We rode into Shalem and began to ask around.  The fact that Dinah couldn’t be found in any of the public places meant that she had been taken somewhere privately.

“No one is saying anything Clay.” Jared pointed out the obvious for a reason.
“Yeah, it means someone in power took her.”
“That means one of Hamor’s boys.  How much you want to bet it was Shechem?” Jared asked.

“Let’s go see Shechem.  I know this is going to be horrible but let’s play it cool for now.  Whatever happens, we don’t need to fight our way out of the city.” I said.
“If we don’t find her, Jacob’s boys will try to tear this place apart.” Nathan stated.

Jacob’s boys were young men.  Young as in teenage years with only Reuben being old enough to be a man.  I was afraid their youthful enthusiasm would place Jacob’s entire house in peril.  There is a time to fight, but you always want to dictate the terms rather than have a situation dictate those terms for you.  This they have not yet learned.

Nathan was right in that if we did not find Dinah it would be impossible to hold the boys back.  Even facing the worst, as long as we found Dinah alive and brought her home we could buy time.  Always choose the terrain your fight on, never act rashly.  This is what we needed.

Arriving At Shechem’s Home

Shechem was the equivalent to a prince.  He ruled the city.  If we were wrong in our assumptions then he should immediately help us.  If we were right, well it would be obvious.

When we reached the gate, his guard wanted to push us away.  I explained to the guard that I had important news from Jacob concerning diplomatic matters.  It took a little while but finally we were allowed into the courtyard.

When we entered Jared and Nathan began their ploy.
“Whoa Clay look at this home it is beautiful!” Nathan screamed out.
“I love what Shechem has done with the place!” Jared shouted.

The goal was to have Dinah hear our voices.  We wanted her to know we were near.  We heard some light scuffling within the home.  A moment later Shechem came stumbling out.  The moment his eyes met ours we knew.

“Let her come with us and you have a chance to live.” Jared flatly stated.
“If you don’t, Jacob has an army you have no idea about.” Nathan said.
“What army?” Shechem asked not believing.
“Esau of Edom is his brother.” I replied.

Terror went into Shechem’s eyes.  Everyone knew that name.  Esau had only managed to conquer the most inhabitable and roughest lands around.  He was no joke.

“Come out Dinah.” Shechem tried to play it off sweetly.  I could see his attempted Romeo and Juliet theme starting to unfold, but that is not what this was.  Dinah came rushing out and ran to us.

“Please let Jacob know that I love his daughter.  I plan to visit him with my father.  We wish to be married.” Shechem said.
“Please get me out of here Clay.” Dinah whispered to me.
“Alright, get your dad and visit Jacob.  You guys can negotiate terms.” I stated.

Shechem had a horse and rig ready to ride by the gate.  Nathan reached over and unhitched the horse then turned to look at Shechem. “This is the beginning of your payment.”

We exited the gate and then all mounted.  No one said a word on the way out of the city.

Jacob Learns Dinah Was Raped

Once out of the city Dinah began to break down.  We had to stop a couple of times to give her moments.  Then we would begin to ride again.  She was of course having a difficult time.

“How could he do this?” She asked.
“These men take what they want.  To him you are not a person, but property.  Your fathers and grandfathers culture allows for women to say no.  Shechem’s culture does not.  What he did was wrong, but the sad part is he has no idea what he did.”  I replied.

“That doesn’t make it okay.” Dinah retorted.
“That’s not what Clay means Dinah.  He means we were lucky that to Shechem it seemed like another business deal. Otherwise we all could have been dead in that courtyard.  A fight will come, just not right now.” Jared pointed out.

“You will never find an acceptable explanation why this or that happens.  Let’s get you home to Leah so the ladies can take care of you.  We need to prepare Jacob.” Nathan explained.

After arriving home, I pulled Jacob aside and explained to him what had taken place.  To say he was furious was an understatement.  There was another problem though.

Hamor was Shechem’s father.  While Shechem was over the city in the position similar to a prince, you could consider Hamor like the king.  They held neighboring alliances with other peoples.  Any strike against Shechem could start a regional conflict.

The fact was that without Esau and his army we would not stand a chance.  While we were discussing all of this Xiang and Yu had gone to inform Jacob’s sons.  It would not take long for them to make it back.

Negotiation Over Dinah With Hamor And Shechem

Once the boys made it back to Jacob the atmosphere turned into a boiling pot.  They all understood the risks.  We all also knew what Hamor and Shechem would be coming for.  Shechem wanted Dinah as his wife.  They were merely wanting to negotiate price.

The fact is that Jacob was very wealthy and this is what Hamor wanted.  Hamor would buy into this ordeal for that reason alone.  Getting the families together would benefit him.  His goal would be to make Jacob like a lord of his land while using Jacob’s wealth.

I could hear the boys plotting.  I just did not know what it was they were cooking up.  Jacob was torn.  He needed to protect Dinah while at the same time protect his people.  I personally was thinking of placing a dagger in Hamor and Shechem then making a run for Edom.

