English Standard Version
Genesis 34:20
20So Hamor and his son Shechem came to the gate of their city and spoke to the men of their city, saying,
Genesis 34:20 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And Hamor and Shechem his son came unto the gate of their city, and communed with the men of their city, saying,
- New International Version (NIV)So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city to speak to the men of their city.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And Hamor and Shechem his son came to the gate of their city, and spoke with the men of their city, saying:
- New Living Translation (NLT)and he went with his father, Hamor, to present this proposal to the leaders at the town gate.
Context of Genesis 34:20
18Their words pleased Hamor and Hamor's son Shechem. 19And the young man did not delay to do the thing, because he delighted in Jacob's daughter. Now he was the most honored of all his father's house. So Hamor and his son Shechem came to the gate of their city and spoke to the men of their city, saying, 21"These men are at peace with us; let them dwell in the land and trade in it, for behold, the land is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters as wives, and let us give them our daughters. 22Only on this condition will the men agree to dwell with us to become one people—when every male among us is circumcised as they are circumcised.
Read all of Genesis 34Genesis 34:20 word by word
וַיָּבֹ֥א חֲמ֛וֹר וּשְׁכֶ֥ם בְּנ֖וֹ אֶל־שַׁ֣עַר עִירָ֑ם וַֽיְדַבְּר֛וּ אֶל־אַנְשֵׁ֥י עִירָ֖ם לֵאמֹֽר׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Hamorחֲמוֹרchămôr · HamorH2544
- and Shechemשְׁכֶםshekem · ShechemH7927
- his sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- cameבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- unto the gateשַׁ֫עַרsha‛ar · gateH8179
- of their cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
- and communedדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
- with the menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
- sayingאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
Cross-references for Genesis 34:20
- Genesis 22:17I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies,
- Genesis 23:10Now Ephron was sitting among the Hittites, and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the Hittites, of all who went in at the gate of his city,
- Deuteronomy 17:5then you shall bring out to your gates that man or woman who has done this evil thing, and you shall stone that man or woman to death with stones.
- Ruth 4:1Now Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by. So Boaz said, "Turn aside, friend; sit down here." And he turned aside and sat down.
- Job 29:7When I went out to the gate of the city, when I prepared my seat in the square,
- Proverbs 31:23Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land.
- Amos 5:10They hate him who reproves in the gate, and they abhor him who speaks the truth.
- Zechariah 8:16These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another; render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace;
Commentaries on Genesis 34:20
- 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
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 20-31Verses 20-31 The Shechemites submitted to the sacred rite, only to serve a turn, to please their prince, and to enrich themselves, and it was just with God to bring punishment upon them. As nothing secures us better than true religion, so nothing exposes us more than religion only pretended to. But Simeon and Levi were most unrighteous. Those who act wickedly, under the pretext of religion, are the worst enemies of the truth, and harden the hearts of many…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18-24The Canaanite men agreed to the condition, and every male in the town was circumcised. This was not only to allow Shechem to marry Dinah. They also saw it as a way to gain everything that Jacob owned (34:23).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2020. Hamor and Shechem ... came unto the gate of their city--That was the place where every public communication was made; and in the ready obsequious submission of the people to this measure we see an evidence either of the extraordinary affection for the governing family, or of the abject despotism of the East, where the will of a chief is an absolute command.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 34:20
In the dictionaries
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
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