Ed., Oregon, Wifpf & Stock, 1991.

Yoram Hazony, The Philosophy of Hebrew Scripture, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2012

Leon R. Kass, The Beginning of Wisdom:Reading Genesis, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 2006.

Judy Klitsner, Subversive Sequels in the Bible: How Biblical Stories Mine and Undermine Each Other, Philadelphia, JPS, 2009.

Jordan B.Peterson, We who Wrestle with God: Perceptions of the Divine, London, Allen Lane, 2024.

Dennis Prager, (Ed. Joseph Telushkin), Genesis: God, Creation and Destruction, The Rational Bible Series, Alperson Edition, Washington, Regenery Faith, 2019.

Nahum M. Sarna, Understanding Genesis: The World of the Bble in the light of History, New York, Schocken Books, 1966, reprinted 1970.

What if the Tower of Babel isn’t about a skyscraper at all, or trying to ‘reach God,’ but about language, thought and power? We begin our series with the strange little story - consisting of only nine verses- situated between the Noah episode and the great patriarch Abraham — and why it might be one of the few (if any) political passages in the Bible.

In the series, we’ll be taking a deep dive into Genesis 11 (1-9) the Babel story to open up its valuable teaching. We’ll discover the Bible’s take on free speech, freedom, and human flourishing. We’ll encounter God in sarcastic mode, and we’ll consider whether or not the people in the story were actually punished or not. We will consider how the story speaks so clearly to us today – with some surprising conclusions about the way we live and the choices we make. And the danger we are in.

In this episode, we consider the Babel Builders’ desire to make a name for themselves.

It could be said that the whole Babel story is about names, naming and places. What is the original idea of fame? What does fame mean in the ancient world? To have a great name was to have achieved significance that would survive beyond one’s immediate life.

Babel is not the story of people wanting to be famous as such. It is the story of people wanting to achieve greatness on their own terms, establish their own name, and secure their own remembrance. This aspect of the story is better understood when considered alongside what comes next with the patriarch and matriarch, Abraham and Sarah whose names are changed by God and whose names will be blessing to others.

Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

Images are AI adaptations of the author’s own sketches and drawings, in addition to adaptations from Breugel’s renowned paintings of the Tower of Babel.

Music is Stars and Laurels by Shane Ivers for Silverman Sounds.

https://www.silvermansound.com

Dr Caroline Kaye (The Sideways Thinker) presents this series aimed at non believers and believers alike exploring the West’s foundational texts - in order to see them anew. Dr Kaye holds graduate and post graduate qualifications in Religions and Theology from the University of Wales Trinity St. David and the University of Manchester She also holds an interdisciplinary PhD in Art History with Biblical themes from the Manchester Metropolitan University.

Books consulted or referred to in this episode:

James Austin, The Tower of Babel in Genesis: How the Tower of Babel Narrative Influences the Theology of Genesis and the Bible, Bloomington, Westbow Press, 2012.

Yoram Hazony, The Philosophy of Hebrew Scripture, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2012

Leon R. Kass, The Beginning of Wisdom:Reading Genesis, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 2006.

Judy Klitsner, Subversive Sequels in the Bible: How Biblical Stories Mine and Undermine Each Other, Philadelphia, JPS, 2009.

Jordan B.Peterson, We who Wrestle with God: Perceptions of the Divine, London, Allen Lane, 2024.

Dennis Prager, (Ed. Joseph Telushkin), Genesis: God, Creation and Destruction, The Rational Bible Series, Alperson Edition, Washington, Regenery Faith, 2019.

Nahum M. Sarna, Understanding Genesis: The World of the Bble in the light of History, New York, Schocken Books, 1966, reprinted 1970.

Thank you for listening. Please feel free to comment and share. If you find my work interesting and worthwhile, I would be glad to receive one-off donations through the Buy me a Coffee scheme. Do subscribe if you haven’t already, subscribing alone supports my work.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SidewaysThm

What if the Tower of Babel isn’t about a skyscraper at all, or trying to ‘reach God,’ but about language, thought and power? We begin our series with the strange little story - consisting of only nine verses- situated between the Noah episode and the great patriarch Abraham — and why it might be one of the few (if any) political passages in the Bible.

In the series, we’ll be taking a deep dive into Genesis 11 (1-9) the Babel story to open up its valuable teaching. We’ll discover the Bible’s take on free speech, freedom, and human flourishing. We’ll encounter God in sarcastic mode, and we’ll consider whether or not the people in the story were actually punished or not. We will consider how the story speaks so clearly to us today – with some surprising conclusions about the way we live and the choices we make. And the danger we are in.

In this episode, we take a deeper dive into the concept of the city. From Cain to Babylon, cities often symbolise something uneasy in the Bible: the sense of anonymity that’s found in the city, the concentration of power, and the forgetting of God. The feeling is that in the city that we don’t need God. It is easy to assume that the Bible is distrustful of cities and what they represent or stand for.

Genesis is surprisingly ambivalent about cities. Cities are not simply condemned. In fairness, they become places of culture, trade, worship and justice—but the early chapters of Genesis repeatedly associate the first cities with attempts to create security, identity and permanence in a kind of moving away from any dependence upon God.

So biblically speaking, Cities – are not bad in themselves. It is what can happen in the wake of their existence, the kind of behaviour that so often ensues. It is something to be aware of.

Images are AI adaptations of the author’s own sketches and drawings, in addition to adaptations from Breugel’s renowned paintings of the Tower of Babel.

Music is Stars and Laurels by Shane Ivers for Silverman Sounds.

https://www.silvermansound.com

Dr Caroline Kaye (The Sideways Thinker) presents this series aimed at non believers and believers alike exploring the West’s foundational texts - in order to see them anew. Dr Kaye holds graduate and post graduate qualifications in Religions and Theology from the University of Wales Trinity St. David and the University of Manchester She also holds an interdisciplinary PhD in Art History with Biblical themes from the Manchester Metropolitan University.

Books referred to in this episode:

James Austin, The Tower of Babel in Genesis: How the Tower of Babel Narrative Influences the Theology of Genesis and the Bible, Bloomington, Westbow Press, 2012.

Yoram Hazony, The Philosophy of Hebrew Scripture, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2012

Leon R. Kass, The Beginning of Wisdom:Reading Genesis, Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 2006.

Judy Klitsner, Subversive Sequels in the Bible: How Biblical Stories Mine and Undermine Each Other, Philadelphia, JPS, 2009.

Jordan B.Peterson, We who Wrestle with God: Perceptions of the Divine, London, Allen Lane, 2024.

Nahum M. Sarna, Understanding Genesis: The World of the Bble in the light of History, New York, Schocken Books, 1966, reprinted 1970.

Thank you for listening. Please feel free to comment and share. If you find my work interesting and worthwhile, I would be glad to receive one-off donations through the Buy me a Coffee scheme. Do subscribe if you haven’t already, subscribing alone supports my work.

https://www.buymeacoffee.com/SidewaysThm