Daily Bread

Dinah and the Shechemites

34 Now Dinah,^(A) the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the women of the land. ² When Shechem^(B) son of Hamor^(C) the Hivite,^(D) the ruler of that area, saw her, he took her and raped her.^{(E) 3} His heart was drawn to Dinah^(F) daughter of Jacob;^(G) he loved^(H) the young woman and spoke tenderly^(I) to her. ⁴ And Shechem said to his father Hamor, “Get me this girl as my wife.”^(J)

⁵ When Jacob heard that his daughter Dinah had been defiled,^(K) his sons were in the fields with his livestock; so he did nothing about it until they came home.

⁶ Then Shechem’s father Hamor went out to talk with Jacob.^{(L) 7} Meanwhile, Jacob’s sons had come in from the fields as soon as they heard what had happened. They were shocked^(M) and furious,^(N) because Shechem had done an outrageous thing in^[a] Israel^(O) by sleeping with Jacob’s daughter—a thing that should not be done.^(P)

⁸ But Hamor said to them, “My son Shechem has his heart set on your daughter. Please give her to him as his wife.^{(Q) 9} Intermarry with us; give us your daughters and take our daughters for yourselves.^{(R) 10} You can settle among us;^(S) the land is open to you.^(T) Live in it, trade^[b] in it,^(U) and acquire property in it.^(V)”

¹¹ Then Shechem said to Dinah’s father and brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes,^(W) and I will give you whatever you ask. ¹² Make the price for the bride^(X) and the gift I am to bring as great as you like, and I’ll pay whatever you ask me. Only give me the young woman as my wife.”

¹³ Because their sister Dinah had been defiled,^(Y) Jacob’s sons replied deceitfully^(Z) as they spoke to Shechem and his father Hamor. ¹⁴ They said to them, “We can’t do such a thing; we can’t give our sister to a man who is not circumcised.^(AA) That would be a disgrace to us. ¹⁵ We will enter into an agreement with you on one condition^(AB) only: that you become like us by circumcising all your males.^{(AC) 16} Then we will give you our daughters and take your daughters for ourselves.^(AD) We’ll settle among you and become one people with you.^{(AE) 17} But if you will not agree to be circumcised, we’ll take our sister and go.”

¹⁸ Their proposal seemed good to Hamor and his son Shechem. ¹⁹ The young man, who was the most honored^(AF) of all his father’s family, lost no time in doing what they said, because he was delighted with Jacob’s daughter.^{(AG) 20} So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city^(AH) to speak to the men of their city. ²¹ “These men are friendly toward us,” they said. “Let them live in our land and trade in it;^(AI) the land has plenty of room for them. We can marry their daughters and they can marry ours.^{(AJ) 22} But the men will agree to live with us as one people only on the condition that our males be circumcised,^(AK) as they themselves are. ²³ Won’t their livestock, their property and all their other animals become ours?^(AL) So let us agree to their terms, and they will settle among us.^(AM)”

²⁴ All the men who went out of the city gate^(AN) agreed with Hamor and his son Shechem, and every male in the city was circumcised.

²⁵ Three days later, while all of them were still in pain,^(AO) two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon^(AP) and Levi,^(AQ) Dinah’s brothers, took their swords^(AR) and attacked the unsuspecting city,^(AS) killing every male.^{(AT) 26} They put Hamor and his son Shechem to the sword^(AU) and took Dinah^(AV) from Shechem’s house and left. ²⁷ The sons of Jacob came upon the dead bodies and looted the city^(AW) where^[c] their sister had been defiled.^{(AX) 28} They seized their flocks and herds and donkeys^(AY) and everything else of theirs in the city and out in the fields.^{(AZ) 29} They carried off all their wealth and all their women and children,^(BA) taking as plunder^(BB) everything in the houses.^(BC)

³⁰ Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought trouble^(BD) on me by making me obnoxious^(BE) to the Canaanites and Perizzites, the people living in this land.^(BF) We are few in number,^(BG) and if they join forces against me and attack me, I and my household will be destroyed.”

³¹ But they replied, “Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?^(BH)”