Genesis 34
34
Dinah Defiled
1Leah’s daughter#Gn 30:21 Dinah, whom Leah bore to Jacob, went out to see some of the young women of the area. 2When Shechem — son of Hamor the Hivite, who was the region’s chieftain — saw her, he took her and raped her. 3He became infatuated with Jacob’s daughter Dinah. He loved the young girl and spoke tenderly to her.#34:3 Lit spoke to her heart 4“Get me this girl as a wife,”#Jdg 14:2 he told his father.
5Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled his daughter Dinah, but since his sons were with his livestock in the field, he remained silent until they returned. 6Meanwhile, Shechem’s father Hamor came to speak with Jacob. 7Jacob’s sons returned from the field when they heard about the incident. They were deeply grieved and very angry, for Shechem had committed an outrage against Israel by raping Jacob’s daughter,#Dt 22:20–30; Jdg 20:6; 2Sm 13:12 and such a thing should not be done.
8Hamor said to Jacob’s sons, “My son Shechem has his heart set on your#34:8 The Hb word for your is pl, showing that Hamor is speaking to Jacob and his sons. daughter. Please give her to him as a wife. 9Intermarry with us; give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for yourselves. 10Live with us. The land is before you. Settle here, move about, and acquire property in it.”
11Then Shechem said to Dinah’s father and brothers, “Grant me this favor,#34:11 Lit “May I find favor in your eyes and I’ll give you whatever you say. 12Demand of me a high compensation#34:12 Or bride-price, or betrothal present and gift; I’ll give you whatever you ask me. Just give the girl to be my wife!”
13But Jacob’s sons answered Shechem and his father Hamor deceitfully because he had defiled their sister Dinah. 14“We cannot do this thing,” they said to them. “Giving our sister to an uncircumcised man is a disgrace to us. 15We will agree with you only on this condition: if all your males are circumcised as we are.#Gn 17:23–27 16Then we will give you our daughters, take your daughters for ourselves, live with you, and become one people. 17But if you will not listen to us and be circumcised, then we will take our daughter and go.”
18Their words seemed good to Hamor and his son Shechem. 19The young man did not delay doing this, because he was delighted with Jacob’s daughter. Now he was the most important in all his father’s family. 20So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city#Ru 4:1; 2Sm 15:2 and spoke to the men of their city.
21“These men are peaceful toward us,” they said. “Let them live in our land and move about in it, for indeed, the region is large enough for them. Let’s take their daughters as our wives and give our daughters to them. 22But the men will agree to live with us and be one people only on this condition: if all our men are circumcised as they are. 23Won’t their livestock, their possessions, and all their animals become ours? Only let’s agree with them, and they will live with us.”
24All the men#Gn 23:10 who had come to the city gates listened to Hamor and his son Shechem, and all those men were circumcised. 25On the third day, when they were still in pain, two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi,#Gn 49:5–7 Dinah’s brothers, took their swords, went into the unsuspecting city, and killed every male. 26They killed Hamor and his son Shechem with their swords, took Dinah from Shechem’s house, and went away. 27Jacob’s sons came to the slaughter and plundered the city because their sister had been defiled. 28They took their flocks, herds, donkeys, and whatever was in the city and in the field. 29They captured all their possessions, dependents, and wives and plundered everything in the houses.
30Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought trouble on me,#Jos 7:25 making me odious to the inhabitants of the land,#Ex 5:21; 1Sm 13:4; 2Sm 10:6 the Canaanites and the Perizzites.#Gn 13:7; 34:2 We are few in number; if they unite against me and attack me, I and my household will be destroyed.”#Gn 46:26–27; Dt 4:27; 1Ch 16:19; Ps 105:12
31But they answered, “Should he treat our sister like a prostitute?”
© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
Genesis 34
34
Dinah Is Attacked
1Dinah was the daughter of Leah and Jacob. At this time Dinah went out to visit the women of that land. 2Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the ruler of that land, saw Dinah. He took her and raped her. 3Shechem fell in love with Dinah, and he spoke kindly to her. 4He told his father, Hamor, “Please get this girl for me so I can marry her.”
5Jacob learned how Shechem had disgraced his daughter. But Jacob’s sons were out in the field with the cattle. So Jacob said nothing until they came home. 6And Hamor father of Shechem went to talk with Jacob.
7When Jacob’s sons heard what had happened, they came in from the field. They were very angry, because Shechem had done such a wicked thing to Israel. It was wrong for him to have raped Jacob’s daughter. A thing like this should not be done.
8But Hamor talked to the brothers of Dinah. He said, “My son Shechem is deeply in love with Dinah. Please let him marry her. 9Marry our people. Give your women to our men as wives. And take our women for your men as wives. 10You can live in the same land with us. You will be free to own land and to trade here.”
11Shechem also talked to Jacob and to Dinah’s brothers. He said, “Please accept my offer. I will give anything you ask. 12Ask as much as you want for the payment for the bride. I will give it to you. Just let me marry Dinah.”
13The sons of Jacob answered Shechem and his father with lies. They were angry because Shechem had disgraced their sister Dinah. 14The brothers said to them, “We cannot allow you to marry our sister. You are not circumcised. That would be a disgrace to us. 15But we will allow you to marry her if you do this one thing: Every man in your town must be circumcised like us. 16Then your men can marry our women, and our men can marry your women. Then we will live in your land and become one people. 17If you refuse to be circumcised, we will take Dinah and leave.”
18What they asked seemed fair to Hamor and Shechem. 19So Shechem went quickly to be circumcised because he loved Jacob’s daughter.
Now Shechem was the most respected man in his family. 20So Hamor and Shechem went to the gate of their city. They spoke to the men of their city. They said, 21“These people want to be friends with us. So let them live in our land and trade here. There is enough land for all of us. Let us marry their women. And we can let them marry our women. 22But our men must agree to one thing. All our men must agree to be circumcised as they are. Then they will agree to live in our land. And we will be one people. 23If we do this, their cattle and their animals will belong to us. Let us do what they say, and they will stay in our land.” 24All the men who had come to the city gate heard this. And they agreed with Hamor and Shechem. And every man was circumcised.
25Three days later the men who were circumcised were still in pain. Two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi (Dinah’s brothers), took their swords. They made a surprise attack on the city. And they killed all the men there. 26Simeon and Levi killed Hamor and his son Shechem. Then they took Dinah out of Shechem’s house and left. 27Jacob’s sons went among the dead bodies and stole everything that was in the city. This was to pay them back for what Shechem had done to their sister. 28So the brothers took the flocks, herds and donkeys. And they took everything in the city and in the fields. 29They took every valuable thing those people owned. They even took the wives and children and everything that was in the houses.
30Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have caused me a lot of trouble. Now the Canaanites and the Perizzites who live in the land will hate me. There are only a few of us. If they join together to attack us, my people and I will be destroyed.”
31But the brothers said, “We will not allow our sister to be treated like a prostitute.”
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