Proximity to Sinfulness: Genesis 34:1-12
Our decisions often lead to circumstances we didn’t intend to produce. It is the nature of life. We cannot ever know the full fruit of our choices, which is why we walk with God in His ways. God can know all things; if we walk with Him, we trust Him to make all things work out to His glory.
Many things go wrong in the story of the defilement of Dinah. One bad decision spirals into a string of bad decisions. The situation escalates. It is telling this chapter neither mentions the Lord nor speaks of His ways.
Jacob buys land and settles near a Canaanite settlement. Jacob was not raised in a city, but dwelling with Laban’s family in Mesopotamia taught him a few things. Jacob has always struggled with following God instead of his desires; it is no surprise to see this character flaw appear here.
While Jacob’s family is near Shechem, Dinah wants to see the women of the land. As Dinah was relatively young and in a completely foreign land for the first time, her curiosity is understandable. We can wonder where her chaperones were. Since her brothers were old enough to be out caring for the herds of animals, she was likely in her teens. Jacob was home and not with the flocks, where was he to protect her? Leah would have been tending to the household, where was her wisdom and care?
Parents know you can’t keep tabs on teenagers at all times, but the incident happens because of a lack of supervision for Dinah. Perhaps she misunderstood the danger; perhaps she was disobedient. Whatever the reason, Dinah goes into a foreign land without protection and suffers for it.
Shechem desires Dinah, rapes her, and goes to his father to find a way to possess her. Care is required in understanding; Dinah’s mother and aunt were purchased by Jacob from Laban. Modern values aside, their culture saw wives as a commodity for purchase. The difference is Jacob worked for the right to have Rachel and Leah as his wives and did not consummate the marriage until after that right was gained. Shechem took Dinah and afterward argued for a price. Shechem gets the order completely wrong.
Hamor, Shechem’s father, comes to Jacob to settle the situation. Much like Jacob offered a price for Leah and Rachel, Hamor offers to pay Jacob’s price. Whereas Jacob came to Laban righteously, Hamor comes to Jacob to cover the sins of a dishonorable son.
This whole situation could have been avoided by a few different decisions. Had Jacob moved back to Bethel and not settled among the Canaanites, the situation could have been avoided. If Dinah had been chaperoned, Shechem may not have had an opportunity. Jacob didn’t stay in the area to defile his daughter, but choice to live among civilization instead of as a nomad played a role. Our decisions often lead to circumstances we didn’t intend to produce.
