The Frame of the Tower - what comes before and after it.
The Tower
(א) וַֽיְהִ֥י כָל־הָאָ֖רֶץ שָׂפָ֣ה אֶחָ֑ת וּדְבָרִ֖ים אֲחָדִֽים׃ (ב) וַֽיְהִ֖י בְּנָסְעָ֣ם מִקֶּ֑דֶם וַֽיִּמְצְא֥וּ בִקְעָ֛ה בְּאֶ֥רֶץ שִׁנְעָ֖ר וַיֵּ֥שְׁבוּ שָֽׁם׃ (ג) וַיֹּאמְר֞וּ אִ֣ישׁ אֶל־רֵעֵ֗הוּ הָ֚בָה נִלְבְּנָ֣ה לְבֵנִ֔ים וְנִשְׂרְפָ֖ה לִשְׂרֵפָ֑ה וַתְּהִ֨י לָהֶ֤ם הַלְּבֵנָה֙ לְאָ֔בֶן וְהַ֣חֵמָ֔ר הָיָ֥ה לָהֶ֖ם לַחֹֽמֶר׃ (ד) וַיֹּאמְר֞וּ הָ֣בָה ׀ נִבְנֶה־לָּ֣נוּ עִ֗יר וּמִגְדָּל֙ וְרֹאשׁ֣וֹ בַשָּׁמַ֔יִם וְנַֽעֲשֶׂה־לָּ֖נוּ שֵׁ֑ם פֶּן־נָפ֖וּץ עַל־פְּנֵ֥י כָל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃
(ה) וַיֵּ֣רֶד יְהוָ֔ה לִרְאֹ֥ת אֶת־הָעִ֖יר וְאֶת־הַמִּגְדָּ֑ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר בָּנ֖וּ בְּנֵ֥י הָאָדָֽם׃ (ו) וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יְהוָ֗ה הֵ֣ן עַ֤ם אֶחָד֙ וְשָׂפָ֤ה אַחַת֙ לְכֻלָּ֔ם וְזֶ֖ה הַחִלָּ֣ם לַעֲשׂ֑וֹת וְעַתָּה֙ לֹֽא־יִבָּצֵ֣ר מֵהֶ֔ם כֹּ֛ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר יָזְמ֖וּ לַֽעֲשֽׂוֹת׃ (ז) הָ֚בָה נֵֽרְדָ֔ה וְנָבְלָ֥ה שָׁ֖ם שְׂפָתָ֑ם אֲשֶׁר֙ לֹ֣א יִשְׁמְע֔וּ אִ֖ישׁ שְׂפַ֥ת רֵעֵֽהוּ׃
(ח) וַיָּ֨פֶץ יְהוָ֥ה אֹתָ֛ם מִשָּׁ֖ם עַל־פְּנֵ֣י כָל־הָאָ֑רֶץ וַֽיַּחְדְּל֖וּ לִבְנֹ֥ת הָעִֽיר׃ (ט) עַל־כֵּ֞ן קָרָ֤א שְׁמָהּ֙ בָּבֶ֔ל כִּי־שָׁ֛ם בָּלַ֥ל יְהוָ֖ה שְׂפַ֣ת כָּל־הָאָ֑רֶץ וּמִשָּׁם֙ הֱפִיצָ֣ם יְהוָ֔ה עַל־פְּנֵ֖י כָּל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃ (פ)
(1) Everyone on earth had the same language and the same words. (2) And as they migrated from the east, they came upon a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there. (3) They said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and burn them hard.”—Brick served them as stone, and bitumen served them as mortar.— (4) And they said, “Come, let us build us a city, and a tower with its top in the sky, to make a name for ourselves; else we shall be scattered all over the world.”
(5) The LORD came down to look at the city and tower that man had built, (6) and the LORD said, “If, as one people with one language for all, this is how they have begun to act, then nothing that they may propose to do will be out of their reach. (7) Let us, then, go down and confound their speech there, so that they shall not understand one another’s speech.”
