Dinah is ravished by Shechem, 1-3. He appeals to marry her, 4-12. The sons of Jacob offer the condition of circumcision to the Shechemites, 13-19. Hamor and Shechem persuade them to accept it, 20-24. The sons of Jacob upon that advantage slay them and plunder their city, 25-29. Jacob reproves Simeon and Levi, 30, 31.
1 And Dinah the daughter of Leah, which she bore to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. 2 And when Shechem, the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her and lay with her and defiled her. 3 And his soul cleaved to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young woman and spoke kindly to the young woman. 4 And Shechem spoke to his father Hamor, saying, "Get me this young woman for a wife." 5 And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter. But his sons were with his cattle in the field, and Jacob held his peace until they had come. 6 And Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to commune with him. 7 And the sons of Jacob came from the field when they heard it, and the men were grieved and were very angry because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob's daughter, which thing ought not to be done.
8 And Hamor communed with them, saying, "The soul of my son Shechem longs for your daughter. I pray you give her to him for a wife. 9 And make marriages with us. Give your daughters to us and take our daughters for yourselves. 10 And you shall dwell with us, and the land shall be before you. Dwell and trade therein and get possessions therein." 11 And Shechem said to her father and to her brothers, "Let me find favor in your eyes, and what you shall say to me, I will give. 12 Ask me ever so much dowry and gift and I will give according as you shall say to me, but give me the young woman for a wife."
13 And the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully and said (because he had defiled Dinah their sister), 14 And they said to them, "We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised, because that would be a reproach to us. 15 But in this we will consent to you: if you will be as we are, that every male of you shall be circumcised, 16 Then we will give our daughters to you and we will take your daughters for ourselves, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people. 17 But if you will not listen to us to be circumcised, then we will take our daughter and we will be gone."
18 And their words pleased Hamor and Shechem, Hamor's son. 19 And the young man did not defer to do the thing because he had delight in Jacob's daughter. And he was more honorable than all the house of his father. 20 And Hamor and Shechem his son came to the gate of their city and communed with the men of their city, saying, 21 "These men are peaceable with us; therefore, let them dwell in the land and trade therein. For the land, behold, it is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters for wives and let us give them our daughters. 22 Only herein will the men consent to us to dwell with us to be one people: if every male among us is circumcised, as they are circumcised. 23 Will their cattle, their substance, and every beast of theirs not be ours? Only let us consent to them, and they will dwell with us." 24 And 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.
25 And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brothers, each took his sword and came upon the city boldly and slew all the males. 26 And they slew Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword and took Dinah out of Shechem's house and went out. 27 The sons of Jacob came upon the slain and plundered the city because they had defiled their sister. 28 They took their sheep, their oxen, their donkeys, that which was in the city, and that which was in the field. 29 And all their wealth, all their little ones, and their wives they took captive and plundered even all that was in the house. 30 And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, "You have troubled me to make me odious among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites. And I being few in number, they will assemble themselves against me and slay me, and I shall be destroyed—I and my house." 31 And they said, "Should he deal with our sister as with a harlot?"
Matthew Henry Commentary - Genesis, Chapter 34[➚]