VERSE STUDY • KJV

Genesis 34:2-26

² 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. ³ And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel. ⁴ And Shechem spake unto his father Hamor, saying, Get me this damsel to wife. ⁵ And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter: now his sons were with his cattle in the field: and Jacob held his peace until they were come. ⁶ And Hamor the father of Shechem went out unto Jacob to commune with him. ⁷ And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard [it]: and the men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob’s daughter; which thing ought not to be done. ⁸ And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife. ⁹ And make ye marriages with us, [and] give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you. ¹⁰ And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade ye therein, and get you possessions therein. ¹¹ And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brethren, Let me find grace in your eyes, and what ye shall say unto me I will give. ¹² Ask me never so much dowry and gift, and I will give according as ye shall say unto me: but give me the damsel to wife. ¹³ And the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, and said, because he had defiled Dinah their sister: ¹⁴ And they said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that [were] a reproach unto us: ¹⁵ But in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we [be], that every male of you be circumcised; ¹⁶ Then will we give our daughters unto you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people. ¹⁷ But if ye will not hearken unto us, to be circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone. ¹⁸ And their words pleased Hamor, and Shechem Hamor’s son. ¹⁹ And the young man deferred not to do the thing, because he had delight in Jacob’s daughter: and he [was] more honourable than all the house of his father. ²⁰ And Hamor and Shechem his son came unto the gate of their city, and communed with the men of their city, saying, ²¹ These men [are] peaceable with us; therefore let them dwell in the land, and trade therein; for the land, behold, [it is] large enough for them; let us take their daughters to us for wives, and let us give them our daughters. ²² Only herein will the men consent unto us for to dwell with us, to be one people, if every male among us be circumcised, as they [are] circumcised. ²³ [Shall] not their cattle and their substance and every beast of theirs [be] ours? only let us consent unto them, and they will dwell with us. ²⁴ And unto Hamor and unto Shechem his son hearkened all that went out of the gate of his city; and every male was circumcised, all that went out of the gate of his city. ²⁵ And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males. ²⁶ And they slew Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and went out.

Read it in 5 translations

KJV King James Version

² 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. ³ And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel. ⁴ And Shechem spake unto his father Hamor, saying, Get me this damsel to wife. ⁵ And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter: now his sons were with his cattle in the field: and Jacob held his peace until they were come. ⁶ And Hamor the father of Shechem went out unto Jacob to commune with him. ⁷ And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard [it]: and the men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob’s daughter; which thing ought not to be done. ⁸ And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife. ⁹ And make ye marriages with us, [and] give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you. ¹⁰ And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade ye therein, and get you possessions therein. ¹¹ And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brethren, Let me find grace in your eyes, and what ye shall say unto me I will give. ¹² Ask me never so much dowry and gift, and I will give according as ye shall say unto me: but give me the damsel to wife. ¹³ And the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, and said, because he had defiled Dinah their sister: ¹⁴ And they said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that [were] a reproach unto us: ¹⁵ But in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we [be], that every male of you be circumcised; ¹⁶ Then will we give our daughters unto you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people. ¹⁷ But if ye will not hearken unto us, to be circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone. ¹⁸ And their words pleased Hamor, and Shechem Hamor’s son. ¹⁹ And the young man deferred not to do the thing, because he had delight in Jacob’s daughter: and he [was] more honourable than all the house of his father. ²⁰ And Hamor and Shechem his son came unto the gate of their city, and communed with the men of their city, saying, ²¹ These men [are] peaceable with us; therefore let them dwell in the land, and trade therein; for the land, behold, [it is] large enough for them; let us take their daughters to us for wives, and let us give them our daughters. ²² Only herein will the men consent unto us for to dwell with us, to be one people, if every male among us be circumcised, as they [are] circumcised. ²³ [Shall] not their cattle and their substance and every beast of theirs [be] ours? only let us consent unto them, and they will dwell with us. ²⁴ And unto Hamor and unto Shechem his son hearkened all that went out of the gate of his city; and every male was circumcised, all that went out of the gate of his city. ²⁵ And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males. ²⁶ And they slew Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and went out.

