Genesis 11:3

ESV And they said to one another, "Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly." And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar.

NIV They said to each other, "Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly." They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar.

NASB Then they said to one another, 'Come, let’s make bricks and fire them thoroughly.' And they used brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar.

CSB They said to each other, "Come, let us make oven-fired bricks." (They used brick for stone and asphalt for mortar.)

NLT They began saying to each other, 'Let’s make bricks and harden them with fire.' (In this region bricks were used instead of stone, and tar was used for mortar.)

KJV And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter.

NKJV Then they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar.

What does Genesis 11:3 mean?

The previous verses revealed that the peoples of the earth had not yet divided and scattered into separate tribes and nations. The descendants of Shem, Ham, and Japheth remained a single people group with a single culture and language. Together, they had migrated to the region of Shinar where Babylon would be established.

Here, we're told that together these people made plans to build a huge structure in their new homeland. This verse seems oddly specific in describing their building materials: bricks hardened by burning—or baking—and mortar made from tar. Scholars suggest there is wordplay going on in these verses, connecting the words for these building materials to the name of Babel. In addition, Israelite readers would have likely been interested to know that these ancient people used bricks while they themselves often used stone for building.

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Context Summary
Genesis 11:1–9 recounts one of the most dramatic acts of God recorded in Genesis. Before the tribes and nations described in Genesis 10 were formed, all the people of the earth shared one language and one culture. They also shared the goal of not wanting to be separated. To that end, they decided to make themselves great by building a great city with an enormous tower—and without apparently acknowledging God. To keep humanity from being too powerful, and lapsing into the widespread sin which inspired the flood, God confuses human languages and scattered mankind around the world. The city of Babel, similar to the Hebrew word for ''confused,'' would later become known as Babylon.

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Chapter Context
Genesis 11 contains three sections: God confuses and scatters the people of the world to stop the building of Babel and its tower. A genealogy is provided showing the direct links between Noah and Abram. The ''generations'' of Terah are introduced, providing a description of the family out of which God will call Abram to become the father of His chosen people.

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