In working on the discourse analysis of Genesis, I came across a really nice tidy example of how one can look to factors other than conjunctions like WAW to determine the relationship of one clause to another. This verse provides the summary conclusion to the Tower of Babel story, and is composed of three clauses. Here is the text of Genesis 11:9 taken from BHS:

‮עַל־כֵּ֞ן קָרָ֤א שְׁמָהּ֙ בָּבֶ֔ל

כִּי־שָׁ֛ם בָּלַ֥ל יְהוָ֖ה שְׂפַ֣ת כָּל־הָאָ֑רֶץ

וּמִשָּׁם֙ הֱפִיצָ֣ם יְהוָ֔ה עַל־פְּנֵ֖י כָּל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃ פ

The first clause begins with עַל־כֵּ֞ן, which plays a similar role as οὖν in Greek introducing either summaries or points drawn from the preceding discourse. It is rendered here in LXX as διὰ τοῦτο. The next clause is introduced with כִּי, a tricky little particle that can perform a number of different functions compared to Greek counterparts, which form a more specialized conjunction system compared to Hebrew. כִּי very often plays a role similar to ὅτι in Greek, introducing a subordinate clause, either the complement of a verb of speech/perception, or your standard “because” sub-point. The latter is the case here. The question I want to focus on is the relationship of the third clause introduced by WAW, and its relationship to what precedes. It is a second sub-point, coordinated with the כִּי clause, or is it coordinated with the main clause that begins the verse. The same ambiguity exists in LXX, since καί simply joins two like elements, but does not specify which two . WAW does the same function. This means we must look for other factors to decide the matter.

Recall that I said KAI and WAW are used to link “like elements” together. Take a look at the repetition of the demonstrative adverb שָׁ֛ם in both the second and third clauses. In both cases it occurs at the beginning of the clause, establishing a specific spatial frame of reference for the clause that follows. It was “there” that something happened, which helps explain the reason for the city’s name. Based on the repetition of the adverb, I construe the third clause as added to the second, and not as a new main clause. The following versions all seem to take the third clause as a new thought, not related to theכִּי clause. Note that the Message, NIV and NLT use asynedeton  and a period to express this.

The Message
English Standard Version
The New International Version
New Living Translation
9 That’s how it came to be called Babel, because there God turned their language into “babble.” From there God scattered them all over the world. 9 Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth. And from there the Lord dispersed them over the face of all the earth. 9 That is why it was called Babel—because there the Lord confused the language of the whole world. From there the Lord scattered them over the face of the whole earth. 9 That is why the city was called Babel, because that is where the Lord confused the people with different languages. In this way he scattered them all over the world.

On the other hand, KJV, NASB, NRSV and NET take the third clause as at least closely related, though the colon and semi-colon seem to make a sharper division than the comma in the NET. My vote is for the NET, based on the parallelism one finds in the syntax and wording of the verse.

King James Version
New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update
The New Revised Standard Version
The NET Bible
9 Therefore is the name of it called Babel ; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth. 9 Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of the whole earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of the whole earth. 9 Therefore it was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth. 9 That is why its name was called Babel – because there the Lord confused the language of the entire world, and from there the Lord scattered them across the face of the entire earth.

The HTML in this post is a mess, based on the table and the Hebrew, and my helper is in another state. So, you get the post in the state it is in. Hope it works. HTML is not wonderful!

P.S. I forgot to mention that the content of Gen 11:8 adds more evidence for viewing v. 9b and 9c as closely related, since right after the LORD states his intention to confuse their language in v. 7, there follows a report that he scattered them abroad in v. 8. This scattering is the very reason that the people built the tower in the first place. Thus, the scattering forms an enclusio at both ends of vv. 9a-b.

New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update
9 Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of the whole earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of the whole earth.