the First Week after Epiphany
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The NET Bible®
Genesis 34:31
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- InternationalParallel Translations
And they answered, Shoulde hee abuse our sister as a whore?
But they said, Our sister has been treated like a harlot.
They said, "Should he deal with our sister as with a prostitute?"
But the brothers said, "Should we let these people treat our sister like a prostitute? They were wrong to do that to our sister!"
But they said, "Should he treat our sister like a prostitute?"
And they said, Should he deal with our sister as with a harlot?
But they said, Were we to let him make use of our sister as a loose woman?
They answered, "Was it right to let our own sister be treated that way?"
They replied, "Should we let our sister be treated like a whore?"
And they said, Should people deal with our sister as with a harlot?
And they said: 'Should one deal with our sister as with a harlot?'
And they said, Should hee deale with our sister, as with an harlot?
But they said, "Should he [be permitted to] treat our sister as a prostitute?"
And they said, Nay, but shall they treat our sister as an harlot?
And they said, Should he deal with our sister as with an harlot?
But Simeon and Levi answered, "Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?"
But they said, "Shall he treat our sister like a prostitute?"
And they said, Should he treat our sister like a harlot?
But the brothers said, "We will not allow our sister to be treated like a prostitute."
But they said, "Should he treat our sister like a harlot?"
"But why should we let him treat our sister like a prostitute?" they retorted angrily.
But they said, "Should he act towards our sister as if she were a woman who sells the use of her body?"
And they said, - As with a harlot, was he to deal with our sister.
They answered: Should they abuse our sister as a strumpet?
But they said, "Should he treat our sister as a harlot?"
But they answered, "We cannot let our sister be treated like a common whore."
And they said, Should he deal with our sister as with an harlot?
Symeon and Leuy answeriden, Whether thei ouyten mysuse oure sistir as an hoore?
And they say, `As a harlot doth he make our sister?'
They said, "Should he deal with our sister as with a prostitute?"
And they said, Should he deal with our sister as with a prostitute?
And they said, Should he deal with our sister, as with a harlot?
And they aunswered: shoulde he deale with our sister, as with an harlot?
But they answered, “Should he treat our sister like a prostitute?”
But they answered: Shulde they the deale with oure sister as with an whoore?
They said, "Nobody is going to treat our sister like a whore and get by with it."
But they said, "Should he treat our sister like a prostitute?"
But they said, "Should our sister be treated like a whore?"
But they said, "Should he treat our sister as a harlot?"
But they said, "Should he treat our sister as a harlot?"
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
Genesis 34:13, Genesis 49:7, Proverbs 6:34
Reciprocal: Genesis 34:27 - they Genesis 38:24 - played the harlot Genesis 49:5 - instruments Ecclesiastes 7:9 - anger John 4:18 - is not 1 Corinthians 6:16 - an harlot
Cross-References
Jacob's sons answered Shechem and his father Hamor deceitfully when they spoke because Shechem had violated their sister Dinah.
Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce, and their fury, for it was cruel. I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel!
for jealousy kindles a husband's rage, and he will not show mercy when he takes revenge.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And they said,.... Simeon and Levi, in a very pert and unseemly manner:
should he deal with our sister as with an harlot? make a whore of her, and then keep her in his house as such? is this to be borne with? or should we take no more notice of his behaviour to our sister, or show no more regard to her than if she was a common prostitute, whom no man will defend or protect? so say the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem,
"nor let Shechem the son of Hamor mock at us, or boast and say, as an harlot whom no man seeks after, or no man seeks to avenge her; so it is done by Dinah the daughter of Jacob:''
they tacitly insinuate as if Jacob had not that regard for the honour of his daughter and family, and showed his resentment at the wicked behaviour of Shechem, as he ought to have done. It is observed that there is a letter in the word for "harlot" greater than usual, which may either denote the greatness of the sin of Shechem in dealing with Dinah as an harlot, or the great impudence and boldness of Jacob's sons, in their answer to him, and their audaciousness in justifying such baseness and cruelty they had been guilty of. The whole of this history, as related in this chapter, is given by Polyhistor out of Theodotus the poet q.
q Apud Euseb. Evangel. Praepar. l. 9. c. 22. p. 427, &c.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
- Dinahâs Dishonor
This chapter records the rape of Dinah and the revenge of her brothers.
