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GENESIS 34
Balancing out lust with greed begets anger, deceit and murder and more greed. -- (DATE: Around 1685 before Christ)
DISCOVER Genesis 34: While Jacob camped close to the city of Shechem, his daughter Dinah went out to mingle with the local women. While doing so, the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince Shechem, caught sight of her and was consumed with lust and took her and lay with her. After his impulsive deed, Shechem realized that he had not only lusted for Dinah, but loved her and wanted to marry her. So he went to his father asking for his help to get Jacob’s daughter to become his wife. -- Jacob meanwhile had caught wind of the incident, but since his sons were out in the field, he decided to wait on dealing with it until they returned. When Jacob’s sons learned of the matter, they returned to their camp, and when Hamor and Shechem came to talk with Jacob, they reacted with anger. In the face of this indignation, Hamor immediately offered the idea of marriage, as his son very much longed for Dinah. He proposed their people should intermarry, taking daughters from each other as wives, and thus the land would be open to Jacob and his own, to trade and dwell and get property. Acknowledging that he had been rash, Shechem wanted to gain favor in Jacob’s and his sons’ eyes. So he offered to pay any bride-price they might ask for, if only they would allow him to have Dinah for his wife. -- Hearing this, the Sons of Jacob saw an opportunity to get back at the people that had disgraced their sister. So they deceitfully used the circumcision commanded by God to Abraham, and suggested that they would only agree to intermarry if Shechem and all the males among his people became circumcised, and thus became as they, the sons of Abraham were. Delighted by this simple condition Shechem immediately followed through with this demand. So he and his father spoke to their people at the gates of their city and convinced them that, if they wanted to partake in Jacob’s riches and trade with him and have the daughters of his people, they should become circumcised. And the people agreed and did so. -- Three days later, when all the males were sore from the painful circumcision, two of Dinah’s brothers, Simeon and Levi, took up swords and went against the city, which now felt securely bound to their foreign neighbors, and these two slaughtered all males in the city. This, of course, included Hamor and his son Shechem, from whom they took their sister back. After the two had done this deed, their brothers came and plundered the city, taking everything of value, including women and children, for their own. When Jacob learned of their deeds, he rebuked his sons, Simeon and Levi, for he feared that now the Canaanites and Perizzites might band together and destroy him and his household. The two brothers, however, retorted that they could not stand the thought that the prince had treated their sister as no more than a prostitute.
PRAYER: Our holy Father, we bow in shock and indignation before this story, which reveals that the heart of man is full of evil and deceit. The wonderful passion of love, which unites husband and wife, became evil lust in prince Shechem, leading him to demean Dinah by raping her. This sin is great before you. We ask you for the power of your Holy Spirit to help us restrain our passions and not allow them to flip into evil aggression against others. Lord Jesus, we thank you that you lived full of gentleness and humility and therefore treated women with honor and purity. We want to learn from you and follow your example. Amen.
QUESTION 34: How did Hamor try to cover up the despicable sin of his son Shechem against Dinah, the daughter of Jacob?