{"id":38866,"date":"2018-08-28T07:15:12","date_gmt":"2018-08-28T04:15:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=38866"},"modified":"2022-03-22T08:20:32","modified_gmt":"2022-03-22T06:20:32","slug":"chapter-summary-genesis-34","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/chapter-summary-genesis-34\/","title":{"rendered":"Chapter Summary – Genesis 34"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[],"acf":{"old_id":"38866","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":false,"related_cahpter":"34","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"Chapter 34 Summary: You Have Brought Trouble to Me\r\n","content":"

The story of Dinah and the sacking of Shechem and killing of its people is told in this chapter in a way that leaves us with mixed emotions and does not answer the question–who is right.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the beginning of the chapter, Dinah, Jacob\u2019s daughter, is taken captive by Shechem, the son of the prince of the land, Hamor. \u00a0Shechem, who not only unrightfully took her, but also falls in love with her, wants to institutionalize the relationship and marry Dinah. He talks to her (and we are not told what she said), and asks his father to take action.<\/span><\/p>\n

The official marriage proposal comes in verses 8-12, and is in fact a proposal for the establishment of good neighborly relations with the people of Shechem, including: marriage ties between the two communities, dwelling together and commerce.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jacob, who already in verse 5 when he heard about the silent matter, says nothing. The person who leads the discourse is his sons, Dinah’s brothers. “Jacob\u2019s sons answered Shechem and his father Hamor–speaking <\/span>with guile<\/b> because he had defiled their sister Dinah ” (verse 13). They base their acceptance of the (widespread) marriage proposal on the condition that the people of Shechem circumcise themselves.<\/span><\/p>\n

The proposal sounds perfectly reasonable to Shechem and his father, and they convince the people of their city to accept it. Then on the third day after circumcision, when the people of Shechem were still on a brief medical leave, \u201cSimeon and Levi, two of Jacob\u2019s sons, brothers of Dinah, took each his sword, came upon the city unmolested, and slew all the males” (verse 25), and no less importantly, rescued Dinah from the house of Shechem, and afterwards took all the spoils possible (verses 27-29).<\/span><\/p>\n

Jacob, who was silent the whole chapter, says in verse 30, \u201cyou have brought trouble on me, making me odious among the inhabitants of the land.\u201d Moreover, he says, you have endangered us all \u00a0\u201cif they unite against me and attack me, I and my house will be destroyed\u201d (verse 30). <\/span><\/p>\n

Simon and Levi have a different set of considerations, and they do not remain obligated, \u00a0and with their statement the chapter ends: \u201cshould our sister be treated like a whore?\u201d (verse 31).<\/span><\/p>\n

Points to Ponder:<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Dina, around whom the whole story revolves, gets different nicknames in the chapter. It is worthwhile to follow when she is called “a maiden,” “a girl,” “Jacob\u2019s daughter,” “their sister.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Verse 7: “he had committed an outrage in Israel” is an expression that is ahead of its time in the sense that the verse refers to \u201cIsrael\u201d as a nation whereas up until this time \u201cIsrael\u201d is used as Jacob\u2019s new name), but its use sets a category for things that are not done.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. The democratic character of Shechem is revealed in the manner in which Shechem and his father put forward the decision on the circumcision of all men – “So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the public place of their town and spoke to their fellow townsmen, saying, (verse 20)….All who went out of the gate of his town heeded Hamor and his son Shechem, and all males, all those who went out of the gate of his town, were circumcised\u201d (verse 24). \u00a0This is not some royal decree but a persuasive speech.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. In this chapter Simeon and Levi get the last word. But the last word in the whole episode is reserved for Jacob. We’ll hear him say it in Chapter 49.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","image":{"ID":86314,"id":86314,"title":"Points to ponder","filename":"Points-to-ponder.jpg","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/points-to-ponder-psalm-84\/points-to-ponder\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"points-to-ponder","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":86166,"date":"2021-01-09 20:56:58","modified":"2023-12-28 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