Genesis 34:1-5
Dinah went out to see the daughters of the land. The Jewish doctors of a later period fix the marriageable age of a female at twelve years and a day. It is probable that Dinah was in her thirteenth year when she went out to visit the daughters of the land. Six or seven years, therefore, must have been spent by Jacob between Sukkoth, where he abode some time, and the neighborhood of Shekerm, where he had purchased a piece of ground. If we suppose Dinah to have been born in the same year with Joseph, who was in his seventeenth year at the time of his being sold as a bondslave Genesis 37:2, the events of this chapter must have occurred in the interval between the completion of her twelfth and that of her sixteenth year. âShekem.â This name is hereditary in the family, and had taken hold in the locality before the time of Abraham. The Hivite was a descendant of Kenaan. We find this tribe now occupying the district where the Kenaanite was in possession at a former period Genesis 12:6. âSpake to the heart of the damsel.â After having robbed her of her honor, he promises to recognize her as his wife, provided he can gain the consent of her relatives. âShekem spake unto his father Hamor.â He is in earnest about this matter. âJacob held his peace.â He was a stranger in the land, and surrounded by a flourishing tribe, who were evidently unscrupulous in their conduct.
Genesis 34:6-17
A conference takes place between the parties. Hamer and Jacob, the parents on both sides, are the principals in the negotiation. The sons of Jacob, being brothers of the injured damsel, are present, according to custom. âWrought fully in Israel;â a standing phrase from this time forward for any deed that was contrary to the sanctity which ought to characterize Godâs holy people. Israel is used here to designate the descendants of Israel, the special people. Hamer makes his proposal. âShekem, my son.â These words are a nominative pendent, for which âhis soulâ is substituted. He proposes a political alliance or amalgamation of the two tribes, to be sealed and actually effected by intermarriage. He offers to make them joint-possessors of the soil, and of the rights of dwelling, trading, and acquiring property. Shekem now speaks with becoming deference and earnestness.
He offers any amount of dowry, or bridal presents, and of gift to the mother and brothers of the bride. It must be acknowledged that the father and the son were disposed to make whatever amends they could for the grievous offence that had been committed. The sons of Jacob answer with deceit. They are burning with resentment of the wrong that âought not to have been done,â and that cannot now be fully repaired. Yet they are in presence of a superior force, and therefore, resort to deceit. âAnd spake.â This goes along with the previous verb âanswered,â and is meant to have the same qualification âwith deceit.â The last clause of the verse then assigns the cause of this deceitful dealing. Their speech, for the matter of it, is reasonable. They cannot intermarry with the uncircumcised. Only on condition that every male be circumcised will they consent. On these terms they promise to âbecome one peopleâ with them. Otherwise they take their daughter, and depart. Our daughter. They here speak as a family or race, and therefore, call Dinah their daughter, though her brothers are the speakers.
Genesis 34:18-24
Hamor and Shekem accept the terms, and immediately proceed to carry them into effect. It is testified of Shekem, that he delayed not to do the thing, and that he was more honorable than all his house. They bring the matter before their fellow-citizens, and urge them to adopt the rite of circumcision, on the ground that the men are peaceable, well-conducted, and they and their cattle and goods would be a valuable addition to the common wealth of their tribe. Hence, it appears that the population was still thin, that the neighboring territory was sufficient for a much larger number than its present occupants, and that a tribe found a real benefit in an accession to his numbers. The people were persuaded to comply with the terms proposed. There is nothing said here of the religious import of the rite, or of any diversity of worship that may have existed between the two parties. But it is not improbable that the Shekemites were prepared for mutual toleration, or even for the adoption of the religion of Israel in its external forms, though not perhaps to the exclusion of their own hereditary customs. It is also possible that the formal acknowledgment of the one true God was not yet extinct. Circumcision has been in use among the Egyptians, Colchians (Herodotus ii. 104), and other eastern nations; but when and how introduced we are not informed. The present narrative points out one way in which it may have spread from nation to nation.
