The violation of Jacob’s daughter Dinah by Shechem the Hivite foreshadows the kind of relationship that the nation of Israel would have with the inhabitants of the land of Canaan when they returned there, under Joshua, some 500 years later. Not only did Shechem violate the daughter of Jacob, but he also wanted to marry her. If this happened it would open the way for the Israelites (as they could now be known) to intermarry with the Hivites. But the manner in which Shechem went about this foreshadowed the ultimate effect that this would have on the Israelites. His was an act of violation and humiliation and this is precisely how intermarriage is portrayed in the warnings given by Moses in Deuteronomy 7. Intermarriage indicated the blending of peoples and caused otherwise distinct tribal groups to be absorbed into larger tribes or nations. If Israel did this, it would violate her distinct identity and thus extinguish her unique sense of calling. We have an enemy, Satan, who wants to take this away from us too. Like Shechem he may ‘speak tenderly to us’ through his temptations but his intention is to violate our pure calling and role in God. How foolish we are to so often give ourselves over to his deceptive invitations of success and pleasure. We should rather be willing, like Jacob’s sons, to recognise an enemy as an enemy. Are you holding hands with ‘the tempter’ in some area of your life?
Think about whether you have let your guard down in any way.
Read Genesis 34