(8) Thus the LORD scattered them from there over the face of the whole earth; and they stopped building the city. (9) That is why it was called Babel [b.b.l.], because there the LORD confounded [b.l.l.] the speech of the whole earth; and from there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth.
This has been called an etiological story - a story that explains origins
(from the Ancient Greek αἴτιον, "cause") [see Wikipedia]
What does this story come to explain, in your view?
The Generation of the Dispersion - Dor HaPalagah (often pronounced 'Haflagah') - דור הפלגה
Bad guys? Good guys?
ודברים אחדים.
בָּאוּ בְעֵצָה אַחַת וְאָמְרוּ לֹא כָּל הֵימֶנּוּ שֶׁיָּבֹר לוֹ אֶת הָעֶלְיוֹנִים, נַעֲלֶה לָרָקִיעַ וְנַעֲשֶׂה עִמּוֹ מִלְחָמָה.
דָּבָר אַחֵר עַל יְחִידוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם.
דָּבָר אַחֵר וּדְבָרִים אֲחָדִים – אָמְרוּ אַחַת לְאֶלֶף ותרנ"ו שָׁנִים הָרָקִיעַ מִתְמוֹטֵט כְּשֵׁם שֶׁעָשָׂה בִּימֵי הַמַּבּוּל, בֹּאוּ וְנַעֲשֶׂה לוֹ סְמִיכוֹת (ב"ר):
ודברים אחדים AND ONE SPEECH —
They came with one plan, saying: “He has no right to select the heavenly regions exclusively for Himself; let us ascend to the skies and make war upon Him”.
Another explanation (of דברים אחדים which is taken to mean “words referring to “One”): words regarding the Sole Being (God) in the Universe.
Another explanation of ודברים אחדים is: they spoke דברים חדים “sharp” words [DR: they spoke about sharp [=vertical?] things]; they said, “Once in every one thousand six hundred and fifty six years (the period that elapsed from the Creation to the Flood) there is a heaven-shaking, just as there was in the days of the Flood. Come. then, and let us make supports for it” (Genesis Rabbah 38:6).
ומשם הפיצם. לִמֵּד שֶׁאֵין לָהֶם חֵלֶק לָעוֹלָם הַבָּא;
וְכִי אֵיזוֹ קָשָׁה, שֶׁל דּוֹר הַמַּבּוּל אוֹ שֶׁל דּוֹר הַפַּלָּגָה? אֵלּוּ לֹא פָשְׁטוּ יָד בָּעִקָּר וְאֵלּוּ פָשְׁטוּ יָד בָּעִקָּר לְהִלָּחֵם בּוֹ, וְאֵלּוּ נִשְׁטְפוּ וְאֵלּוּ לֹא נֶאֱבְדוּ מִן הָעוֹלָם?
אֶלָּא שֶׁדּוֹר הַמַּבּוּל הָיוּ גַּזְלָנִים וְהָיְתָה מְרִיבָה בֵינֵיהֶם, לְכָךְ נֶאֱבְדוּ; וְאֵלּוּ הָיוּ נוֹהֲגִים אַהֲבָה וְרֵעוּת בֵּינֵיהֶם, שֶׁנֶּ' שָׂפָה אֶחָת וּדְבָרִים אֲחָדִים, לָמַדְתָּ שֶׁשָּׂנְאוּי הַמַּחֲלֹקֶת וְגָדוֹל הַשָּׁלֹום:
ומשם הפיצם AND FROM THENCE DID THE LORD SCATTER THEM —This teaches that they have no portion in the world to come (Sanhedrin 107b).
Which sin was greater: that of the generation of the Flood or that of the generation of the Dispersion? The former did not stretch forth their hands against God; the latter did stretch forth their hands against God to war against him (surely, then, the sin of the generation of the Dispersion was greater) and yet the former (the generation of the Flood) were drowned and these did not perish from the world!
