Like Father, Like Sons - Genesis 34:1-34

INTRODUCTION:

            We all at one time or another have gotten or at least thought about getting revenge.  Paul wrote in our Scripture reading this morning that we are not to get revenge, but instead allow God to deal out vengeance on those who have sinned against us, but that is a hard command to follow because there is nothing like the sweet taste of revenge to my old self. 

            This morning we are going to see that Jacob’s sons have watched their deceiving, conniving father for so long that they have no problem deceiving someone so that they can exact their revenge upon them.  I must say that this is a tragic story in the history of the life of Jacob as he has had an encounter with the Lord that has changed his life, he is not the same deceptive, conniving man that he was, but now he must watch as that same old family sin of deception shows up in his sons lives as well.  Let’s pray and then get into our passage this morning.

--PRAY--

SCRIPTURE:

            Please turn into your Bibles this morning to Genesis 34, this is one of those chapters in the Bible that preachers look at and say what kind of message can I get from these verses.  I came to this chapter with dread not knowing what God would have me to preach, but as I prayed and studied God opened my eyes to His Word and what He wanted me to share with you this morning.  Please stand for the reading of God’s Word this morning and follow along as I read.

     Genesis 34:1-31,

            “Now Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the daughters of the land. When Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her, he took her and lay with her by force. He was deeply attracted to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the girl and spoke tenderly to her. So Shechem spoke to his father Hamor, saying, ‘Get me this young girl for a wife.’ 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. Then Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to speak with him. 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 disgraceful thing in Israel by lying with Jacob’s daughter, for such a thing ought not to be done. But Hamor spoke with them, saying, ‘The soul of my son Shechem longs for your daughter; please give her to him in marriage.  Intermarry with us; give your daughters to us and take our daughters for yourselves.  Thus you shall live with us, and the land shall be open before you; live and trade in it and acquire property in it.’  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.  Ask me ever so much bridal payment and gift, and I will give according as you say to me; but give me the girl in marriage.’  But Jacob’s sons answered Shechem and his father Hamor with deceit, because he had defiled Dinah their sister. They said to them, ‘We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised, for that would be a disgrace to us.  Only on this condition will we consent to you: if you will become like us, in that every male of you be circumcised, then we will give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters for ourselves, and we will live with you and become one people.  But if you will not listen to us to be circumcised, then we will take our daughter and go.’  Now their words seemed reasonable to Hamor and Shechem, Hamor’s son. The young man did not delay to do the thing, because he was delighted with Jacob’s daughter. Now he was more respected than all the household of his father. So Hamor and his son Shechem came to the gate of their city and spoke to the men of their city, saying, ‘These men are friendly with us; therefore let them live in the land and trade in it, for behold, the land is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters in marriage, and give our daughters to them.  Only on this condition will the men consent to us to live with us, to become one people: that every male among us be circumcised as they are circumcised.  Will not their livestock and their property and all their animals be ours? Only let us consent to them, and they will live with us.’ 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. Now it came about on the third day, when they were in pain, that two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword and came upon the city unawares, and killed every male. They killed Hamor and his son Shechem with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah from Shechem’s house, and went forth. Jacob’s sons came upon the slain and looted the city, because they had defiled their sister. They took their flocks and their herds and their donkeys, and that which was in the city and that which was in the field; and they captured and looted all their wealth and all their little ones and their wives, even all that was in the houses. Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, ‘You have brought trouble on me by making me odious among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites; and my men being few in number, they will gather together against me and attack me and I will be destroyed, I and my household.’ But they said, ‘Should he treat our sister as a harlot?’” (Genesis 34:1–31, NASB95)[1]

THE SIN OF SHECHEM (Genesis 34:1-7)

            This passage opens by telling us that Dinah, the daughter of Leah and Jacob, went out to visit or to see the daughters of the land.  Josephus, the Jewish historian, in his histories tells us that she went to a festival in the city, whatever it was she went to see what the other young women were like in the place where they were living.  While she was there she said or did something that attracted the attention of the son of the ruler of Shechem, who carried the same name as the city in which his father ruled.  We are told that he was a prince of the land, so a young man of prominence that was probably used to getting what he wanted.  The Scriptures tell us that he took Dinah and raped her.  But this was not just a passing infatuation, but we are told that he was deeply attracted to Dinah.  This phrase “deeply attracted” means that “his soul was glued to her” she was in his thoughts every waking moment and he loved her, and after raping her he spoke tenderly to her and undoubtedly made promises of his love for her and that he was going to make her his wife.  Now in most cases in this time the marriage of young people was arranged by the parents when the people to be married were still just children.  Shechem goes to his father, Hamor, the ruler of the city and asks him to make the arrangements that he might make Dinah his wife.

