Daily Devotions
Genesis
"I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right, And that in faithfulness You have afflicted me." Psalm 119:75
Text: Genesis 34:1-31
AN ODIOUS DEED!
The brothers of Dinah had developed a dark and wicked plot! The first part had been perfectly carried out. They were ready to embark on the second part of their evil plan.
“Now it came to pass on the third day, when they were in pain,
that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers,
each took his sword and came boldly upon the city and killed
all the males. And they killed Hamor and Shechem his son
with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah from Shechem’s house,
and went out.”
GENESIS 34:25-26
Dinah was wronged when Shechem raped her! If Hamor and Shechem had been slain, their deed would have been judged wicked! But the murder of all the men of the city of Shechem was absolutely unjustifiable! Their odious deed had dwarfed the rape of Dinah to virtual insignificance!
The murder of the men from Shechem had all been carefully planned! Simeon and Levi must have figured that only two of them would be enough to bring about a slaughter of the men whom they had tricked into having circumcision done for them! They had used religion as a means to fulfill their wicked ends! They had taken advantage of their victims and had slain them in the most cowardly way!
WORSE AND WORSE!
Soon after the slaughter of the men of Shechem, other brothers entered into the city of Shechem. These concentrated on looting the city!
“The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and plundered the city,
because their sister had been defiled. They took their sheep,
their oxen, and their donkeys, what was in the city and what
was in the field, and all their wealth. All their little ones,
and their wives they took captive; and they plundered even
all that was in the houses.”
GENESIS 34:27-29
How could the sons of Jacob justify these actions? They had virtually destroyed the entire city of Shechem! They stole. They pillaged. They were like wild brigands who had no respect for life or property!
EACH GENERATION SEEMED WEAKER
The sons of Jacob represented the fourth generation! It seemed as if each generation was weaker than the previous one! Was there any hope if these sons of Jacob were the yardstick for the future? Jacob’s deceit was surpassed by his own sons! They added cruelty and wickedness to their sin of deceit! The seed of sin was producing unbelievably disastrous fruits!