Vindicated
As women in modern society, we have forgotten how we should be treated and how we should treat ourselves. We base our behaviour on what we see on TV shows, music videos and what we now see on social media. Principles and values have drastically changed over time. We live with our partners, meet women being divorced multiple times and think nothing of it. But is that what God had in mind for us? I don’t believe so.
My story today is one that I wanted to bypass. But God saw her just like the woman who anointed Jesus. Just like He is seeing you today.
Dinah is the only daughter of Jacob, born from his first wife Leah (Gen 30:21). She is the only sister amongst twelve brothers. Now you get two types of girls growing up with boys. One is the Tomboy, who grows up believing themselves to be like their brothers, and the other is ‘Daddy’s little princess.’ I truly believe that Dinah was part of the latter group.
Dinah soon found herself in a predicament. Jacob moved to Shalem (meaning peace or safe, unharmed, or the City of Peace) in Canaan and bought a piece of land. Dinah went to visit the daughters of the land and felt herself safe. However, she was taken advantage of by the ‘prince of the country,’ Shechem, the son of Hamor and the Word says it in blatant terms ‘he took her, lay with her, and defiled her (Gen 34:1-2). We do not know if she was forced or went willingly with him. However, afterwards, the prince found himself in love with her and asked his father to arrange that he could be married to her (verses 3-4). This is today’s lesson, I believe. If Shechem truly loved her, he would’ve asked for her hand in marriage before he defiled her. Today we wouldn’t think much about this, but we as women must change our view of ourselves and how we should be in this world. 1 John 2:16 (KJV) states that “for all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
When reading the piece, we could easily believe that Shechem was trying to right a wrong. Even jumped through the hoops that Dinah’s brothers decided on. All the men in the city had to be circumcised, and Shechem agreed to it, and all the men in the city were circumcised (Gen 34:24). It was then that Simeon and Levi attacked the city and “slew all the males” and rescued Dinah out of the house of Shechem (Gen 34:25-26). When confronted by Jacob, their defence was that they defended her integrity, saying, “…should he deal with our sister as with a harlot?”(Gen 34:31). They saw her value, although she did not. And when we learn of Dinah again, she is moving (alone) with her family to Egypt (Gen 46:15). I had to ask myself, did she marry eventually? Or did she die lonely because the man she fell in love with did not do right by her?
Dinah wasn’t treated like the princess she was. Like most women reading this piece today. We are all sons and daughters of the King. We should be treated with respect. We should also treat others with dignity, respect, and love. And as women of honour, we need to ask God for wisdom in our relationships with people, live our life with discretion watchful for anything that could harm our reputation, and live a life of kindness and virtue that people can’t talk about behind our backs. So that one day, we can stand in righteousness in front of our Creator.
#GodCanDoThis
Lightbearer's Quest 