            Now Jacob heard that Dinah had been defiled by Shechem either from her or from her mother or some other source, but because his sons were out in the fields with the livestock he kept silent about it until they came in.  It seems he wanted to discuss it with them before he said anything or before he did anything.  His sons would one day be the heads of the household and much like Laban had been involved with the marriage contract of Rebekah, his sister, now Jacob wanted to consult his sons. But before he had that chance Hamor and Shechem came out to see him.  He must have sent a messenger out to the field to inform his sons of what had happened and to have them come in.  We are told they were grieved over what had happened to Dinah and they were very angry because Shechem had done a disgraceful thing in Israel, notice this is the first time that the family of Jacob is referred to as Israel, this sort of thing should not have happened.  Shechem should have had greater respect for Jacob and his family instead of bringing disgrace down on them.  They are angry that this sin has been committed against their family.  This kind of thing ought not to be done, already before even arriving back at the tents of Jacob they are plotting revenge.

THE PROPOSAL OF HAMOR (Genesis 34:8-12)

            Upon arriving they find Hamor and Shechem sitting with their father.  Hamor begins by telling Jacob and his sons how much his son, Shechem, desires to make Dinah his wife, no mention is made of the fact that he raped her.  As pagan’s Hamor and Shechem believe they are doing the honorable thing by asking for her in marriage.  Hamor does not end with just Shechem marrying Dinah, but he goes on and says intermarry with us, let’s join our clans together we can marry your daughters and you can marry ours, then what is ours is yours and the land is open before you and you can trade and buy property.  We will be allies by marriage.  They recognized how wealthy Jacob was and how good it would be to align themselves with him, he could add much to their economy and would join them should any hostile people come against them.

            So we come upon this problem again, the very reason Rebekah, Jacob’s mother wanted to send him away to Haran to her brother Laban.  She did not want Jacob to marry the women of the land, to intermix with them because then they would have claim to the promises God had made to Abraham’s family.  The same reason Abraham had sent his servant to Haran to get a wife for his son Isaac, so that he would not intermarry with the people who lived in the land God was going to give them.  Later on in Israel’s history when God brought them out of Egypt and into Canaan to possess it they were commanded not to intermarry with the people of the land, they were to keep their bloodline pure, and by marry into the peoples of Canaan they would lead the people into idolatry.  Listen to the words of Moses to the people of Israel before they went into the land to possess it, these words are found in Deuteronomy 7:1-6, “When the Lord your God brings you into the land where you are entering to possess it, and clears away many nations before you, the Hittites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and stronger than you, and when the Lord your God delivers them before you and you defeat them, then you shall utterly destroy them. You shall make no covenant with them and show no favor to them.  Furthermore, you shall not intermarry with them; you shall not give your daughters to their sons, nor shall you take their daughters for your sons.  For they will turn your sons away from following Me to serve other gods; then the anger of the Lord will be kindled against you and He will quickly destroy you.  But thus you shall do to them: you shall tear down their altars, and smash their sacred pillars, and hew down their Asherim, and burn their graven images with fire.  For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for His own possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.” (Deuteronomy 7:1–6, NASB95)[2] This would become the law for the nation of Israel and here already Hamor is trying to entice them to intermarry with his people, the Hivites, so they might become one people. 

            When Hamor was done speaking, Shechem began to speak to Dinah’s father and brothers telling them that if they will grant him the right to marry Dinah he will pay whatever bridal price and give them any gift they want.  He is willing to pay a hefty price to get Dinah as his wife, maybe also he sees this as a way to cover the disgrace he brought on the family by raping Dinah, but this is not mentioned.  A dowry and gifts for the family were the practice of the day. Remember Abraham’s servant gave many gifts to Rebekah’s family and Jacob served Laban 14 years for Leah and Rachel.  Now Shechem offers to pay whatever price they name.

THE DECEIT OF THE SONS OF JACOB (Genesis 34:13-24)

            Notice that it is the sons of Jacob who respond to Hamor and Shechem and we are told that they answered them with deceit, because Shechem had defiled Dinah their sister.  To Dinah’s brothers what had happened to Dinah was a big deal, they were not going to let this go without someone paying for it.  So like their father, like their grandfather, like their great grandfather they used deceit to get what they wanted.  Jacob’s sons used the sacred rite of circumcision to accomplish their wicked scheme.  They said that they could not make a treaty with the people of Shechem and could not give Dinah to Shechem because they were uncircumcised, which means they were impure, and to give their sister to such a man would be a disgrace and to marry the daughters of such men would be a disgrace, but if all the males of the city of Shechem would consent to be circumcised then they would give their daughters in marriage to them and they would take their daughters as their wives.  Then they would live with them and be one people. 

