Bible Chapter: Genesis 34

Because the Bible is practical, here are some statements to get you thinking.

1.  Write one or two key thoughts that come from today’s reading.
    This is another story that shows what happens when sinful hearts are given control.  It also shows what happens when people don’t do what they know God wants them to do.  Jacob was supposed to return to the land of his father.  Instead, he went to Succoth and then settled near Shechem.  He even purchased property and settled in.  They were there for years.  The influence of the heathen residents was making a negative impact on his family.  Jacob’s granddaughter, Dinah, went out to get to know the women of the land.  She was raped by one of the men who then said he loved her and wanted to marry her.
    Jacob’s family was invited to intermarry with the locals and just become a part of what they were.  This is always a dangerous sign.  Two of Dinah’s brothers pretended to go along with the invitation to live there and mingle with the locals.  But, they had a scheme and they killed many people in revenge to what was done to their sister.  This shows the long term impact that decisions can have.  If Jacob had done what he was supposed to do in the first place and return home, they wouldn’t have been there and the rape wouldn’t have happened.  If Dinah had not gone out to associate with the heathen women, this wouldn’t have happened.  If her brothers had done a better job of protecting her, this wouldn’t have happened.

2.  What can I apply in my life from the reading?
    One of the things I used to tell my sons as they were growing up is this: do what you are told the first time you are told.  God wants us to do the same.  We need to do what the Bible says and not wait to “learn” lessons over and over again.  These kinds of stories in the Bible are frustrating to me.  It is sad they need to be included.  They need to be told so we can learn.  It is sad that people who should have known better got involved in such things.  These stories are frustrating because the people involved should have known and applied God’s directives.  The application of these stories, of these lessons, is that I must do what I know to do and is pleasing to God.

3.  How can I help someone?
    I want to help people not only know what the Bible says, what God wants them to know, but to learn to apply what the Bible says in daily life.  It does no good to know something if it is not applied to real life.