BSB Berean Standard Bible

² When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the region, saw her, he took her and lay with her by force. ³ And his soul was drawn to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob. He loved the young girl and spoke to her tenderly. ⁴ So Shechem told his father Hamor, “Get me this girl as a wife.” ⁵ Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled his daughter Dinah, but since his sons were with his livestock in the field, he remained silent about it until they returned. ⁶ Meanwhile, Shechem’s father Hamor came to speak with Jacob. ⁷ When Jacob’s sons heard what had happened, they returned from the field. They were filled with grief and fury, because Shechem had committed an outrage in Israel by lying with Jacob’s daughter—a thing that should not be done. ⁸ But Hamor said to them, “My son Shechem longs for your daughter. Please give her to him as his wife. ⁹ Intermarry with us; give us your daughters and take our daughters for yourselves. ¹⁰ You may settle among us, and the land will be open to you. Live here, move about freely, and acquire your own property.” ¹¹ Then Shechem said to Dinah’s father and brothers, “Grant me this favor, and I will give you whatever you ask. ¹² Demand a high dowry and an expensive gift, and I will give you whatever you ask. Only give me the girl as my wife!” ¹³ But because Shechem had defiled their sister Dinah, Jacob’s sons answered him and his father Hamor deceitfully. ¹⁴ “We cannot do such a thing,” they said. “To give our sister to an uncircumcised man would be a disgrace to us. ¹⁵ We will consent to this on one condition, that you become circumcised like us—every one of your males. ¹⁶ Then we will give you our daughters and take your daughters for ourselves. We will dwell among you and become one people. ¹⁷ But if you will not agree to be circumcised, then we will take our sister and go.” ¹⁸ Their offer seemed good to Hamor and his son Shechem. ¹⁹ The young man, who was the most respected of all his father’s household, did not hesitate to fulfill this request, because he was delighted with Jacob’s daughter. ²⁰ So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city and addressed the men of their city: ²¹ “These men are at peace with us. Let them live and trade in our land; indeed, it is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters in marriage and give our daughters to them. ²² But only on this condition will the men agree to dwell with us and be one people: if all our men are circumcised as they are. ²³ Will not their livestock, their possessions, and all their animals become ours? Only let us consent to them, and they will dwell among us.” ²⁴ All the men who went out of the city gate listened to Hamor and his son Shechem, and every male of the city was circumcised. ²⁵ Three days later, while they were still in pain, two of Jacob’s sons (Dinah’s brothers Simeon and Levi) took their swords, went into the unsuspecting city, and slaughtered every male. ²⁶ They killed Hamor and his son Shechem with their swords, took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and went away.

WEB World English Bible

² Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her. He took her, lay with her, and humbled her. ³ His soul joined to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young lady, and spoke kindly to the young lady. ⁴ Shechem spoke to his father, Hamor, saying, “Get me this young lady as a wife.” ⁵ Now Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah, his daughter; and his sons were with his livestock in the field. Jacob held his peace until they came. ⁶ Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to talk with him. ⁷ The sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard it. The men were grieved, and they were very angry, because he had done folly in Israel in lying with Jacob’s daughter; a which thing ought not to be done. ⁸ Hamor talked with them, saying, “The soul of my son, Shechem, longs for your daughter. Please give her to him as a wife. ⁹ Make marriages with us. Give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for yourselves. ¹⁰ You shall dwell with us, and the land will be before you. Live and trade in it, and get possessions in it.” ¹¹ Shechem said to her father and to her brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes, and whatever you will tell me I will give. ¹² Ask me a great amount for a dowry, and I will give whatever you ask of me, but give me the young lady as a wife.” ¹³ The sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father with deceit, and spoke, because he had defiled Dinah their sister, ¹⁴ and said to them, “We can’t do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised; for that is a reproach to us. ¹⁵ Only on this condition will we consent to you. If you will be as we are, that every male of you be circumcised; ¹⁶ then will we give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people. ¹⁷ But if you will not listen to us, to be circumcised, then we will take our sister, and we will be gone.” ¹⁸ Their words pleased Hamor and Shechem, Hamor’s son. ¹⁹ The young man didn’t wait to do this thing, because he had delight in Jacob’s daughter, and he was honored above all the house of his father. ²⁰ Hamor and Shechem, his son, came to the gate of their city, and talked with the men of their city, saying, ²¹ “These men are peaceful with us. Therefore let them live in the land and trade in it. For behold, the land is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters to us for wives, and let us give them our daughters. ²² Only on this condition will the men consent to us to live with us, to become one people, if every male among us is circumcised, as they are circumcised. ²³ Won’t their livestock and their possessions and all their animals be ours? Only let us give our consent to them, and they will dwell with us.” ²⁴ All who went out of the gate of his city listened to Hamor, and to Shechem his son; and every male was circumcised, all who went out of the gate of his city. ²⁵ It happened on the third day, when they were sore, that two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword, came upon the unsuspecting city, and killed all the males. ²⁶ They killed Hamor and Shechem, his son, with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and went away.