But the reason is that the generation of the Flood were violent robbers and there was strife among them, and therefore they were destroyed; but these conducted themselves in love and friendship, as it is said, “They were one people and had one language”. — You may learn from this how hateful to God is strife and how great is peace (Genesis Rabbah 38:6).
...And the same words - The text did not explain what those words were, rather, it leaves as a hint, as explained in midrashim.
But the words themselves are not explained by the text, it just tells us that they were the same words, to teach us that it wasn't because of the content of the words themselves that the Holy One of Blessing was distressed [, but because of their uniformity, be what they were.
This matter,
even if apparently no iniquity pertained to it and, on the contrary, one could apply to it the rabbinic principle "Ephraim is united in idolatry— let him be" (Hosea 4:17),
nevertheless it led to the conception of an idea that resulted in social disintegrationm as will be explained.]
Lest we be scattered over all the face of the earth -
we must understand why they feared that someone might leave to another land. And it is clear that this was related to the 'like words'/uniformity that was among them.
Since the opinions of people are not identical, they feared that people might abandon this philosophy and adopt another. Therefore they sought to ensure that no one would leave their society. And one who veered from this uniformity among them was judged with burning, just as they did to our forefather Abraham. And the "same words" can also be seen as the fact that they would kill whoever did not think like them. ...
Biblical Echoes of the Tower of Bavel
A Chasidic Perspective
בענין דור הפלגה שהי' בכח הדיבור שהוא עיקר מעלת האדם המדבר דכ'. כֹּ֚ה אָמַ֣ר יְהוָ֔ה הַשָּׁמַ֣יִם כִּסְאִ֔י וְהָאָ֖רֶץ הֲדֹ֣ם רַגְלָ֑י אֵי־זֶ֥ה בַ֙יִת֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תִּבְנוּ־לִ֔י [וְאֵי־זֶ֥ה מָק֖וֹם מְנוּחָתִֽי] [וְאֶת־כָּל־אֵ֙לֶּה֙ יָדִ֣י עָשָׂ֔תָה וַיִּהְי֥וּ כָל־אֵ֖לֶּה נְאֻם־יְהוָ֑ה] וְאֶל־זֶ֣ה אַבִּ֔יט אֶל־עָנִי֙ וּנְכֵה־ר֔וּחַ וְחָרֵ֖ד עַל־דְּבָרִֽי׃
דבאמת רוצין שהתחתונים יבנו בית המקדש. כדאיתא מעולם נתאוה הקב"ה להיות לו דירה בתחתונים. וכ' ואשים דברי בפיך כו' לנטוע שמים כו'. והכל בכח כ"ב אתוין דאורייתא. אביט הוא כ"ב כמ"ש רז"ל הביט בתורה.
כי כל הבטת הקב"ה בעוה"ז באמצעות התורה. כמ"ש כמה פעמים וירא אלקים כי טוב ואין טוב אלא תורה. ושמים הוא תורה שבכתב וארץ תורה שבע"פ.
ויכולין ע"י התורה לבנות ביהמ"ק להיות שורש למעלה ופרי למטה כמו שקיימו אבותינו במשכן ובבית הבחירה.
ודור הפלגה שלא הי' כוונתם לשם שמים. ניטל מהם כח הדיבור ונתבלבלו הלשונות. מוכח מזה כשהי' הלשון מסודר. דברים אחדים. היו יכולין לבנות הבנין להיות ראשו בשמים....
from the year 5656 (Fall 1895)...
Torah commentary by R' Yehuda Leib Alter of Gur, considered one of the pillars of Chassidic thought.
Some information to help with the understanding of the Hebrew
Isaiah 66:1-2
Thus said the LORD: The heaven is My throne And the earth is My footstool: Where could you build a house for Me, What place could serve as My abode?
All this was made by My hand, And thus it all came into being —declares the LORD. Yet to such a one I look: To the poor and brokenhearted, Who is concerned about My word.
The numerical equivalent of "אביט" is 22.