Now Dinah, the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the women of the land. When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the ruler of that area, saw her, he took her and raped her. His heart was drawn to Dinah daughter of Jacob; he loved the young woman and spoke tenderly to her. And Shechem said to his father Hamor, “Get me this girl as my wife.” (Gen 34:1–4)
Dinah’s story evokes strong emotions because of her violation or rape. So, I was curious to read the views of biblical scholars on her story.
According to one of them, the original verb used in the passage which is “frequently translated as “rape,” more precisely means “debased.” It does not imply forced sex but has a sense of downward social movement (as seen in Gen 16:6, where Sarah “debases” Hagar)¹. An alternative reading therefore suggests that Shechem seduced Dinah, and did not involve the use of force. Another narrative also shared that Shechem had sex with Dinah without following due procedure, without the correct formalities and so he treated her as a harlot. He should have first approached her family to ask for her hand in marriage, and because this had not been done, Dinah and her family had been humbled and dishonored².
Either way, I think both the general translation and these views on seduction or harlotry show that the act was probably not consensual, and do not make Dinah’s grievance any lighter. However, they may help us to look with a better lens at the actions of Leah’s sons, Dinah’s brothers. The usual ramification for an act like this in those days would be for Dinah to be given in marriage to Shechem, as no one else would want to marry her because she was no longer a virgin.
Shechem asked to marry Dinah afterwards but her brothers replied, “We cannot do this thing,”... “Giving our sister to an uncircumcised man is a disgrace to us.” (v 14). This was because Israelites did not marry outside of their nation, to non-believing societies such as the Shechemites whom they were now living close to. The Shechemite men therefore agreed to get circumcised, but while they recovered from their circumcision, Dinah’s brothers, Simeon and Levi, massacred them¹. The brothers removed Dinah from Shechem’s house, blindsiding their father Jacob, who had no idea about their deceit (Gen 34:30–31). They had been so upset by Shechem’s dishonor that they couldn’t let go of the shame in order to follow through with what was probably best for their sister-to have her marry the now circumcised Shechem. Contrary to what I thought when I first heard this story years ago, I do not see their action now as seeking justice for Dinah. It was rather their way of carrying out revenge for the shame they felt instead of doing the right thing to “restore” their sister’s honor.
Dinah’s story shows the true makeup of Shechem, Simeon, Levi and the human heart in general. I appreciate the Bible and its narratives because of its bluntness in presenting human flaws. The Bible does not mince words in describing the tendency of human nature to always lean towards selfishness and the harm of another at the expense of our desires.
The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?(Jer 17:19)
The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. (Gen 6:5)
It had to take the selfless act of Jesus Christ’s death to give us the ability to live outside this natural tendency, and because of His example, we now identify with Paul when he says:
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Gal 2:20)
I can imagine that Dinah most likely remained unmarried and devastated for the rest of her life because of Shechem’s unrestrained desire and her brothers’ actions. Later, Jacob rebuked Simeon and Levi on his deathbed and gave his blessing to their younger brother Judah³, passing down the Messiah’s lineage to him(Gen 49:1–11, Matt 1:1–3). The two were next in line for this blessing after Reuben, the firstborn son, was also chastised by Jacob for his unstable emotions, but they missed it because of their anger and deceit.
References
- Joseph, A. L. (n.d.). Dinah. Bible Odyssey. Retrieved November 6, 2020, from https://www.bibleodyssey.org/en/people/main-articles/dinah
- Fletcher, E. (2006). The Rape of Dinah-Tragic Bible Woman. Women In The Bible. Retrieved November 6, 2020, from https://www.womeninthebible.net/women-bible-old-new-testaments/bible-women-dinah/
- Britannica. (n.d.). Dinah. Britannica. Retrieved November 6, 2020, from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Dinah-biblical-figure
