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
This act is translated into todays concept of rape, but as the narrative continues we see how Shechem tries to justify his manner by claiming he fell victim to love. "Being drawn to Dinah, daughter of Jacob, and in love with the maiden, he spoke to the maiden tenderly” (Genesis 34:3). This, however, is not admissible in the eyes of Israel’s men. Shechem’s behavior is considered “an outrage in Israel…a thing not to be done”, and therefore, hinders Shechem’s aspiration of marriage to her (Genesis 34:7). One of the ways he is able to seek mercy is by offering Dinah’s brothers and father a high bride price. This offering along with a promise for all men to be circumcised in accordance with God's command to their grandfather Abraham: "This is my covenant between Me and you and your offspring to follow which you shall keep: every male among you shall be circumcised," is a fitting plea to their ears and Dinah is wed off (Genesis 17:10). But what about Dinah’s ears? Who is to say that she wants to marry this man who defiled her? What is her view on it all?
Genesis’s Chapter 37 leaves us on a gripping cliffhanger—Joseph is sold into slavery, and Jacob weeps for him—and instead starts to describe Judah, Joseph’s brother, and his latest marriage and children. This interjection of the Tamar Episode plays out in Chapter 38, and deals with sex, sin, and deception. Judah has three sons, and when he marries the first one to a woman named Tamar, his son dies because God deems him wicked. Then, Judah’s second son marries Tamar, but God kills him because he does not fulfill his duty to have kids with her as required by the law of Levirate Marriage. Judah goes on to prevent Tamar from being able to fulfill the law of Levirate Marriage and remain a member of Judah’s household, by keeping her away from
The first night she is captured she spends the night wounded and holding her young child who is sick sitting on the cold snowy ground. What she grieved mostly was that she was alone without a Christian friend close to her to comfort and encourage her. She literally thought she would die during the night, but when she sees the light of the next morning she is so grateful that she is alive and immediately gives God the glory. “Oh, I may see the wonderful power of God, that my Spirit did not utterly sink under my affliction: still the Lord upheld me with His gracious and merciful spirit, and we were both alive to see the light of the next morning” (Rowlandson 131).
In the epic Genesis, Joseph is a character who endures countless hardships only to discover that his suffering was all part of God’s plan. This realization, along with many other crucial plot developments, is made possible by the actions of Judah. Judah begins the story in a place of envy and selfishness, but later he shows great moral development by committing the ultimate sacrifice in the name of his father.
In the book of Genesis, we are introduced to everything. From the creation stories to the sagas in between Genesis is an opening to the old testament and an opening to the book of exodus. This essay will contrast each creation story and describe each stories interest, explain how Genesis 12: 1-3 links the stories of 2: 4b-11 with the ancestral narratives in 12-50 and connect the sagas of Abraham/Sarah, Isaac/ Rebecca and Jacob/ Racheal.
One publication that analyzes the story is that of “What if Dinah was not Raped? (Genesis 34)” by Lyn M. Bechtel. The purpose of Bechtel’s
In his article ‘How the Compiler of the Pentateuch Worked: the Composition of Genesis 37’, Baruch J. Schwartz, the professor of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, who found the discrepancies, doublets and contradictions in Joseph narrative of Gen 37 by a close reading, makes an attempt to explain how the canonical text, Gen 37, came into existence.
Throughout the Book of Genesis, there are cycles of protagonists with whom God interacts. In one such cycle, the Jacob cycle, God interacts with the world in a very unique way. Instead of directly influencing an outcome, He works by using people as conduits. He utilizes people to progress toward the ultimate goal of achieving His Divine Plan. During the Jacob Cycle, God influences Jacob in four significant stages: his childhood, his journey to Haran, his journey from Haran, and a final test of will. Over the course of these stages, God’s increasing trust in Jacob parallels his guidance.
This passage allows the audience to evaluate the role that Deborah played in Gabriel’s life. Deborah was Gabriel’s first wife, and as a child a gang of white men had raped her. Her rape shaped her character in two was, first she developed a hatred of men because she became a target for lustful men because she was not longer seen as a complete or pure woman. Second, Deborah had to endure years of mistreatment by men, which made her tolerant, immune, able to bear, withstand, or silently resistant to the shame of their insults; but this is not to say that she was no longer hurt, but to show that she was forced to mature much faster and become more patient as a result of their chastisement. This type of woman was perfect for Gabriel because their marriage was not based in love, Gabriel needed a caretaker a woman that could make him feel like a righteous man, and that was the role that Deborah seemed to play.
Dinah’s small role in her environment reveals how she is used and seen as a possession of men. Genesis introduces Dinah as “the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob” (Gen 34:1), and people call her “Dinah daughter of Jacob” (Gen 34:3). Dinah cannot stand alone in her civilization and depends upon her father; men define Dinah. She also does not receive any recognition as independent in her society. Rather, she functions as an object of her father Jacob.
Livy’s rendition of Romulus and Remus and the story of Cain and Abel in the bible are two stories that, at first glance, appear to be comparable to each other. However, with deeper examination, both of the stories have differing deeper meanings, and begin to drift apart with more digging. Both stories have different purposes, with the myth Romulus and Remus giving a mythological origin to the Roman civilization. Meanwhile, the story of Cain and Abel revolves around favoritism and criticism. These two different interpretations are only one of the many differences between the two tales. However, both of them can be classified as creation myths, with Romulus and Remus creating the city of Rome, and Cain creating the city of Enoch. With this
The Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment explicitly protects the right to speak: “Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech or of the press”. (Cornell, 1st) This right to speak freely is fundamentally linked to the right to be informed, as indicated by the Supreme Court ruling that individuals are guaranteed the right to acquire information under the Free Speech Clause. (22, Miller v. California; 23, Lamont v. Postmaster General) Therefore, from the free speech [jurisprudence/rulings] of the Supreme Court of the United States, the right to obtain sex education may, in fact, pertain to public schools. [On the one hand], [the free speech right] to acquire sex information extends to the curricular decisions made by public schools. This right requires that public schools consider students interest in receiving sex
Genesis is the first book of the Bible. It begins with the story of God’s creation of the universe. The Lord is the Almighty Creator of the world, skies, heavens, seas, animals, man, and woman. He governs the universe and develops relationships with man. Throughout Genesis, God acknowledges the fact that human beings make mistakes, and accepts their imperfection. Throughout Genesis, God changes from one who does not tolerate disobedience, to one who shows clemency. Early on in Genesis, God punishes Adam and Eve for disobedience. After making the mistake of flooding the world, the Lord realizes that even He is not perfect, and does not allow Jacob’s deceit of his father to taint his future.
To study Genesis in terms of its literary and historical content is not to say that we are in any way being irreverent in our reading of this part of the Old Testament. In other words, it is possible to read Genesis in both a spirit of appreciation for its position as the opening exegetical narrative of the Bible and as a document that reflects literary and historical realities and influences during the time when it was being written down. This paper examines some of the contemporary sources that influenced the two sets of writers who recorded the events of Genesis.
The book of Genesis presents the reader with a relational God. In particular, Genesis focuses on the relationship between God and man and “thus Genesis does not present a static theology of God’s involvement with humanity, but regardless of his mode of engagement, God is present and active”. However, the sin of man arrived into the world and these relationships were fractured. Again, God exhibits judgment, but also mercy when in Genesis three He sends Adam and Eve out of the Garden for their transgression, yet provides clothes as an act of grace.