Genesis 34
World English Bible
WEB1Dinah, the daughter of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. 2Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her. He took her, lay with her, and humbled her. 3His soul joined to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young lady, and spoke kindly to the young lady. 4Shechem spoke to his father, Hamor, saying, “Get me this young lady as a wife.” 5Now Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah, his daughter; and his sons were with his livestock in the field. Jacob held his peace until they came. 6Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to talk with him. 7The sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard it. The men were grieved, and they were very angry, because he had done folly in Israel in lying with Jacob’s daughter, a thing that ought not to be done. 8Hamor talked with them, saying, “The soul of my son, Shechem, longs for your daughter. Please give her to him as a wife. 9Make marriages with us. Give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for yourselves. 10You shall dwell with us, and the land will be before you. Live and trade in it, and get possessions in it.” 11Shechem said to her father and to her brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes, and whatever you will tell me I will give. 12Ask me a great amount for a dowry, and I will give whatever you ask of me, but give me the young lady as a wife.” 13The sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father with deceit when they spoke, because he had defiled Dinah their sister, 14and said to them, “We can’t do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised; for that is a reproach to us. 15Only on this condition will we consent to you. If you will be as we are, that every male of you be circumcised, 16then will we give our daughters to you; and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people. 17But if you will not listen to us and be circumcised, then we will take our sister, and we will be gone.” 18Their words pleased Hamor and Shechem, Hamor’s son. 19The young man didn’t wait to do this thing, because he had delight in Jacob’s daughter, and he was honored above all the house of his father. 20Hamor and Shechem, his son, came to the gate of their city, and talked with the men of their city, saying, 21“These men are peaceful with us. Therefore let them live in the land and trade in it. For behold, the land is large enough for them. Let’s take their daughters to us for wives, and let’s give them our daughters. 22Only on this condition will the men consent to us to live with us, to become one people, if every male among us is circumcised, as they are circumcised. 23Won’t their livestock and their possessions and all their animals be ours? Only let’s give our consent to them, and they will dwell with us.” 24All who went out of the gate of his city listened to Hamor, and to Shechem his son; and every male was circumcised, all who went out of the gate of his city. 25On the third day, when they were sore, two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword, came upon the unsuspecting city, and killed all the males. 26They killed Hamor and Shechem, his son, with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and went away. 27Jacob’s sons came on the dead, and plundered the city, because they had defiled their sister. 28They took their flocks, their herds, their donkeys, that which was in the city, that which was in the field, 29and all their wealth. They took captive all their little ones and their wives, and took as plunder everything that was in the house. 30Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have troubled me, to make me odious to the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites. I am few in number. They will gather themselves together against me and strike me, and I will be destroyed, I and my house.” 31They said, “Should he deal with our sister as with a prostitute?”
World English Bible, 2020 stable text edition. Public domain; “World English Bible” is a trademark of eBible.org. eBible.org
Overview
Genesis Chapter 34 recounts a troubling episode in the life of Jacob's family, focusing on the violation of his daughter, #Dinah. While in the land of #Shechem, Dinah goes out to visit the women of the area, and she is seized and defiled by Shechem, the son of Hamor, the Hivite. This act of violence not only brings shame upon Dinah but also ignites a fierce response from her brothers, #Simeon and #Levi. When Shechem desires to marry Dinah, he approaches Jacob and offers a bride price, but the brothers deceitfully agree to the marriage only if Shechem and his men are circumcised, which they accept in hopes of securing Dinah as a wife. This agreement is a ruse, as Simeon and Levi plan to take revenge for their sister's dishonor.
After the men of Shechem undergo circumcision, Simeon and Levi attack the city while the men are in pain, killing them and rescuing Dinah. This violent act raises questions about justice and vengeance, as Jacob later expresses concern over the potential repercussions from neighboring tribes. The chapter concludes with Jacob's admonition to his sons, highlighting the complexities of family honor and the consequences of their actions. This narrative serves as a stark reminder of the importance of integrity and the far-reaching effects of sin within families and communities.
Referenced by
- 2 Samuel 13:14v22 Samuel 13:14 describes Amnon's violation of Tamar, which parallels the account of Shechem's violation of Dinah in Genesis 34:2. Both passages deal with themes of sexual violence and its consequences within a family and community.
Topics in this chapter
- Justice
- Covenant
- Deception
- Vengeance
- Dinah
- Family Honor
- Defilement
- Integrity
- Jacob
- Leadership
- Shechem
- Circumcision
- Conflict
- Conflict Resolution
- Faithfulness
- Family
- Hamor
- Holiness
- Honesty
- Identity in Christ
- Leviticus
- Patriarchs
- Retribution
- Simeon
- Sin
- Violence
- Wisdom
- Advocacy
- Canaan
- Consequences
- Cultural Conflict
- Divine Justice
- Divine Promises
- Divine Protection
- Ethical Dilemmas
- Family Safety
- Fear
- Guidance in the Bible
- Hivites
- Honor
- Human Nature
- Israel
- Judgment
- Leah
- Massacre
- Mercy
- Moral Lessons in the Bible
- Negotiation
- Negotiation Ethics
- Nonviolence
- Patriarchs
- Peace
- Promised Land
- Protection
- Purity
- Responsibility
- Righteousness
- Simeon and Levi
Related chapters
- Genesis 49JacobPatriarchsPatriarchs
- 2 Samuel 13ViolenceVengeanceAdvocacy
- Genesis 17CircumcisionPatriarchsPatriarchs
- Genesis 27Cultural ConflictJacobPatriarchs
- Genesis 30DinahLeahJacob
- Genesis 12ShechemPatriarchsHonesty
- Genesis 37ShechemJacobPatriarchs
- Genesis 29LeahJacobPatriarchs
- Romans 12NonviolenceVengeanceHonor
- Genesis 42SimeonJacobPatriarchs
- Genesis 35JacobPatriarchsPatriarchs
- Jeremiah 41MassacreNonviolenceViolence
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