Bible Strands
Genesis 34:15
We will consent to this on one condition, that you become circumcised like us—every one of your males.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Jacob’s sons address Shechem and his father Hamor during negotiations over Dinah’s marriage. They state their conditional agreement to intermarry and settle among the Shechemites.
The words — The Hebrew terms נֵא֣וֹת (ne'ot, "we will agree") and לְ/הִמֹּ֥ל (le/himol, "by being circumcised") frame the conditional proposal. The conjunction אִ֚ם ('im, "if") and the phrase כָמֹ֔/נוּ (kha/mo/nu, "like us") establish circumcision as the required standard for every male.
The thread — The demand for physical conformity to a specific mark appears in Genesis 34:15, while Paul later urges spiritual imitation in Galatians 4:12. Both passages use the concept of "becoming like" a group to define covenant identity.
Why it lands — The text records a political negotiation where circumcision functions as a prerequisite for social integration. It requires the reader to observe how external markers are used to define group boundaries in historical narrative.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
But in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we be, that every male of you be circumcised;
Cross-references
- Galatians 4:12 I beg you, brothers, become like me, for I became like you. You have done me no wrong.