Later that day both men would arrive and negotiations would begin.  It was standard negotiation as far as Hamor and Shechem were concerned.  The one difference was the price tag for Dinah was exceptionally high.  This though was to compensate Jacob for what Shechem did.

Jacob remained silent listening to the negotiations for the most part.  It was his sons that pushed the family into agreeing with Hamor and Shechem on the price.  The moment I saw the boys agree I knew something was seriously up.  I just didn’t know what it was.

“There is only one thing that is preventing us from completing the deal.” Simeon stated.
“What must we do to make this work?” Hamor asked.
“You see our beliefs prevent us from marriage with those who are uncircumcised.  If you and all of the men of your city were to be circumcised, then we can agree.” Levi said.
“Ahh, this we can do! It is an agreement then!” Hamor said joyfully.

Jared’s eyes met mine.  I looked at Nathan and he smiled at me.  I too knew what this meant.  Jacob was in such distress we couldn’t get a read on what was going on in his mind.  It was as if he was traumatized and rushed into this with no chance to process it.

His boys had only one thing on their mind.  That was clear to me.  That thought of revenge rang loud.  Hamor and Shechem were so into their business they completely missed that point.  The terrain of the battlefield was set.  Now came the timing.

The unfortunate part of this arrangement was that Dinah would go back to Shechem’s house.  That could not be avoided.  It was here that myself, Jared, and Nathan almost lost it.  Simeon and Levi pulled us aside and insisted that we let this play out.

I knew they were up to revenge.  Without saying a word between us, there was an understanding that Hamor and Shechem would be dead.  So we let it go.

Simeon And Levi Attack The City

It was an interesting thing to see an entire city of males agree to circumcision over the promise of women and wealth.  Jacob was that wealthy, and the future daughters of his boys those men desired.  There were other things that no one would have imagined which soon took place.

On the third day after the men of the city were circumcised, you can imagine how sore they would have been.  They were not going to be able to work or run around town.  The men of the city were laying in bed trying to heal.

Simeon and Levi were only eighteen and seventeen years old.  On that third day these boys attacked the men of the city and killed them all.  None were left alive.  I was beyond stunned.  In my world this is called genocide.

This is not all that happened.  The rest of Jacob’s boys took the spoils of the city.  Allow me to explain.  They took not only the goods, the animals, and the currency, but also the entire city of women and children captive.

Politically speaking, if done well one could kill a king and his family then get away with it.  That is what we believed this set up was focused on.  With the men being sore from the circumcision Hamor and Shechem could be eliminated with no reprisal.

Their allies could be negotiated with, and those tempers put down by allowing the allies the spoils of the city.  We could have gotten away clean.  What Jacob’s boys did was create a political nightmare.

Jacob’s Reaction To Simeon And Levi

“What were you thinking?  Have you all lost your minds?” Jacob was screaming.
“What would you have us do? Allow them to see our sister as a whore?” Simeon countered.
“Now the Canaanites and Perizzites will have cause to kill us all.  Can you not understand that?  This was not justice.  This was murder.” Jacob continued.

“They should fear us!” Levi said with enthusiasm.
“This is not about fear.  This has now become an issue of trust.” Nathan jumped in.
“Nathan is right.  At this point they will not accept any negotiation from us.  It is one thing to sell the idea of justice by revenge.  There is no way to justify the genocide of the male population and capturing the city.” Jared stated hoping they would see the facts.

“Besides, all of that you need to understand something.  When an army comes, they are not going to fear boys.  Even if they did fear us, the numbers of their army will ensure they remove any fears once we are dead.  You need to learn to use your head, not rage.” I said.

God Tells Jacob To Move To Bethel

After the scolding of the boys we went to our homes.  It was going to be a tense night.  I decided to have some of my men stand watch ready to alarm and fight if needed.  I was worried about those taken captive turning on us. There could also be unorganized attacks from extended neighboring family.

That night God spoke to Jacob.  He told him to return to Bethel where Jacob had once had a dream from heaven.  When we all woke in the morning a meeting was called of all within Jacob’s house.  He made this announcement concerning Bethel.  There was one more thing he said which I did admire.

“All will surrender their idols and false gods.  Give them to me and no longer worship them.  Remove your jewelry and give this to me as well.  Change your clothing and be clean.  You are no longer what you once were.”  Jacob announced.

This demand was critical on multiple points.  First it created unity of identity albeit against their will.  Secondly he took the idols and jewelry and hid them under a tree.  When found it could not be said that Jacob stole the cities “gods”.  This would aid in preventing another Laban style incident.

The Journey To Bethel

I fully expected resistance on our way to Bethel.  We would have to pass by our neighbors.  The eerie thing was that no one tried to confront us, nor talk to us.  When we passed by, the people fled.

Jacob said that the fear of God was placed within their people to allow us to pass.  Perhaps that was true.  The fact we were leaving while the broader neighborhood was still in shock helped.  It could also be a sign of them saying good riddance to us desiring us to leave.

Along the journey there were no incidents.  After arriving in Bethel the first thing Jacob did was make an altar, then he offered sacrifices to God.  This the people watched.  It was time to start a new beginning.