Genesis 34
Legacy Standard Bible
Simeon and Levi Deceive Shechem
34 Now (A)Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. 2 Then Shechem the son of Hamor (B)the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her and took her and lay with her and violated her. 3 [a]And he was deeply attracted to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young woman and spoke to the heart of the young woman. 4 So Shechem (C)spoke to his father Hamor, saying, “Get me this girl as a wife.” 5 Now Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter; but his sons were with his livestock in the field, so Jacob kept silent until they came in. 6 Then Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to speak with him. 7 Now the sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard it; and the men were grieved, and they were very angry because he had done a [b](D)disgraceful thing in Israel [c]by lying with Jacob’s daughter, for such a thing ought not to be done.
8 But Hamor spoke with them, saying, “The soul of my son Shechem longs for your daughter; please give her to him as a wife. 9 And intermarry with us; give your daughters to us and take our daughters for yourselves. 10 Thus you shall [d]live with us, and (E)the land shall be open before you; [e]live and (F)trade in it and (G)take possession of property in it.” 11 And Shechem also said to her father and to her brothers, “If I find favor in your sight, then I will give whatever you say to me. 12 Ask me ever so much bridal payment and gift, and I will give according as you say to me; but give me the girl as a wife.”
13 But Jacob’s sons answered Shechem and his father Hamor with deceit, and thus they spoke, because he had defiled Dinah their sister. 14 And they said to them, “We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to (H)one who is uncircumcised, for that would be a reproach to us. 15 Only on this condition will we consent to you: if you will become like us, in that every male among you be circumcised, 16 then we will give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters for ourselves, and we will [f]live with you and become one people. 17 But if you will not listen to us to be circumcised, then we will take our daughter and go.”
18 Now their words seemed good in the sight of Hamor and Shechem, Hamor’s son. 19 So the young man did not delay to do the thing because he was delighted with Jacob’s daughter. Now he was more honored than all the household of his father. 20 So Hamor and his son Shechem came to the (I)gate of their city and spoke to the men of their city, saying, 21 “These men are peaceful with us; therefore let them [g]live in the land and trade in it, for behold, the land is [h]large enough for them. Let us take their daughters for us as wives and give our daughters to them. 22 Only on this condition will the men consent to us to [i]live with us, to become one people: that every male among us be circumcised as they are circumcised. 23 Will not their livestock and what they acquire and all their cattle be ours? Only let us consent to them, and they will [j]live with us.” 24 (J)And all who went out of the gate of his city listened to Hamor and to his son Shechem, and every male was circumcised, all who went out of the gate of his city.
25 Now it happened on the third day, when they were in pain, that two of Jacob’s sons, (K)Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword and came upon the unsuspecting city and killed every male. 26 And they killed Hamor and his son Shechem with the edge of the sword and took Dinah from Shechem’s house and went away. 27 Jacob’s sons came upon the slain and plundered the city because they had defiled their sister. 28 They took their flocks and their herds and their donkeys and that which was in the city and that which was in the field; 29 and they captured and plundered all their wealth and all their little ones and their wives, even all that was in the houses. 30 Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have (L)brought trouble on me by (M)making me odious among the inhabitants of the land, among (N)the Canaanites and the Perizzites; and [k](O)my men being few in number, they will gather together against me and strike me, and I will be destroyed, I and my household.” 31 But they said, “Should he [l]treat our sister as a harlot?”
Footnotes
- Genesis 34:3 Lit His soul clung
- Genesis 34:7 Lit senseless
- Genesis 34:7 Lit to lie
- Genesis 34:10 Lit dwell
- Genesis 34:10 Lit dwell
- Genesis 34:16 Lit dwell
- Genesis 34:21 Lit dwell
- Genesis 34:21 Lit wide of hands before them
- Genesis 34:22 Lit dwell
- Genesis 34:23 Lit dwell
- Genesis 34:30 Lit I, few in number
- Genesis 34:31 Or make
Genesis 34
International Standard Version
Jacob’s Daughter Dinah is Raped
34 Some time later, Dinah, Leah’s daughter whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the women[a] of the land. 2 When Hamor the Hivite’s son Shechem, the regional leader, saw her, he grabbed her and raped her, humiliating her. 3 He was attached to[b] Dinah, Jacob’s daughter, since he loved the young woman and spoke tenderly to her.[c] 4 Then Shechem told his father Hamor, “Get this young woman[d] for me to be my wife.”
