Artificial Omniscience and the Tower of Babel

Artificial Omniscience? Is that even a thing? Maybe not, but it would come as no surprise to discover that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is already being deployed to achieve “infinite awareness, understanding, and insight” and “universal or complete knowledge.” From Webster’s dictionary, both definitions of omniscience would seem to be where AI is headed if we are to believe the hype surrounding the phenomenon. Could anything designed by human intelligence possibly have provided the success that eluded the ancient architects and builders in their attempt to reach the heavens? The answer seems to be no, even with the extraordinary advancements of modern technology.

Building the Tower of Babel

The account of the plan to construct the Tower of Babel appears in the book of Genesis and contains a lesson that has served generations throughout the sweep of history. Human intelligence, artificial or otherwise, is no match for God’s omniscience. Having the essential materials and a common language would seem to have ensured the completion of the highly ambitious project, but God’s intervention was not considered. The following pericope gives us context:

The whole world had the same language and the same words. When they were migrating from the east, they came to a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there. They said to one another, “Come, let us mold bricks and harden them with fire.” They used bricks for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the sky, and so make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered all over the earth.” (Genesis 11:1-4)

Was Reaching Heaven Possible?

As we know, the plan was thwarted by none other than the one truly omniscient God. The blueprint was sound, and the bricks and bitumen were “state of the art,” but the best natural means were no match for the supernatural. Nevertheless, if taken literally, the following passage from the same chapter seems to suggest that, if left alone, reaching Heaven might have been possible:

The LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the people had built. Then the LORD said: “If now, while they are one people and all have the same language, they have started to do this, nothing they presume to do will be out of their reach. Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that no one will understand the speech of another. So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. That is why it was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the speech of all the world. From there the LORD scattered them over all the earth. (Genesis 11:5-9)

Omniscience and the Weeds

In the mysterious realm of God’s providence, it is impossible to tell how and when divine intervention will occur. Human beings, made in the image and likeness of God, are given the gifts of intellect and free will. As such, what proceeds from using these gifts can fall into the opposing categories of good and evil. Yet, as we have seen throughout history, God allows the “weeds” and the “wheat” to coexist without immediate intervention. The following parable contains wisdom that cannot proceed from the best of human reasoning and gives an inkling as to why God allows terrible things to happen to good people for a time before separating the “wheat from the chaff”:

[Jesus] proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off. When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. The slaves of the householder came to him and said, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?’ He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with them. Let them grow together until harvest; then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters, “First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’” (Matthew 13:24-30)

Will Artificial Intelligence morph into Artificial Omniscience and choke out the wheat of goodness and truth in the world? Will a tower designed by supercomputers finally reach Heaven? Will God pull up the “weeds” of technology gone amuck, or wait until harvest? The answer resides in the one truly omniscient mind.