ASV American Standard Version

² And Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her; and he took her, and lay with her, and humbled her. ³ And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel. ⁴ And Shechem spake unto his father Hamor, saying, Get me this damsel to wife. ⁵ Now Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter; and his sons were with his cattle in the field: and Jacob held his peace until they came. ⁶ And Hamor the father of Shechem went out unto Jacob to commune with him. ⁷ And the sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard it: and the men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob’s daughter; which thing ought not to be done. ⁸ And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you, give her unto him to wife. ⁹ And make ye marriages with us; give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you. ¹⁰ And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade ye therein, and get you possessions therein. ¹¹ And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brethren, Let me find favor in your eyes, and what ye shall say unto me I will give. ¹² Ask me never so much dowry and gift, and I will give according as ye shall say unto me: but give me the damsel to wife. ¹³ And the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father with guile, and spake, because he had defiled Dinah their sister, ¹⁴ and said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that were a reproach unto us. ¹⁵ Only on this condition will we consent unto you: if ye will be as we are, that every male of you be circumcised; ¹⁶ then will we give our daughters unto you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people. ¹⁷ But if ye will not hearken unto us, to be circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone. ¹⁸ And their words pleased Hamor, and Shechem Hamor’s son. ¹⁹ And the young man deferred not to do the thing, because he had delight in Jacob’s daughter: and he was honored above all the house of his father. ²⁰ And Hamor and Shechem his son came unto the gate of their city, and communed with the men of their city, saying, ²¹ These men are peaceable with us; therefore let them dwell in the land, and trade therein; for, behold, the land is large enough for them; let us take their daughters to us for wives, and let us give them our daughters. ²² Only on this condition will the men consent unto us to dwell with us, to become one people, if every male among us be circumcised, as they are circumcised. ²³ Shall not their cattle and their substance and all their beasts be ours? only let us consent unto them, and they will dwell with us. ²⁴ And unto Hamor and unto Shechem his son hearkened all that went out of the gate of his city; and every male was circumcised, all that went out of the gate of his city. ²⁵ And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city unawares, and slew all the males. ²⁶ And they slew Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and went forth.

