1. And all the earth had one language and one speech.
2. And it came to be, as they set out from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shin‛ar, and they dwelt there.
3. And they said to each other, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar.
4. And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens, and make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered over all the face of the earth.”
5. Then יהוה came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.