Genesis Part 053

Leah had six sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun. After these six sons, she bore a daughter named Dinah (Genesis 30:21).  This is the only daughter that is listed as being born to Jacob. Verse one states that Dinah went out to “see the daughters of the land.” Being the only girl in the family, she was likely curious about how other girls dressed and acted. We can speculate on her curious nature and what she wanted to experience. There is no hint of her going off looking for a relationship with a man. 

Genesis 34:2 introduces a prince of the country who saw her, was attracted to her and took her. We can conclude that Shechem’s father Hamor is the prince or king and his son Shechem is the prince. This is likely a young man that is accustomed to getting what he wants. He seems to have an entitled approach to his decision-making process.  

It is clear in many Bible translations that at the end of verse 2, Dinah is raped. Strong’s Bible Concordance says the phrase, “he violated her,” implying looking down, deal hardly with, defile, force, hurt, ravish (and other definitions).” This word is used 83 times in the Bible; many of those times it’s translated as “afflict,” 11 times it is translated “to humble,” and 5 times as “force.” 

To read about young Dinah being sexually assaulted by the prince of the country makes us uncomfortable. The Bible is written about real people with real desires and motivations and who make real mistakes. The epistle of James shares with us the mental process of sin, starting with temptation, leading to desire, leading to sin, leading to death. We can see these elements demonstrated in this narrative. Verse three states, 

“His soul was strongly attracted to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young woman and spoke kindly to the young woman.” 

The Hebrew meaning of this verse is “clinging to her, staying close, sticking close” to Dinah, and that he loved her. This Hebrew word is commonly translated love, but the Strong’s definition says, “To have affection for (sexually or otherwise).” It appears that there is no relationship here, so it is likely a surface-level attraction, and the prince is drawn to her sexually. The verse ends by saying that he was talking kindly, or from the heart, to her. It calls her a “damsel” or “a young woman.” Strong’s defines this word as “a girl (from infancy to adolescence),” indicating that she was young at this time. 

Verse 19 states, 

“He was more honorable than all the household of his father.” 

This verse seems to contradict the earlier situation where he acted very dishonorably. The Hebrew word for honorable means “to be heavy, to be rich, to have honor or glory.” It is possible that this verse isn’t talking about him being honorable in the sense of morality, but that he was willing to fulfill the commitment that he had made, and perhaps others were more hesitant to commit to circumcision and were willing to abandon the treaty.   

Below is what the UCG Bible commentary has to say on this section:  

“Genesis 34:2 says that Shechem took Dinah and ‘lay with her and violated her.’ Does this indicate that Shechem raped Dinah or was what happened consensual? Verse 1 says that Dinah ‘went out to see the daughters of the land.’ Some commentators suggest that she was in her late teens and was going to attend some kind of public affair or celebration. It is then suggested that perhaps because she had no sisters, she was seeking to fit in a little too much with the other girls her age and got herself into a situation she was not ready to handle, losing her virginity not by violence, but by indiscretion. 

Still, the vengeful reaction of Dinah’s brothers might imply that Dinah had not wanted this to happen. It is possible that Shechem had plied her with alcohol or would not back down from any protestations she gave, at which point she didn’t fight. Perhaps it was what we today often call date rape, which is itself a hideous offense. And considering that Dinah appears to have been around 14 or 15 years of age, we would today also call it the crime of statutory rape. Yet that was often considered marriageable age in the ancient Middle East; the societies of arranged marriages of that day were often unconcerned with the maturity or age difference of those matched together. 

Shechem clearly did wrong by taking advantage of Dinah and not betrothing her with her father’s consent prior to their physical relations. However, the violation seems non-violent as he spoke kindly to the young woman after the event and even ‘loved’ her (verse 3). (Contrast Shechem’s attitude to Tamar’s rape by Amnon in 2 Samuel 13, where Amnon wanted nothing to do with Tamar after he violated her by force.) 

Further, Shechem seemed very willing to meet all the demands of Dinah’s brothers in order to marry her, as painful as the conditions would turn out to be. His men’s willingness to go through the same sacrifice on his behalf could lend credence to his reconciliatory attitude—though they were also persuaded by the prospect of sharing in the wealth of Jacob’s family, which circumcision would make possible. However, verse 19 does say that Shechem was ‘more honorable than all the household of his father,’ seeming to indicate this was a good faith attempt to right the wrong he had done. The omission of any objection by Dinah could possibly indicate her feelings about what had happened. 

Jacob’s attitude also seems to indicate that he did not see it as a violent rape, though he surely was not pleased with the situation. He had done business with Shechem’s father, Hamor, in the past (Genesis 33:19) and was certainly disturbed—perhaps even enraged—at what had now happened. However, he was clearly willing to give Dinah as wife according to the agreement his sons offered, as she was found in the city with her new husband after the arrangement was made (verse 26). God later instructed the nation of Israel on how to handle this kind of situation, leaving it in the hands of the father whether the offender could still marry the woman, the offender having to pay a financial penalty regardless of the father’s decision (Exodus 22:16–17; Deuteronomy 22:28–29). Jacob could have refused to give her as a wife if he really felt strongly that this marriage should not have taken place—which he probably would have felt had there been a violent rape. Indeed, God equates the heinousness of rape with that of murder (Deuteronomy 22:25–27). 

Cruel and Unusual Punishment? 

Simeon and Levi’s violent revenge was not looked upon favorably by their father. He believed that their treachery would give the family a bad name and that their neighbors might unite and destroy his household. It was Esau who was to live by the sword (Genesis 27:40), not Jacob. The brothers’ attack seemed exceedingly brutal, since not only did they kill Shechem, the one who committed the offense, but they slew all the men in Shechem’s hometown. 

Although Jacob’s sons offered justification for their behavior, their father’s displeasure was not abated. For even after Jacob’s prediction that his family would be wiped out did not happen—due to God’s protection (Genesis 35:5)—Jacob still showed deep disapproval with Simeon and Levi’s actions long afterward. Shortly before his death, Jacob delivered this prophecy from God: 

'Simeon and Levi are brothers; instruments of cruelty are in their habitation … Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel' (Genesis 49:5–7). 

Here we see that family traits are passed down, through a combination of heredity and family upbringing. And in the case of Simeon and Levi, God judged that their descendants would be too volatile to be all together, having their own nations. Indeed, more than likely, this would only spell trouble for the rest of the world.” 

What a story we have here of actions and consequences that not only affect those initially involved but future generations as well.   

UYA Team | uya@ucg.org  

United Young Adults (UYA) primarily serves the 18–32-year age group for the United Church of God. There are three main areas of contribution to the lives of the young adults: Promoting Spiritual Growth, Developing Meaningful Relationships, and Making the Most of Your Talents. The Know Your Sword series is a daily expository message introducing God’s Word from a trusted perspective.