Why was Babylon such an impressive city

Babylon, an ancient city-state famous for its magnificence andculture, was located on the banks of the Euphrates River in theregion of Shinar. Babylon is mentioned over 250 times in the Bible.Biblical writers often portray this ancient capital of Babylonia asarchetypal of pagan idolatry.

The city of Babylon was situated along the Euphrates River about300 miles northwest of the Persian Gulf and approximately 30 milessouthwest of modern Baghdad in Iraq. At one time, the Euphratesflowed through the midst of the city. However, as rivers are oftenwont to change their course, today the river runs somewhat east ofthe ancient city.

In the Hebrew language, the name Babylon is derived from the rootBabel, meaning “to confound or confuse,” and has reference to theconfusion of tongues that occurred at the Tower of Babel (Gen.11:9). The Genesis account says the ancient prehistoric city ofBabylon was founded by Cush and the followe