            This seemed reasonable to Hamor and Shechem and they went immediately to the gate of their city, the place where all business was conducted and they spoke to the men of the city.  They spoke of Jacob’s family be friendly with them, and told the people to let them live in the land and trade in the land, it was large enough for all of them.  They continued that they should intermarry with them, but that Jacob’s family would only consent to becoming one people with them if all the men of the city were circumcised as they were.  But if we do this and intermarry with them will not their livestock, and their property, and all their animals be ours.  Look at what we will gain, this man and his family are very wealthy and we could make that wealth our own when we become one people with him.  The men of the city were won over by their greed for what Jacob had and they consented and every one of them was circumcised.  Every male in the city was circumcised so they might share in the wealth of Jacob, all would be well they thought.

THE REVENGE OF SIMEON AND LEVI (Genesis 34:25-31)

            On the third day after all the males of Shechem had been circumcised, while they were still in pain from the procedure, Simeon and Levi, the sons of Leah and Jacob, the full brothers of Dinah came with their swords on the unsuspecting city and killed all the males in the city, getting their revenge for Shechem raping their sister.  They killed Hamor and Shechem and all the other men of the city and took Dinah their sister from Shechem’s house and left.  Then the other brothers came and completely looted the city and took everything that belonged to the people of Shechem, included in their plunder were the children and women of the city who they took captive.  The entire male population of the city was wiped out and everything of value was taken.

            Jacob had reaped what he had sown, his deceiving nature had become the nature of his sons and the outcome this time was this terrible tragedy.  Though Jacob had changed and had become a different man he had to watch while his sons sinned in the same way he had.  He spoke to Simeon and Levi and told them that they had brought trouble upon him.  He said your actions have made us odious, or in other words you have made us stink before the people who live in this land, we stink now before the Canaanites and the Perizzites, these people of Shechem were their relatives and should the Canaanites and the Perizzites decide to get revenge as you decided to do, they could ban together and come against me and attack me and I and my household would be destroyed.  What then will come of God’s promises?  Their response, “Should he (Shechem) treat our sister as a prostitute?”  The answer to that is of course no, but Simeon and Levi failed to realize that had they trusted the God of their father and left this matter to Him, He would have dealt with Shechem.  As our Scripture reading reminded us this morning vengeance belongs to the Lord.  Many years later when Jacob was blessing his sons before his death, he said this concerning Simeon and Levi, “Simeon and Levi are brothers; Their swords are implements of violence. Let my soul not enter into their council; Let not my glory be united with their assembly; Because in their anger they slew men, And in their self-will they lamed oxen. Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; And their wrath, for it is cruel. I will disperse them in Jacob, And scatter them in Israel.” (Genesis 49:5–7, NASB95)[3] That is exactly what happened to them, Levi received no inheritance in the land, only cities to live in because their inheritance was the Lord and they became the religious leaders of the nation.  Simeon received an inheritance, but it was in the midst of Judah’s inheritance so they were dispersed within the inheritance of Judah.  Jacob’s words became true.

CONCLUSION:

            So how do we apply this passage to our lives today?  First, this passage should be a warning to those of us who are parents or grandparents, our children, our grandchildren are watching us and seeing how we act, seeing how we conduct our lives, how we talk, how we conduct business, how we act and they will model what they see us doing.  Jacob followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather by using deception as a means of getting what he wanted, but when we come to this passage Jacob had changed, he was no longer that heel grabber, that deceiver.  Jacob had an encounter with God that changed his life, he was now Israel and the Lord was no longer the God of Abraham and Isaac, but also the God of Israel.  Jacob changed, but what he had sown during all those years of deception was reaped in the lives of his sons.  They followed in the same family sin and deceived Shechem and Hamor and the men of their city and the result was a great tragedy. 

            I am not condoning Shechem’s sin against Dinah.  Jacob’s family had suffered a great injustice, but God knew that and would have dealt with the matter if they would have trusted Him, the sons of Jacob had forgotten that vengeance is the Lord’s.

            Parents beware of the actions and words and reactions that you model for your children.  For Jacob those actions of his past life were modeled by his sons and made Jacob and his family odious (made them stink) to the people who lived in the land.

            Second, God encounters us individually, and we place our faith in Him individually.  Like their father, Jacob’s sons committed their own sins, and like Jacob they would have to make God their own God, independent of their father.  Have you come to that realization—that you were not born Christian.  That as godly as your parents are or may have been, you must encounter Jesus yourself and agree with Him that you are a sinner that cannot save yourself from the penalty for sin, but only Jesus can do that.  Then in faith believe that Jesus died to pay the penalty for your sin and rose from the dead to give you new life through the forgiveness of your sins.  When you do this you are justified before God, which means that God declares you righteous in His sight because you are covered in the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ.   But this is an individual experience, you are not born Christian and you cannot receive eternal life by clinging to the coattails of your parents or grandparents.

            Finally, remember that vengeance belongs to the Lord, when you have been wronged allow the Lord to repay those who have wronged you.  You repay them with words and acts of kindness.

[1]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. LaHabra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995

[2]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. LaHabra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995

[3]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. LaHabra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995