66 | Genesis 33:9
9
But Esau said , “ I al ready have plen ty , my brother . Keep what you have for your self .”
10
“ No , please !” said Ja cob . “ If I have found fa vor in your eyes , ac cept this gift from me . For to see your face is like see ing the face of God , now that you have re ceived me fa vor ably . 11 Please ac cept the pres ent that was brought to you , for God has been gra cious to me and I have all I need .” And be cause Ja cob in sist ed , Esau ac cept ed it .
12
Then Esau said , “ Let us be on our way ; I ’ ll ac com pa ny you .”
13
But Ja cob said to him , “ My lord knows that the chil dren are ten der and that I must care for the ewes and cows that are nurs ing their young . If they are driv en hard just one day , all the an i mals will die . 14 So let my lord go on ahead of his ser vant , while I move along slow ly at the pace of the flocks and herds be fore me and the pace of the chil dren , un til I come to my lord in Seir .”
15
Esau said , “ Then let me leave some of my men with you .”
“ But why do that ?” Ja cob asked . “ Just let me find fa vor in the eyes of my lord .”
16
So that day Esau start ed on his way back to Seir . 17 Ja cob , how ev er , went to Suk koth , where he built a place for him self and made shel ters for his live stock . That is why the place is called Suk koth . a
18
Af ter Ja cob came from Pad dan Aram , b he arrived safe ly at the city of She chem in Ca naan and camped with in sight of the city . 19 For a hun dred piec es of sil ver , c he bought from the sons of Hamor , the fa ther of She chem , the plot of ground where he pitched his tent . 20 There he set up an al tar and called it El Elo he Is ra el . d
Dinah and the Shechemites
Now Di nah , the daugh ter Leah had borne
34 to Ja cob , went out to vis it the wom en of the land . 2 When She chem son of Ha mor the Hi vite , the rul er of that area , saw her , he took her and raped her . 3 His heart was drawn to Di nah daughter of Ja cob ; he loved the young wom an and spoke ten der ly to her . 4 And She chem said to his fa ther Ha mor , “ Get me this girl as my wife .”
5
When Ja cob heard that his daugh ter Di nah had been de filed , his sons were in the fields with his live stock ; so he did noth ing about it un til they came home .
6
Then She chem ’ s fa ther Ha mor went out to talk a
17 Sukkoth means shelters . b
18 That is , Northwest
Mesopotamia c
19 Hebrew hundred kesitahs ; a kesitah was a unit of money of unknown weight and value . d
20 El Elohe Israel can mean El is the God of Israel or mighty is the God of Israel .
33:9 – 11 This verbal exchange illustrates the cultural expectations of ancient Near Eastern etiquette with respect to receiving gifts . Whereas Jacob earlier used the Hebrew word minchah of his gift to Esau ( 32:13,18,20,21 )— a term associated with offering tribute to a superior — in v . 11 he uses berakhah ( meaning “ blessing ”; see note on 27:4 ). This term , spoken directly to Esau , suggests that Jacob views the gift as reparation for his theft of Esau ’ s blessing years ago .
33:12 I ’ ll accompany you Esau presumed that Jacob traveled to Edomite country in order to visit him . He is unaware of both Jacob ’ s flight from Laban ( ch . 31 ) and Jacob ’ s encounter with God in which he was granted the land of Canaan ( 28:10 – 22 ). As Esau turns south toward Seir , Jacob turns north toward Sukkoth . Jacob ’ s actions betray continuing uncertainty about Esau ’ s feelings toward him . 33:17 to Sukkoth This Hebrew term means “ booths ” or “ shelters ,” hence the reasoning given for the name in this verse . It is located in the plain north of the Jabbok ( 32:22 ) and east of the Jordan River . 33:18 Paddan Aram See 25:20 and note . Shechem The city where Abraham built an altar after God appeared to him and promised him the land of Canaan ( 12:6 – 7 ). 33:20 There he set up an altar Jacob ’ s act echoes what Abraham and Isaac had done before him ( 12:6 – 8 ; 26:25 ). See the infographic “ Ancient Altars ” on p . 127 ; see the table “ Altars in the Old Testament ” on p . 249 . El Elohe Israel This name means “ El ( or God ), the God of Israel .” This name , along with Jacob ’ s own new name of Israel ( see note on 32:28 ), marks the land as belonging to him and his descendants , by mandate of God .
34:1 – 31 The rape of Dinah in the city of Shechem ( 33:18 – 20 ) — the only daughter mentioned in the account of Jacob ’ s children ( 29:31 — 30:24 ) — creates conflict between Jacob and his sons and the people of Canaan . Jacob remains mostly passive throughout the passage , allowing his sons to speak for him . After Shechem rapes Dinah , he seeks permission to marry her . Jacob ’ s sons agree on the condition that all the males in the city get circumcised ( 34:22 – 24 ). When the men are recovering , Simeon and Levi return and kill them ( vv . 25 – 29 ).
34:1 Dinah , the daughter Leah had borne The specific reference to Dinah ’ s mother establishes that Simeon and Levi ( v . 25 ) are her full brothers , not half-brothers . to visit the women of the land It would have been unusual in the ancient Near East for young girls ( or women ) to leave the camp without a chaperone , especially when going to a city in a new land . Dinah ’ s act represents a youthful indiscretion , as it placed her in the company of women not bound to the covenant that Jacob and his family were . However , the narrative does not suggest that Dinah bears responsibility for what happened to her — she is a victim . 34:2 Hivite Nothing is known of the Hivites outside of the Biblical account . They appear in the Table of Nations ( 10:17 ) and are often listed among the Canaanite nations ( Dt 7:1 ; Jos 3:10 ; Jdg 3:3 – 5 ). ruler of that area Hamor is not described as a king , since this title describes a leadership role over a wide area of land , not just the city . Instead , it seems that Hamor is the leader of the region — perhaps of a tribal confederacy . 34:3 and spoke tenderly to her The perverse Shechem , who has already raped Dinah , now seems to change his approach from forceful and brutal to attempted kindness . 34:5 had been defiled In Hebrew , the term for religious impurity is used here ( compare Lev 11:24 – 44 ). Its use here suggests that Dinah has been violated in a way that makes her unacceptable to her culture .