How tall was the Tower of Babel?
Genesis 11:1 - 9
KJV - 1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. 2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there.
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Asked November 13 2020
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Judith ayitu
Supporter
Community answers are sorted based on votes. The higher the vote, the further up an answer is.
Tim Maas
Supporter
The Bible does not mention a specific height, only saying that the builders intended it to reach "to the heavens", which is simply an idiom expressing great height, without indicating any specific measurement. Various non-Scriptural sources (over a period of many centuries) vary widely (as well as wildly) in their accounts or estimates of the tower's purported height. These include: 8,150 feet (the Book of Jubilees) 695 feet (Third Apocalypse of Baruch) 300 feet (Orosius)(c. AD 417) 4,000 paces (3.68 miles)(Giovanni Villani)(AD 1300) 8 miles (John Mandeville)(AD 1300) 5,164 paces (4.7 miles)(Isidore of Seville)(c. AD 560-636) Modern calculations have determined that a tower made of stone blocks and built with parallel walls in the form of a square or rectangle could theoretically have been built to a height of 1.3 miles (over 6,800 feet) before the blocks at the base of the tower would have been crushed beneath the structure's weight. However, a tower built with walls that tapered as they went up could theoretically have been built to a height that would have been so great that the constraining factor on its height would not have been the crushing of the base, but the fact that the workers at the top of the structure would not have had sufficient oxygen to enable them to continue to work.
Jack Gutknecht
Supporter
It was most likely approximately about the size of football field straight up (7-8 stories high), or 100 yards up. But it definitely wasn't 18 miles tall!
Rob Sparks
Supporter
The book of Jasher, chapter 9, says it took a year to reach the top. It also states that the lower 1/3rd was swallowed up by the earth, and the next 1/3rd was burned by fire from heaven. The remainder 1/3 that was aloft remained. It states that it was a 3-day walk around its perimeter. A typical able-bodied man can walk 25 miles in a day. It is safe to say the base of this massive structure was 3 x 25 miles around. This wide base would account for the added weight as they reached into the heavens to the firmament. I know the book of Jasher is not inspired, nor has it ever been thought to be; however it was considered to be a reliable source and was often referenced by writers of the Bible.
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