A Tower Built to Watch Everyone
In the Netziv's reading, the builders of Bavel wanted a tower from which people could be watched, with punishment for those who thought differently.
A teaching ofRav Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin of Volozhinהרב נפתלי צבי יהודה בן יעקב ברליןProfile ›
The Netziv reads the story of the Tower of Bavel as a picture of a society that built itself a lookout. A tower with its top in the heavens would let its builders watch even distant settlements, so that the people would not scatter. He explains that overseers were appointed, and army officers stood ready to punish anyone who stepped out of line, because without enforcement the tower would not serve its purpose. Anyone who departed from the shared views of the group faced the harshest penalty, as happened to Avraham, and the builders resolved to kill whoever did not think as they did. Such a society can boast of peace and unity, since everyone speaks the same words and moves in one direction. But the Netziv shows that this unity rests on watching and force.
Source: HaEmek Davar, Bereishis 11:4
If you are part of a family, a shul or a group, notice one place this week where agreement is kept by quiet pressure and not by real consent. Make space for a different view. Ask a person who sees it otherwise to explain, and listen without hurry or rebuttal. Peace that has no room for honest disagreement is closer to Bavel than to Torah. Practice it once today, in a conversation where you would normally just win.