Bible Strands
Genesis 34:2
When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the region, saw her, he took her and lay with her by force.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Shechem, the son of Hamor the Hivite and the regional prince, sees Dinah after she leaves her family's camp to visit local women. He seizes her and forces himself on her during this unsupervised encounter.
The words — The Hebrew verb וַיַּרְא (va.yar') literally means "and he saw," marking the initial visual contact that triggers the subsequent violence. The phrase נְשִׂיא הָאָרֶץ (neśîʾ hāʾāreṣ) translates to "chief of the land," establishing his political authority in the region.
The thread — This narrative of a powerful man acting on violent desire parallels the warning in Matthew 5:28 about looking with lustful intent. It also echoes the cultural dynamics of Judges 14:1 where a man's gaze leads to a foreign marriage, and contrasts with Job 31:1's covenant to guard one's eyes.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that unchecked visual desire, when coupled with unchecked power, results in violence. It requires the reader to confront how authority and sight can intersect to override consent without moral restraint.
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
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.
Cross-references
- Matthew 5:28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
- Judges 14:1 One day Samson went down to Timnah, where he saw a young Philistine woman.
- Job 31:1 “I have made a covenant with my eyes. How then could I gaze with desire at a virgin?
- Job 31:9 If my heart has been enticed by my neighbor’s wife, or I have lurked at his door,
- Proverbs 13:20 He who walks with the wise will become wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.
- Genesis 6:2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they took as wives whomever they chose.
- Genesis 10:17 the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites,
- Genesis 20:2 Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” So Abimelech king of Gerar had Sarah brought to him.
- Genesis 33:19 And the plot of ground where he pitched his tent, he purchased from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for a hundred pieces of silver.
- Genesis 39:6 So Potiphar left all that he owned in Joseph’s care; he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome,