But he was deeply attracted to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the girl and spoke tenderly to her.
Parallel translations
- WEB His soul joined to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young lady, and spoke kindly to the young lady.
- KJV And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel.
- BSB And his soul was drawn to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob. He loved the young girl and spoke to her tenderly.
- NKJV His soul was strongly attracted to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young woman and spoke kindly to the young woman.
- NLT But then he fell in love with her, and he tried to win her affection with tender words.
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
After the assault, Shechem becomes deeply attached to Dinah and speaks tenderly to her, seeking to win her.
Overview
Shechem's affection ('his soul joined to Dinah') does not undo his guilt; love expressed after violence cannot erase the wrong done. The text presents a tangled mix of genuine attraction and prior sin, the kind of moral complexity Scripture does not gloss over. His desire to marry her drives the negotiations that the sons of Jacob will exploit.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Hos 2:14“Therefore behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.
- Isa 40:2“Speak comfortably to Jerusalem; and call out to her that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received of Yahweh’s hand double for all her sins.”
- 2 Sam 19:7Now therefore arise, go out, and speak to comfort your servants; for I swear by Yahweh, if you don’t go out, not a man will stay with you this night. That would be worse to you than all the evil that has happened to you from your youth until now.”
- 2 Chr 30:22Hezekiah spoke encouragingly to all the Levites who had good understanding in the service of Yahweh. So they ate throughout the feast for the seven days, offering sacrifices of peace offerings, and making confession to Yahweh, the God of their fathers.
- Ruth 1:14They lifted up their voices, and wept again; then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth joined with her.
- 1 Sam 18:1When he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.
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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 34:3 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
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