Genesis 34:3
in Genesis 34And his soul was drawn to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob. He loved the young girl and spoke to her tenderly.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel.
KJV
And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel.
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This verse in Genesis 34
Commentary
5 notes on this verseSpake kindly unto the damsel - Literally, he spake to the heart of the damsel - endeavored to gain her affections, and to reconcile her to her disgrace. It appears sufficiently evident from this and the preceding verse that there had been no consent on the part of Dinah, that the whole was an act of violence, and that she was now detained by force in the house of Shechem. Here she was found when Simeon and Levi sacked the city, Gen 34:26.
This site's exposition
his soul was drawn to Dinah
on Genesis 34:3-4
What follows the force is affection, and the chapter sets the two side by side. Clarke reads spoke to her tenderly as speaking to her heart, an attempt to reconcile her to what was done, and he takes verses 2 and 3 as evidence she was held in Shechem's house. Shechem asks his father for her as a wife. Dinah never speaks in this chapter, and the text is silent on what she wanted.
The record, by era
The Reformation1 voice
And therefore although he embraced Dinah with real and sincere attachment, yet, in this want of self-government, he grievously sinned. Shechem "spoke to the heart" of the maid, that is, he addressed her courteously, to allure her to himself by his bland speeches: whence it follows, that when she was unwilling and resisted, he used violence towards her.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
According to JOSEPHUS, she had been attending a festival; but it is highly probable that she had been often and freely mixing in the society of the place and that she, being a simple, inexperienced, and vain young woman, had been flattered by the attentions of the ruler's son.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַתִּדְבַּ֣ק | vatidbak | and it cleaved | H1692 → | 54 times |
| נַפְשׁ֔וֹ | nafsho | self his | H5315 → | 754 times |
| בְּדִינָ֖ה | bedinah | to Dinah | H1783 → | 8 times |
| בַּֽת־ | bat- | [the] daughter of | H1323 → | 588 times |
| יַעֲקֹ֑ב | yaako | Jacob | H3290 → | 350 times |
| וַיֶּֽאֱהַב֙ | vaiyeehav | and he loved | H157 → | 211 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַֽנַּעֲרָ֔ | hanaara | the girl | H5291 → | 63 times |
| וַיְדַבֵּ֖ר | vaydaber | and he spoke | H1696 → | 1141 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | to | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| לֵ֥ב | lev | [the] heart of | H3820 → | 595 times |
| הַֽנַּעֲרָֽ׃ | hanaara | the girl | H5291 → | 63 times |
וַתִּדְבַּ֣קand it cleaved
vatidbakH1692 →54 times
נַפְשׁ֔וֹself his
nafshoH5315 →754 times
בְּדִינָ֖הto Dinah
bedinahH1783 →8 times
בַּֽת־[the] daughter of
bat-H1323 →588 times
יַעֲקֹ֑בJacob
yaakoH3290 →350 times
וַיֶּֽאֱהַב֙and he loved
vaiyeehavH157 →211 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הַֽנַּעֲרָ֔the girl
hanaaraH5291 →63 times
וַיְדַבֵּ֖רand he spoke
vaydaberH1696 →1141 times
עַל־to
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
לֵ֥ב[the] heart of
levH3820 →595 times
הַֽנַּעֲרָֽ׃the girl
hanaaraH5291 →63 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Samuel 18:1After David had finished speaking with Saul, the souls of Jonathan and David were knit together, and Jonathan loved him as himself.
it leads to
- Proverbs 18:24
A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who stays closer than a brother.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Samuel 20:17
And Jonathan had David reaffirm his vow out of love for him, for Jonathan loved David as he loved himself.
- 1 Samuel 18:3
Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself.
- 2 Samuel 1:26
I grieve for you, Jonathan, my brother. You were delightful to me; your love to me was extraordinary, surpassing the love of women.
- Proverbs 18:24
Through
Isaiah 40:2“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her forced labor has been completed; her iniquity has been pardoned. For she has received from the hand of the LORD double for all her…
it leads to
- Zechariah 9:12
Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; even today I declare that I will restore to you double.
- Isaiah 61:7
Instead of shame, My people will have a double portion, and instead of humiliation, they will rejoice in their share; and so they will inherit a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy…
- Hosea 2:14
“Therefore, behold, I will allure her and lead her to the wilderness, and speak to her tenderly.
- Zechariah 9:12
Through
Hosea 2:14“Therefore, behold, I will allure her and lead her to the wilderness, and speak to her tenderly.
it leads to
- Isaiah 40:1–2
“Comfort, comfort My people,” says your God.
- Isaiah 40:1–2
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Genesis
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).