Genesis 34:14

Genesis 34:14 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And they said unto them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that were a reproach unto us:
• New International Version (NIV)They said to them, “We can’t do such a thing; we can’t give our sister to a man who is not circumcised. That would be a disgrace to us.
• English Standard Version (ESV)They said to them, "We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised, for that would be a disgrace to us.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And they said to them, “We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised, for that would be a reproach to us.

Context of Genesis 34:14

12I will pay you the gifts that you ask for Dinah. It can be as much as you like. I will pay it all, because I want to have Dinah as my wife.’ 13Because of the bad thing that Shechem had done to Dinah, Jacob's sons decided to deceive him. And they deceived his father Hamor too. They said, ‘We cannot give our sister to a man who has not been circumcised. We would be ashamed to do this. 15If you want to marry Dinah, you must do one thing. You must circumcise all your males. Then you will become like us and we will agree for you to marry Dinah. 16Then we will give you our daughters so that your men can marry them. And our men will marry your daughters. We will live among you, so that we become one people with you.

Genesis 34:14 word by word

וַיֹּאמְר֣וּ אֲלֵיהֶ֗ם לֹ֤א נוּכַל֙ לַעֲשׂוֹת֙ הַדָּבָ֣ר הַזֶּ֔ה לָתֵת֙ אֶת־אֲחֹתֵ֔נוּ לְאִ֖ישׁ אֲשֶׁר־ל֣וֹ עָרְלָ֑ה כִּֽי־חֶרְפָּ֥ה הִ֖וא לָֽנוּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And they saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto them, We cannotיָכֹלyâkôl yâkôl · be ableH3201
• unto them, We cannotלֹאlô' lô' lôh · notH3808
• doעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• this thingדָּבָרdâbâr · word: thingH1697
• to giveנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• our sisterאָחוֹת'âchôth · sisterH269
• to oneאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
• that is uncircumcisedעׇרְלָה‛orlâh · foreskinH6190
• a reproachחֶרְפָּהcherpâh · reproachH2781

Cross-references for Genesis 34:14

• Genesis 17:11Your circumcision will show that you have agreed to my covenant with you.
• Joshua 5:2The Lord said to Joshua at that time, ‘Make knives of stone and circumcise the Israelite men.’
• 1 Samuel 14:6Jonathan said to the young man who carried his armour, ‘Now we will go to the camp of those foreign people. Perhaps the Lord will help us to win the fight. He can win a battle whether there are many soldiers or only a few.’
• 1 Samuel 17:26David asked the men who were standing near him, ‘If someone kills this Philistine soldier and takes away the shame from Israel, what gift will he get? He is an unclean Philistine! He must stop insulting the army of our God, who lives for ever.’
• 2 Samuel 1:20Do not tell the people in Gath about it. Do not tell the news in the streets of Ashkelon. If you do, the daughters of the Philistines will sing with joy. Yes, those foreign people who do not worship God will be happy.
• 2 Samuel 15:7After four years, Absalom said to the king, ‘Please let me go to Hebron. I need to make a sacrifice to the Lord, as I promised to do.
• 1 Kings 21:9This is what she wrote in those letters: ‘Choose a day for everyone to fast. Give Naboth a seat where the people can see him.
• Matthew 2:8Herod sent the men to Bethlehem. He said to them, ‘Go and look everywhere for this child. When you find him, come back here and tell me where he is. Then I can also go and worship him.’
• Matthew 23:1After that, Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples.
• Romans 4:11Some time after that, God told Abraham that someone should circumcise him. That would be a mark on his body to show that God had accepted him. God had already accepted Abraham because Abraham believed in him. God did not accept Abraham because they had circumcised him as a Jewish man. This shows that Abraham is like a father to everyone that God has accepted. Like Abraham, God has accepted them because they have believed in him. It is not important that nobody has circumcised them.

Commentaries on Genesis 34:14

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 14That were a reproach unto us - Because the uncircumcised were not in the covenant of God; and to have given an heiress of the promise to one who had no kind of right to its spiritual blessings, from whom might spring children who would naturally walk in the way of their father would have been absurd, reproachful and wicked. Thus far they were perfectly right; but to make this holy principle a cloak for their deceitful and murderous purposes, was the full…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-31Verses 1-31 - Dinah‘s Dishonor This chapter records the rape of Dinah and the revenge of her brothers. Genesis 34:1-5 Dinah went out to see the daughters of the land. The Jewish doctors of a later period fix the marriageable age of a female at twelve years and a day. It is probable that Dinah was in her thirteenth year when she went out to visit the daughters of the land. Six or seven years, therefore, must have been spent by Jacob between Sukkoth, where…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 13-17Dinah’s brothers responded to the proposal without waiting for Jacob to respond, and they acted deceitfully. They may not have thought that Shechem and his people would ever agree to the rite of circumcision, but they knew what they would do if the Canaanites accepted (34:25).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-311-4. Though freed from foreign troubles, Jacob met with a great domestic calamity in the fall of his only daughter. 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. There must have been time and opportunities of acquaintance to…Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 34:14

• Deception

In the dictionaries

• Ask
• Consent
• Daughter
• Defile
• Dinah
• Folly
• Please
• Archaeology; Archaeology and Criticism
• Foreskin
• Genesis

Commentaries on Genesis 34

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings