Genesis 34: Dinah, Shechem, and the attack on the city
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What happens?
Shechem, the son of the local ruler, takes Jacob's daughter Dinah and lies with her, then asks to marry her. Jacob's sons answer with deceit: they agree, on condition that every man of the city is circumcised. On the third day Simeon and Levi kill the men of the city and take Dinah back, Jacob's sons loot the city, and Jacob fears what the people of the land will do.
Who is speaking?
Shechem, his father Hamor, Jacob's sons and Jacob speak. God does not speak in this chapter. God's own words are printed in gold, and those verses are marked God speaks
1Dinah, the daughter of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land.
In plain English: Dinah, the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to see the women of that land.
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2Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her. He took her, lay with her, and humbled her.
In plain English: Shechem, the son of Hamor the Hivite, the ruler of the land, saw her. He took her, lay with her, and humbled her (or: forced her).
The Hebrew word: "Humbled" is innah, from a word that means to press down: to humble, to afflict, or to force.
How it is translated: In the 79 verses that use this word, this Bible says "afflict" in about half and "humble" in about 1 in 6. In it is the word this Bible translates "he forced her". English Bibles differ on how strongly to word it in this verse.
What changes: Readers differ on whether the word here means he forced her, or that he shamed her by lying with her outside marriage. Either way, the text calls what he did a defilement () and "a thing that ought not to be done" ().
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3His soul joined to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young lady, and spoke kindly to the young lady.
In plain English: He became deeply attached to Dinah, Jacob's daughter. He loved the young woman and spoke tenderly to her.
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4Shechem spoke to his father, Hamor, saying, “Get me this young lady as a wife.”
In plain English: Shechem said to his father Hamor, "Get me this girl as my wife."
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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.
In plain English: Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled his daughter Dinah. His sons were out in the field with his livestock, and Jacob kept quiet until they came.
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6Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to talk with him.
In plain English: Hamor, Shechem's father, went out to Jacob to talk with him.
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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.
In plain English: Jacob's sons came in from the field when they heard about it. The men were hurt and very angry, because Shechem had done a disgraceful thing in Israel by lying with Jacob's daughter, a thing that should not be done.
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8Hamor talked with them, saying, “The soul of my son, Shechem, longs for your daughter. Please give her to him as a wife.
In plain English: Hamor spoke with them and said, "My son Shechem longs for your daughter. Please give her to him as his wife.
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9Make marriages with us. Give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for yourselves.
In plain English: Marry among us. Give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for yourselves.
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10You shall dwell with us, and the land will be before you. Live and trade in it, and get possessions in it.”
In plain English: You can live among us, and the land will be open to you. Live here, trade here (or: move about freely), and get property here."
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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.
In plain English: Shechem said to Dinah's father and brothers, "Let me find favor in your eyes, and I will give whatever you tell me.
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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.”
In plain English: Ask me for as large a bride price and gift as you like, and I will give whatever you ask. Only give me the young woman as my wife."
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13The sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father with deceit when they spoke, because he had defiled Dinah their sister,
In plain English: Jacob's sons answered Shechem and his father Hamor with deceit when they spoke, because Shechem had defiled their sister Dinah.
The Hebrew word: "Deceit" is mirmah, the same word Isaac used about Jacob when Jacob tricked him: "Your brother came with deceit" ().
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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.
In plain English: They said to them, "We cannot do this. We cannot give our sister to a man who is not circumcised, because that would be a disgrace for us.
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15Only on this condition will we consent to you. If you will be as we are, that every male of you be circumcised,
In plain English: We will agree only on this condition: that you become like us, and every male among you is circumcised.
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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.
In plain English: Then we will give our daughters to you and take your daughters for ourselves. We will live among you and become one people.
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17But if you will not listen to us and be circumcised, then we will take our sister, and we will be gone.”
In plain English: But if you will not listen to us and be circumcised, we will take our sister and go."
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18Their words pleased Hamor and Shechem, Hamor’s son.
In plain English: What they said pleased Hamor and his son Shechem.
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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.
In plain English: The young man did not wait to do it, because he was delighted with Jacob's daughter. And he was the most honored man in all his father's family.
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20Hamor and Shechem, his son, came to the gate of their city, and talked with the men of their city, saying,
In plain English: Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city and spoke to the men of their city. They said,
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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.
In plain English: "These men are friendly to us. Let them live in the land and trade in it (or: move about in it), because the land is big enough for them. Let's marry their daughters and give them our daughters.
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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.
In plain English: But the men will agree to live with us and become one people only on this condition: that every male among us is circumcised, as they are.
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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.”
In plain English: Won't their livestock, their property, and all their animals become ours? Let's just agree with them, and they will live among us."
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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.
In plain English: All the men who went out of the city gate listened to Hamor and his son Shechem, and every male was circumcised, all who went out of the city gate.
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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.
In plain English: On the third day, while the men were still in pain, two of Jacob's sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brothers, each took his sword. They came upon the city while it felt safe (or: came against the city boldly) and killed all the males.
Good to know: Near the end of his life, Jacob speaks again of what Simeon and Levi did. He says, "Their swords are weapons of violence," and "in their anger they killed men" ().
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26They killed Hamor and Shechem, his son, with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and went away.
In plain English: They killed Hamor and his son Shechem with the sword, took Dinah out of Shechem's house, and left.
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27Jacob’s sons came on the dead, and plundered the city, because they had defiled their sister.
In plain English: Jacob's sons came upon the dead and looted the city, because they had defiled their sister.
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28They took their flocks, their herds, their donkeys, that which was in the city, that which was in the field,
In plain English: They took their flocks, their herds, their donkeys, and everything in the city and in the field,
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29and all their wealth. They took captive all their little ones and their wives, and took as plunder everything that was in the house.
In plain English: and all their wealth. They took all their little children and their wives captive, and they looted everything in the house.
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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.”
In plain English: Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, "You have brought trouble on me. You have made me hated by the people who live in this land, the Canaanites and the Perizzites. I have only a few men. They will gather together against me and attack me, and I and my household will be destroyed."
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31They said, “Should he deal with our sister as with a prostitute?”
In plain English: They answered, "Should he treat our sister like a prostitute?"
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