YLT Young’s Literal Translation

² and Shechem, son of Hamor the Hivite, a prince of the land, seeth her, and taketh her, and lieth with her, and humbleth her; ³ and his soul cleaveth to Dinah, daughter of Jacob, and he loveth the young person, and speaketh unto the heart of the young person. ⁴ And Shechem speaketh unto Hamor his father, saying, ‘Take for me this damsel for a wife.’ ⁵ And Jacob hath heard that he hath defiled Dinah his daughter, and his sons were with his cattle in the field, and Jacob kept silent till their coming. ⁶ And Hamor, father of Shechem, goeth out unto Jacob to speak with him; ⁷ and the sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard, and the men grieve themselves, and it is very displeasing to them, for folly he hath done against Israel, to lie with the daughter of Jacob—and so it is not done. ⁸ And Hamor speaketh with them, saying, ‘Shechem, my son, his soul hath cleaved to your daughter; give her, I pray you, to him for a wife, ⁹ and join ye in marriage with us; your daughters ye give to us, and our daughters ye take to yourselves, ¹⁰ and with us ye dwell, and the land is before you; dwell ye and trade in it, and have possessions in it.’ ¹¹ And Shechem saith unto her father, and unto her brethren, ‘Let me find grace in your eyes, and that which ye say unto me, I give; ¹² multiply on me exceedingly dowry and gift, and I give as ye say unto me, and give to me the young person for a wife.’ ¹³ And the sons of Jacob answer Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, and they speak (because he defiled Dinah their sister), ¹⁴ and say unto them, ‘We are not able to do this thing, to give our sister to one who hath a foreskin: for it is a reproach to us. ¹⁵ ‘Only for this we consent to you; if ye be as we, to have every male of you circumcised, ¹⁶ then we have given our daughters to you, and your daughters we take to ourselves, and we have dwelt with you, and have become one people; ¹⁷ and if ye hearken not unto us to be circumcised, then we have taken our daughter, and have gone.’ ¹⁸ And their words are good in the eyes of Hamor, and in the eyes of Shechem, Hamor’s son; ¹⁹ and the young man delayed not to do the thing, for he had delight in Jacob’s daughter, and he is honourable above all the house of his father. ²⁰ And Hamor cometh—Shechem his son also—unto the gate of their city, and they speak unto the men of their city, saying, ²¹ These men are peaceable with us; then let them dwell in the land, and trade in it; and the land, lo, is wide before them; their daughters let us take to ourselves for wives, and our daughters give to them. ²² ‘Only for this do the men consent to us, to dwell with us, to become one people, in every male of us being circumcised, as they are circumcised; ²³ their cattle, and their substance, and all their beasts—are they not ours? only let us consent to them, and they dwell with us.’ ²⁴ And unto Hamor, and unto Shechem his son, hearken do all those going out of the gate of his city, and every male is circumcised, all those going out of the gate of his city. ²⁵ And it cometh to pass, on the third day, in their being pained, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brethren, take each his sword, and come in against the city confidently, and slay every male; ²⁶ and Hamor, and Shechem his son, they have slain by the mouth of the sword, and they take Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and go out.

Surrounding context — Genesis 34

1 And Dinah the daughter of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land.

2 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.

3 And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel.

4 And Shechem spake unto his father Hamor, saying, Get me this damsel to wife.

5 And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter: now his sons were with his cattle in the field: and Jacob held his peace until they were come.

6 And Hamor the father of Shechem went out unto Jacob to commune with him.

7 And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard [it]: and the men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob’s daughter; which thing ought not to be done.

8 And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife.

9 And make ye marriages with us, [and] give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you.

10 And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade ye therein, and get you possessions therein.

11 And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brethren, Let me find grace in your eyes, and what ye shall say unto me I will give.

12 Ask me never so much dowry and gift, and I will give according as ye shall say unto me: but give me the damsel to wife.

13 And the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, and said, because he had defiled Dinah their sister:

14 And they said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that [were] a reproach unto us:

15 But in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we [be], that every male of you be circumcised;

16 Then will we give our daughters unto you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people.

17 But if ye will not hearken unto us, to be circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone.

18 And their words pleased Hamor, and Shechem Hamor’s son.

19 And the young man deferred not to do the thing, because he had delight in Jacob’s daughter: and he [was] more honourable than all the house of his father.

20 And Hamor and Shechem his son came unto the gate of their city, and communed with the men of their city, saying,

21 These men [are] peaceable with us; therefore let them dwell in the land, and trade therein; for the land, behold, [it is] large enough for them; let us take their daughters to us for wives, and let us give them our daughters.

22 Only herein will the men consent unto us for to dwell with us, to be one people, if every male among us be circumcised, as they [are] circumcised.

23 [Shall] not their cattle and their substance and every beast of theirs [be] ours? only let us consent unto them, and they will dwell with us.

24 And unto Hamor and unto Shechem his son hearkened all that went out of the gate of his city; and every male was circumcised, all that went out of the gate of his city.

25 And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males.

26 And they slew Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of Shechem’s house, and went out.

27 The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and spoiled the city, because they had defiled their sister.

28 They took their sheep, and their oxen, and their asses, and that which [was] in the city, and that which [was] in the field,

29 And all their wealth, and all their little ones, and their wives took they captive, and spoiled even all that [was] in the house.

Read the whole chapter → · About Genesis →

HISTORICAL INTERPRETATION

Compare classic commentaries on Genesis 34:2-26

Put Matthew Henry, Adam Clarke, Calvin, Wesley, Barnes, Jamieson–Fausset–Brown, Aquinas’ Catena and other public-domain sources beside the passage.

Compare commentaries →