NIV] 1 Now Dinah, the daughter Leah had borne toJacob, went out to visit the women of the land. 2 WhenShechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the ruler of thatarea, saw her, he took her and raped her. - P78
5 When Jacob heard that his daughter Dinah had beendefiled, his sons were in the fields with his livestock; sohe did nothing about it until they came home. 6 ThenShechem‘s father Hamor went out to talk with Jacob. - P78
13 Because their sister Dinah had been defiled, Jacob‘ssons replied deceitfully as they spoke to Shechem andhis father Hamor. - P79
The issue of Shechem raping Dinah, a horrifying crime in itself, be-comes even graver when we consider the spiritual threat this poses toJacob‘s family. - P80
As a result of Shechem‘s actions, Dinah is defiled by anuncircumcised, pagan man, and the entire family is being pressuredto settle in the land, intermarry, and integrate into Shechem‘s com-munity whereas God had called them to journey on. - P80
We likewiseexperience a collision of worldviews as our culture constantly clasheswith our Christian values. - P80
The world may offer compromises that
distract us from the path God has placed before us, but we must not allowourselves to succumb to things that may threaten our divine calling tobe set apart. - P80
Jacob‘s sons use circumcision, the sign of the covenant between Godand their family, as a ruse designed to incapacitate their Shechemiteneighbors and carry out their vengeance. - P80
Outwardly, they offer peace,
but the condition they give has nothing to do with the faith they havebeen taught to uphold. - P80
In fact, it is a precursor to violence. - P80
Wheneverwe use our Christian faith to justify our desires to harm another person,
we betray the very Spirit of the God we serve and are guilty of committing religious
violence. - P80
God has revealed His covenant to us not sothat we can attack others with it but to help others know and love Him. - P80
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