Genesis 34: 2-3 and 25-29 - and when Shechem the
son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land, saw her, he seized her and lay
with her and humbled her. And his soul was drawn to Dinah the
daughter of Jacob; he loved the maiden and spoke tenderly to her. ……. On the
third day, when they were sore, two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi,
Dinah's brothers, took their swords and came upon the city unawares, and killed
all the males. They slew Hamor and his son Shechem with the sword,
and took Dinah out of Shechem's house, and went away. And the sons
of Jacob came upon the slain, and plundered the city, because their sister had
been defiled; they took their flocks and their herds, their asses,
and whatever was in the city and in the field; all their wealth, all
their little ones and their wives, all that was in the houses, they captured
and made their prey.
Impossible for my mind to conceive…how love of any sort
could just take what it wants…could be so selfish and cruel that it could rape
an innocent young girl. Dinah could not have been much more than 14 years of
age…appropriate for giving in marriage for that day …but so young to endure the
violence of rape. Shechem’s love was
definitely not taught by Yahweh…for if he had been taught God’s way of loving…he
could have never raped Dinah…and then claimed that his love drove him to such a
violent act.
And I wonder what Godly lessons Jacob took the time to teach
his sons after reading this….for they too have some real issues with how to
love. They continue Jacob’s habit of deceit and trickery…they poke fun at the
law of circumcision….and they destroy a whole town in their arrogance and
anger. And if that is not enough horror
for one story…they further wound the soul’s of all the grieving widows and
children by taking them captive…and plundering all the wealth left in the town.
Two wrongs simply do not make a right…..revenge belongs to
God…..lust is lust…..and anger is a dangerous emotion when left to our human
desire to right the wrongs we are asked for some reason to endure while on this
Earth. Jacob’s sons have drifted away
from the love of God’s heart…and allowed Satan to replace it with righteous
indignation….a dangerous emotion that makes us believe we have the right to pay
back evil for more evil. 1 Thessalonians 5:15 says, “See that none of you
repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all….and
Hebrews 10:30 tells us, “ For we know
him who said, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay." And again, "The
Lord will judge his people."….and don’t forget Romans 12:17…where Paul
states , “Repay no one evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the
sight of all.”
Father…no words can console the one who has been wronged
except your loving words of peace and love and mercy and forgiveness. Help me father to always cling to your love
and remember that you see all the pain I am asked to endure on this earth…and
you have a plan for righting all the wrongs that you allow my eyes to see…my
heart to feel…and my ears to hear while you allow me time on this Earth…my
temporary home. Help me to use the pain and suffering I see to motivate me to
console and love and repair…to model your love which can erase and repair the
damage the violent acts have done in my friends and families lives…even the
strangers you lead me to know. Amen.
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