5 Because Jacob learned that Shechem had dishonored his daughter Dinah while his sons were still out with their cattle on the open range, he remained silent until they returned. 6 Meanwhile, Shechem’s father Hamor arrived to talk to Jacob. 7 Just then Jacob’s sons arrived from the field. When they heard what had happened, they were distraught with grief and livid with anger toward Shechem,[e] because he had committed a disgraceful deed in Israel by forcing Jacob’s daughter to have sex, an act that never should have happened.
8 But Hamor said this: “My son is deeply attracted to your daughter. Please give her to him as his wife. 9 Intermarry with us. Give your daughters to us and take our sons for yourselves. 10 Live with us anywhere you want.[f] Live, trade, and grow rich in it.”
11 Shechem also addressed Dinah’s[g] father and brothers. He told them, “If you’ll just approve me, I’ll give whatever you ask of me. 12 No matter how big or how extensive your demands are for a dowry and wedding presents from me, I’ll provide whatever you ask. Only give me the young lady to be my wife.”
Jacob’s Sons Plot Revenge
13 But Jacob’s sons answered Shechem and his father Hamor deceptively, because Shechem had dishonored their sister Dinah. 14 They told them, “We can’t do this. We can’t give our sister to a man who isn’t circumcised, because that would be insulting to us. 15 But we’ll agree to your request, only if you will become like us by circumcising every male among you. 16 Then we’ll give our daughters to you and take your daughters for ourselves, live among you, and be as a united people. 17 But if you won’t listen to us, then we’re going to take our daughter and leave.” 18 What they said pleased Hamor and his son Shechem, 19 so the young man did not delay the matter any further, since he was delighted with Jacob’s daughter.
Now Shechem was the most important person in his father’s household. 20 So Hamor and his son Shechem entered the gate of their city and addressed the men of their city. 21 “These men are at peace with us,” they announced. “Therefore, let them live in the land and trade in it. Look! The land is large enough for them. Let’s take their daughters as wives for ourselves and let’s give our sons to them.
22 “However,” they added, “only on this condition will the men consent to live with us and be united as a single people with us: every male among us will have to be circumcised just as they are. 23 Shouldn’t all their cattle, acquisitions, and animals belong to us? So, let’s give our consent to them, and then they’ll live with us.”
Simeon and Levi Attack Shechem
24 All of the males who heard Hamor and his son Shechem, who had gone out to the city gate, were circumcised. 25 Three days later, while they were still in pain, Jacob’s sons Simeon and Levi, two of Dinah’s brothers, each grabbed a sword and entered the city unannounced, intending to kill all the males. 26 They killed Hamor and his son Shechem with their swords, took back Dinah from Shechem’s house, and left. 27 Jacob’s other sons came along afterward and plundered the city where their sister had been defiled, 28 seizing all of their flocks, herds, donkeys, and whatever else was in the city or had been left out in the field. 29 They carried off all their wealth, their children, and their wives as captives, plundering everything that remained in the houses.
30 Then Jacob told Simeon and Levi, “You have certainly stirred up trouble for me! You’ve made me despised by[h] the Canaanites and the Perizzites who live in this territory. Because I have only a few men with me, they’re going to gather themselves together and attack me until I am totally destroyed, along with my entire household!”
31 “Should he have treated our sister like a whore?” they asked in response.
Footnotes
- Genesis 34:1 Lit. daughters
- Genesis 34:3 Lit. His soul clung
- Genesis 34:3 Lit. to the heart of the young lady
- Genesis 34:4 Or girl
- Genesis 34:7 Lit. toward the man
- Genesis 34:10 Lit. us, since the land lays open before you
- Genesis 34:11 Lit. her
- Genesis 34:30 Lit. me stink in the eyes of
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