But when the local prince, Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, saw Dinah, he seized her and raped her.
Parallel translations
- WEB Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her. He took her, lay with her, and humbled her.
- KJV 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.
- BSB When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the region, saw her, he took her and lay with her by force.
- NKJV And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her and lay with her, and violated her.
- NASB When Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her, he took her and lay with her and raped her.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Shechem, the local prince, seizes Dinah and violates her, a grievous wrong that drives the rest of the chapter.
Overview
Shechem son of Hamor abuses his power as ruler to take and defile Dinah. Scripture reports the act plainly as a violation ('humbled her'), naming sin as sin without excusing it. The crime exposes the moral corruption of Canaan and foreshadows the conflict that follows, reminding readers that human sin brings ruin where God's order is despised.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Matt 5:28but I tell you that everyone who gazes at a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart.
- Job 31:9“If my heart has been enticed to a woman, and I have laid wait at my neighbor’s door,
- Judg 14:1Samson went down to Timnah, and saw a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines.
- Prov 13:20One who walks with wise men grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.
- Job 31:1“I made a covenant with my eyes, how then should I look lustfully at a young woman?
- Gen 20:2Abraham said about Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.
- Gen 10:17the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites,
- Deut 22:24then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones; the lady, because she didn’t cry, being in the city; and the man, because he has humbled his neighbor’s wife. So you shall remove the evil from among you.
- Gen 33:19He bought the parcel of ground where he had spread his tent, at the hand of the children of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for one hundred pieces of money.
- Ezek 22:10–11In you have they uncovered their fathers’ nakedness. In you have they humbled her who was unclean in her impurity.
- Deut 22:29then the man who lay with her shall give to the lady’s father fifty shekels of silver. She shall be his wife, because he has humbled her. He may not put her away all his days.
- Deut 21:14It shall be, if you have no delight in her, then you shall let her go where she desires; but you shall not sell her at all for money. You shall not deal with her as a slave, because you have humbled her.
- Gen 6:2God’s sons saw that men’s daughters were beautiful, and they took any that they wanted for themselves as wives.
- Gen 39:6–7He left all that he had in Joseph’s hand. He didn’t concern himself with anything, except for the food which he ate. Joseph was well-built and handsome.
- Judg 19:24–25Behold, here is my virgin daughter and his concubine. I will bring them out now. Humble them, and do with them what seems good to you; but to this man don’t do any such folly.”
- 2 Sam 11:2At evening, David arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king’s house. From the roof, he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to look at.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 34:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.