Genesis 34:25-31
Simon and Levi, at the head no doubt of all their fatherâs men, now fall upon the Shekemites, when feverish with the circumcision, and put them to the sword. Simon and Levi were the sons of Leah, and therefore, full brothers of Dinah. If Dinah was of the same year as Joseph, they would be respectively seven and six years older than she was. If she was in her thirteenth year, they would therefore, be respectively in their twentieth and nineteenth years, and therefore, suited by age and passion for such an enterprise. All the sons of Jacob joined in the sacking of the city. They seized all their cattle and goods, and made captives of their wives and little ones. Jacob is greatly distressed by this outrage, which is equally contrary to his policy and his humanity. He sets before his sons, in this expostulation, the danger attendant upon such a proceeding. The âKenaanite and the Perizzite,â whom Abraham found in the land on his return from Egypt Genesis 13:7. âI am a few menâ - men of number that might easily be counted. I here denotes the family or tribe with all its dependents. When expanded, therefore, it is, âI and my house.â Simon and Levi have their reply. It justifies the retribution which has fallen on the Shekemites for this and all their other crimes. But it does not justify the executioners for taking the law into their own hands, or proceeding by fraud and indiscriminate slaughter. The employment of circumcision, too, which was the sign of the covenant of grace, as a means of deception, was a heinous aggravation of their offence.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Genesis 34:31. Should he deal with our sister as with a harlot? — On this outrage alone they vindicated their flagitious conduct. The word harlot first occurs here: the original is not פ×××ש pilegesh, which we render concubine, (see its explanation Genesis 22:24), but ××× × zonah, which ordinarily signifies one who prostitutes herself to any person for hire. Our word harlot is said to have been derived from a very odd circumstance: Robert, duke of Normandy, seeing a fine - looking country girl dancing with her companions on the green, took her to his bed. She was the daughter of a skinner, and her name was Arlotta; and of her William, surnamed The Conqueror, was born. Hence it is said all such women were from her called harlots, as William himself was usually termed the Bastard. But horelet, the diminutive of whore, is not a less likely derivation.
SOLOMON has very properly said, My son, enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men; avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away, Proverbs 4:14-15. Had not Dinah gone out to see the daughters of the land, and very possibly at one of their idolatrous festivals, she had not suffered the foul disgrace mentioned in this chapter. Not only prudence dictates that young women should keep at home, but God expressly commands it, Titus 2:5. Dinah got among idolaters, and thus partook of their iniquities; and this led to the most base and cruel transaction upon record. How true is the saying, Those who wander out of the way of understanding shall abide in the congregation of the dead! In the case before us blame seems to attach to all parties.
1. It was wrong in Jacob to suffer his daughter, alone and unprotected, to visit the daughters of the land.
2. It was excessively wicked in Shechem to take this advantage of the daughter of a respectable stranger, who had sought his friendship, and came to sojourn among his people, and whose righteous dealing they must have witnessed for at least seven years past. In his behalf we may say, and it would be unjust not to say it, that having done the mischief, and sinned deeply against the laws of hospitality, he wished to make all the reparation in his power; and therefore in the most frank and liberal manner he not only offered, but most pressingly entreated, permission to take Dinah to wife. This was the utmost he could do in such a case. And in this he is a saint of the first order when compared with the noble and ignoble profligates who, while blaspheming the Christian name by continuing to assume it, commit all kinds of breaches on the virtue of simple females, and the peace of respectable families, and not only make no reparation, but glory in their shame.
3. It was diabolical in Jacob's sons to slay a whole tribe for the offence of one man, and especially as that one had offered to make all the restitution in his power. They required that Hamor, Shechem, and all their subjects should be circumcised before they could conscientiously consent to give their sister to Shechem in marriage. This required conformity was made the cloak of the most base and infamous designs. The simple unsuspecting Shechemites agreed to the proposal; and when rendered by this religious rite incapable of defending themselves, they were basely murdered by Simeon and Levi, and their city destroyed. Jacob, to his great honour, remonstrated against this barbarous and bloody act, committed apparently under the sanction of religion; and God showed his abhorrence of it by directing the patriarch, in his dying moments, to proscribe them from the blessings of the covenant, so that they barely retained a name among the tribes of Israel, being in general small, and ever disreputable, except merely in the service of the sanctuary, in which Levi was employed. How often since, notwithstanding this solemn warning, has the pure and benevolent religion of God been made, by wicked and designing men, a political stalking-horse to serve the basest purposes, and a covert to the worst of crimes! But shall we find fault with the holy religion of the blessed God because wicked men have abused it? God forbid! Were it not so good as it really is, it would be incapable of such abuse. An evil cannot be abused, a good may; and the greater and the more acknowledged the good, the more liable to abuse. As every good is so capable of being abused, does he act wisely who argues against the use of the thing on this account? Shall we say that various kinds of grain, fruits, and aliments are a curse, because wicked men abuse them to the purposes of drunkenness and gluttony? This would argue an utter perversion of all reason: and is it not on such a pretext as this that many persons have ventured to call in question even the truths of Christianity?
Whatever such men may be determined to think on the subject of this chapter, with the unprejudiced reader the ample and detailed relation which we have here of this barbarous transaction will appear an additional proof of the veracity and impartiality of the sacred historian.
