Land of Shinar
The book of Daniel calls Babylon the “land of Shinar,” a verbal link to the Tower of Babel and the founding of the original city that became Babylon. That incident is echoed again in the third chapter when Nebuchadnezzar gathers all nations and peoples to pay homage to the great golden image that he “set up.”
Biblically speaking, the Neo-Babylonian
Empire was not a new political entity - It had an ancient pedigree, and it was
the descendant of the old Mesopotamian civilization.
The imperial city in which Daniel found
himself was the latest incarnation of the World Empire that has existed
since the beginning of civilization as recorded in the book of Genesis.
TOWER OF BABEL
God thwarted the completion of a high tower
in the “land of Shinar,” resulting in the distribution of
languages, nations, and cultures across the earth. That story provides the reader
with the true origins of the World Empire.
- (Daniel 1:1-2) – “In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to Jerusalem, and laid siege against it; and the Lord gave into his hand Jehoiakim king of Judah and a part of the vessels of the house of God, and he brought them into the land of Shinar into the house of his gods, and the vessels brought he into the treasure-house of his gods.”
The preceding paragraph builds on the story
in Genesis. At that time, the “whole earth was of one language and
one speech.” Noah’s descendants migrated to Mesopotamia to dwell “in the land of Shinar,”
and the name ‘Shinar’ is the Hebrew equivalent of ‘Sumer,’
the first known civilization in Mesopotamia.
The people of Shinar began
to build a city with a high tower that would “reach the heavens and thus
make us a name, lest we be scattered across the whole earth.” The
description reflects the Sumerian culture in which cities featured temples
built on ziggurats - tiered mounds that formed the highest point in a city.
Dedicated to its chief deity, the civil, economic, and religious activities centered
on the temple.
Originally, Yahweh commanded Adam to “multiply,
replenish and subdue the earth,” a command reiterated to Noah after the flood.
But humanity chose instead to move to Mesopotamia and build a new civilization centered there, and to make a name for itself. And in the Hebrew Bible, Babylon is characterized by its presumption and arrogance - (Genesis 1:28, 9:1, Isaiah 14:13-14, 63:12-14, Jeremiah 32:20).
If humanity united under one language, the
wickedness of mankind would know no bounds. By confounding their language, God
caused the nations to spread throughout the earth, and thereby, He stopped the first
attempt to establish a centralized empire. In this way, the idolatrous ambitions
of Babylon were delayed, at least, until a more opportune time.
The Bible calls that ancient city ‘Babel,’
the place where “Yahweh confounded the language of all the earth.” The
name may be related to the Hebrew word balal or “confusion,” although
in the Akkadian language of Mesopotamia bab-ili (‘Babel’) meant the
“gate of god.”
Thus, in the book of Daniel, the king
of contemporary “Babel” attempts to reverse God’s original judgment. Having
conquered the kingdom of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar sets out to gather different
ethnic groups, cultures, and nations to his rebuilt city where the people are educated
in the “language of Babylon,” the latest incarnation of the World
Empire.
NIMROD
The story of Nimrod is found in the so-called
‘Table of Nations’ in Genesis, the man the Bible links to the founding
of Mesopotamian civilization, and the builder of several of its chief cities,
including Babel, Asshur, and Nineveh.
Nimrod became “a mighty one in
the earth,” a term that reflects the “mighty men of name,” the gibborim,
warriors who established fearsome reputations through violent exploits - (Genesis
6:4-13, 10:8-12).
Likewise, Nimrod was a “mighty hunter
before the face of Yahweh.” The description denotes his opposition to
Yahweh, not God’s approval. His name, Nimrod, is derived from the Hebrew
word mārăd - “We will revolt” – and elsewhere is used to
typify despotic rulers that oppressed Israel - (Micah 5:6).
THE PARALLELS IN DANIEL
In Genesis, the “whole earth
spoke one language” as men began to dwell in “Shinar.” They built a
city and tower of “great height” in the plain of Shinar to mark
their achievements and prevent humanity’s dispersal.
And in Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar brings captives to Babylon, the great city that he built. Exiles from other nations are educated in the “language of the Chaldeans.” Hence, what the original inhabitants of Babel began to do, Nebuchadnezzar attempts to complete.
And so, Nebuchadnezzar “set up” a great golden image of
exceptional “height” in
the “plain of Dura,” then
decreed that “all peoples, races, and
tongues” must gather and render homage to it, and He summoned
representatives from every province and nation “to the dedication of the
image” - his great and “high”
image - (Daniel 3:1-8).
The verbal parallels are deliberate.
Just as the earlier inhabitants of Mesopotamia united to build a city and high
tower for their own glory, so the contemporary king of Babylon presumed to
unite all men under his authority and have them pay homage to the great image “set
up” by him.