The First Book of Moses: Genesis

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- Chapter 34 -

Then Dinah, the daughter of Leah, went out to see the women of that region.

And when Shechem, the son of Hamor the Hivite, the leader of that land, had seen her, he fell in love with her. And so he seized her and slept with her, overwhelming the virgin by force.

And his soul was closely bound to her, and, since she was sorrowful, he soothed her with flattery.

And going on to Hamor, his father, he said, “Obtain this girl for me as a mate.”

But when Jacob had heard this, since his sons were absent and he was occupied in pasturing the cattle, he remained silent until they came back.

Then, when Hamor, the father of Shechem, had gone out to speak to Jacob,

behold, his sons arrived from the field. And hearing what had happened, they were very angry, because he had done a filthy thing in Israel and, in violating a daughter of Jacob, had perpetrated an unlawful act.

And so Hamor spoke to them: “The soul of my son Shechem has become attached to your daughter. Give her to him as a wife.

And let us celebrate marriages with one with another. Give us your daughters, and receive our daughters.

And live with us. The land is in your power: cultivate, trade, and possess it.”

And Shechem even said to her father and to her brothers: “May I find favor in your sight, and whatever you will appoint, I will give.

Increase the dowry, and request gifts, and I will freely bestow what you will ask. Only give me this girl as a wife.”

The Revenge of Dinah’s Brothers

The sons of Jacob answered Shechem and his father with deceit, being enraged at the rape of their sister:(a)

“We are not able to do what you ask, nor to give our sister to an uncircumcised man. For us, this is unlawful and abominable.

But we may succeed in this, so as to be allied with you, if you are willing to become like us, and if all the male sex among you will be circumcised.

Then we will mutually give and receive your daughters as well as ours; and we will live with you, and we will become one people.

But if you will not be circumcised, we will take our daughter and withdraw.”

Their offer pleased Hamor and his son Shechem.

Neither did the young man cause any delay; in fact he immediately fulfilled what was requested. For he loved the girl very much, and he was well-known throughout his father’s house.

And entering at the gate of the city, they spoke to the people:

“These men are peaceful, and they want to live among us. Let them trade in the land and cultivate it, for, being spacious and broad, it is in need of cultivation. We will receive their daughters as wives, and we will give them ours.

There is one thing that prevents so great a good: whether we will circumcise our males, imitating the ritual of their nation.

And their substance, and cattle, and all that they possess, will be ours, if only we will acquiesce to this, and so, in living together, will form one people.”

And they all agreed to circumcise every one of the males.

And behold, on the third day, when the pain of the wound was greatest, two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, the brothers of Dinah, boldly entered the city with swords. And they put to death all of the males.

They killed Hamor and Shechem together, taking their sister Dinah from the house of Shechem.

And when they had departed, the other sons of Jacob rushed over the slain, and they plundered the city in vengeance for the rape.

Taking their sheep, and herds, and donkeys, and laying waste to everything else that was in their houses and in their fields,

they also took their little ones and their wives captive.

When they had boldly completed these acts, Jacob said to Simeon and Levi: “You have troubled me, and you have made me hateful to the Canaanites and the Perizzites, the inhabitants of this land. We are few. They, gathering themselves together, may strike me down, and then both I and my house will be wiped away.”

They responded, “Should they abuse our sister like a prostitute?”

Footnotes

(a)34:13 Deceitfully:The sons of Jacob, on this occasion, were guilty of a grievous sin, as well by falsely pretending religion, as by excess of revenge: though otherwise their zeal against so foul a crime was commendable.(Challoner)

Dinah, the daughter of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land.

Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her. He took her, lay with her, and humbled her.

His soul joined to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young lady, and spoke kindly to the young lady.

Shechem spoke to his father, Hamor, saying, “Get me this young lady as a wife.”

Now 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.

Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to talk with him.

The 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.

Hamor talked with them, saying, “The soul of my son, Shechem, longs for your daughter. Please give her to him as a wife.

Make marriages with us. Give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for yourselves.

You shall dwell with us, and the land will be before you. Live and trade in it, and get possessions in it.”

Shechem said to her father and to her brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes, and whatever you will tell me I will give.

Ask 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.”

The Revenge of Dinah’s Brothers

The sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father with deceit when they spoke, because he had defiled Dinah their sister,

and 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.

Only on this condition will we consent to you. If you will be as we are, that every male of you be circumcised,

then 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.

But if you will not listen to us and be circumcised, then we will take our sister,(a) and we will be gone.”

Their words pleased Hamor and Shechem, Hamor’s son.

The 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.

Hamor and Shechem, his son, came to the gate of their city, and talked with the men of their city, saying,

“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.

Only 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.

Won’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.”

All 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.

On 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.

They killed Hamor and Shechem, his son, with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and went away.

Jacob’s sons came on the dead, and plundered the city, because they had defiled their sister.

They took their flocks, their herds, their donkeys, that which was in the city, that which was in the field,

and all their wealth. They took captive all their little ones and their wives, and took as plunder everything that was in the house.

Jacob 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.”

They said, “Should he deal with our sister as with a prostitute?”

Footnotes

(a)34:17 Hebrew has, literally, “daughter”