Jacob’s Family (1)
And Dinah the daughter of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. Genesis 34:1
Read Genesis 34:1-5
Dinah was Jacob’s younger daughter. She wanted to meet other young people to see if she could measure up to them. She did not meet young people her own age very often because she did not live in a city, but in a tent in the countryside. Dinah lived a very sheltered life in the midst of her family. That changed when her father pitched his tent in close proximity to the inhabitants of the city of Shechem. Dinah wanted to satisfy her curiosity, so she made her way to the city. She wanted to see what was going on there.
Surely there is nothing wrong with that. You probably also have good friends with whom you can have conversations. You know almost everything about one another. You notice everything about each other. Whether asked or not, you give your opinion about each other’s dress and other various issues. That is what Dinah wanted to experience as well.
But things turned out badly. In this scenario we do not hear anything from Dinah’s father. Jacob remained completely passive in our text chapter. Even when things got out of hand, Jacob took no action. Instead, he waited for the return of his sons. He had lost complete control in the rearing of his children. He remained silent. He did not point out to Dinah her vulnerability, or warn her of the dangers that present themselves to young ladies. This was out of character for Jacob. He should have been there for his daughter, standing by her side. This was the real problem; it was not first of all Dinah’s misbehavior, but Jacob’s negligence.
Question: When is the last time you had an in depth discussion with your parents?
Psalter 444:5 (based on Psalm 103) Like as a father looketh with compassion Upon his children, lo, in such a fashion The Lord doth look on them that fear and trust. He knoweth that our frame is weak and humble; How void of strength, how prone we are to stumble! And He is mindful that we are but dust.