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The Rolling Stone's Gimme Shelter

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An oft swept under the carpet Biblical story is that of the rape of Dinah and her brothers’ subsequent murder of an entire city. Reminiscent of The Rolling Stone’s “Gimme Shelter,” Chapter 34 of Genesis exemplifies sin in the Bible to the point where the story can be looked at many ways and the blame can be placed on many different people. There is the rapist himself, Shechem, there are the murderous sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, who slaughter a defenseless city, and there is the weakness of Jacob himself, willing to bargain his daughter away after her defilement. At the height of all the the sin though, is the absence of God in this story, who does not condemn nor punish either the actions of Shechem or of Simeon and Levi. That is not to say God is absent from the story though, in …show more content…

While Simeon and Levi’s actions may not be the hand of God directly, there is certainly the influence of swift and just punishment over Dinah’s rapists. It is not only a chivalrous defending of Dinah’s honor by her brothers, but a Biblical condemnation of rape culture by their murders. God does not punish Simeon and Levi for their actions but rather lets them carry out the punishment for Shechem and his sin, creating a clear image that Shechem’s actions were wrong. Simeon and Levi’s action also bring up the wimpy actions, or lack thereof, of Jacob, who is, without much argument, willing to give Dinah away as she is now spoiled goods. Their insistence on defending their sister is a necessary extension of making this a modern parable where the rape victim is not silenced but is given a voice of defense. Dinah’s defilement is validated and recognized and avenged, giving expression to her helplessness in the entire situation. God, with his silence and allowing of this slaughter recognizes Dinah’s plight, that the victim is deserving of more than

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