What was so wrong with Babel?

Do you remember the story of the tower of Babel? People were trying to build a tower “whose top may reach unto heaven” (Genesis 11:4).

The Lord wasn’t happy with this! So instead of everyone speaking the same language, He made it so that people spoke different languages. That led to confusion, and they abandoned their plans (see Genesis 11:1–9).

But why was the Lord so upset by their attempt to build a tall tower? It’s not like they had any chance of literally reaching all the way to heaven. So what was the big deal?

Some scholars believe the tower of Babel was an unauthorized temple. If that’s what the Babylonians were doing—trying to take a shortcut to the celestial kingdom by making their own temple without priesthood authority—you can see why the Lord wasn’t pleased.

The temple is a sacred, holy place. It’s worth every effort to get there … the right way!

Note: For more about the tower of Babel, see this Liahona article.