Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: After Jacob's tense reunion with Esau, the Torah relates a heartbreaking scene. Dina caught in Shechem's web of charm and manipulation. But her story isn't as far from ours as we think. The same seduction that overpowered her emotions still whispers to us today. Discover why what feels right in our heart isn't necessarily right for our soul in this week's five minute tour.
[00:00:30] Speaker A: Shalom and Blessings from Shalom Making the place where disciples of Yeshua learn, connect and grow. I'm Darren, and before I get into the five minutes of my five minute Torah commentary, let's cover a few quick facts about this week's Torah portion. This week we are studying the eighth portion of the new Torah cycle. We are in the portion of Vayishlach Genesis 32:4 through 3,643 and here are the three things that you need to know about it. Number one Jacob meets Esau. A Reluctant Reunion it had been more than 20 years since Jacob had last seen his brother Esau, and the last report he had heard was that Esau wanted him dead. So when Jacob learned that Esau was approaching with 400 armed men, his fear went through the roof. Jacob quickly devised a plan, sending Malachim ahead of him in an attempt to appease his brother. But who were these Malachim? The Hebrew term can mean either messengers or angels. Which did he send? Good question.
Thankfully, when the brothers finally meet, the reunion is peaceful. Esau even offers to escort Jacob back to his camp, but Jacob politely declines, saying his children and livestock will slow him down, essentially telling Esau, don't wait on me. You go ahead. I'll catch up with you later.
Much later.
Number two Shechem Medina A Tale of Revenge after settling on a plot of land near the city of Shechem, the Jacob and his family tried to establish peaceful roots. But one day, Dinah, Jacob's daughter, went out to meet the local women and was kidnapped and seduced by Shechem, the son of Hamor, the Hittite. Hamor approached Jacob, requesting that Shechem be permitted to marry Dina, and asked what price would be required. When Dinah's brothers heard what had happened, they were furious, and rightly so. They devised a plan. If Shechem wished to marry their sister and intermarry with their family, they then every male in the city must be circumcised. Shockingly, Hamor and Shechem convinced the entire male population to comply. On the third day, when the pain was at its peak, Simeon and Levi swept through the city with swords and killed every man.
Number three the Death of Rachel the Birth of Benjamin Toward the end of our portion, Rachel, Jacob's beloved wife, tragically dies while giving birth to her second and final child, Nathan, near Bethlehem. Before passing on, she names him Ben Oni, meaning Son of my suffering. After her death, however, Jacob renames him Benyamin, Son of the Right Hand, expressing his deep affection for his new son. Rachel's passing devastates Jacob and he erects a memorial pillar at her grave. The Torah records so Rachel died and she was buried on the way to Ephrat, that is Bethlehem, and Jacob set up a pillar over her tomb and it is the pillar of Rachel's tomb which is there to this day. Israel journeyed on and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder. This is Genesis 35:19 21 the Tower of Eder is Migdal Eder, meaning the tower of the Flock. Hanukkah is just around the corner. If you want to have a great family experience with Hanukkah, be sure to pick up your copy of Eight Lights, my Hanukkah how to and Devotional that will make each night of Hanukkah a night to remember and it has over 155 star reviews on Amazon and has consistently been in the top 10 bestsellers for Messianic Judaism in the weeks heading up to Hanukkah. And it's available on Barnes and Noble as well. So if you want to have fun and learn to be a better disciple of our master Yeshua, then check out my book 8 lights using the link below. This week's Torah commentary is called the Irrational Lure of Self Destruction and comes from my book 5 Minute Torah Volume 1.
This week's Torah portion covers a lot of territory. We begin reading about Jacob preparing to meet his brother Esau after his departure from the house of Laban. From there we read about his wrestling through the night with what appears to be an angel of God. Jacob then encounters Esau and things go much better than expected. Esau is cordial and Jacob doesn't get killed, so he skirts around his brother's territory and heads over to Sukkot. But after this we read a sad incident in which his daughter Dina is seduced and defiled by a named Shechem. Let's examine this incident a little more closely. When Shechem first saw Dina, he immediately desired her. He knew he needed to do whatever it took to get her. Our English translations make it appear that he simply found her alone and had his way with her. He says he seized her and lay with her, and humiliated or violated her. This is Genesis 34:2. The next verse, however, seems to indicate that Shechem had a genuine love for Dinah. It says, and his soul was drawn to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob. He loved the young woman and spoke tenderly to her. This is Genesis 34:3. Even more confusing is the Midrash's account of how Dina was rescued from Shechem. Commenting on the Torah's account that they took Dina out of Shechem's house, Rabbi Yehudah says, they dragged her out against her will and departed. This is Midrash8011 commenting on verse 20.
At first this doesn't seem reasonable. It seems clear from a plain reading of the text, at least in English, that Dina was being held against her wishes. A quick examination of the Hebrew, however, helps shed light on this. In Hebrew, the phrase he spoke tenderly to her in verse three is more literally translated, he spoke to the heart of the young woman. Vaidaber al lev hanaara. It seems that Shechem was what we call a smooth talker, and whether the relationship began with this smooth talk or not, it seems clear that Dina's emotions were being played upon at some point along the way and kept her from leaving him. In today's terminology, we would call situations like this codependency. In a codependent situation, a woman will continually return to her husband after being abused because she believes his love for her is sincere, despite his abusive behavior. This isn't rational behavior, but Dina and other women in similar situations are not the only ones who fall prey to the devices of seduction. We all do. If we have ever sinned, then we have to realize this power, because in order to sin, we first have to be deceived into believing we will derive benefit from our sinful actions. Although we may know the harmful effects of our bad choices, making rational decisions is extremely difficult. When we are being seduced, we are no longer thinking or acting rationally. We say and do things that we would not do otherwise. Often our desire for immediate gratification is what gets us to this point. This is often the case when it comes to establishing beneficial habits such as prayer, study, or even exercise. We have a desire to pray, study, or exercise. But rather than stick with our commitment, we fall prey to the allure of distractions that promise to deliver more immediate satisfaction than our original plan. When and how does it End? It ends when we keep our eyes on the prize that awaits us. If we are constantly distracted from the goal of the kingdom and the things we must do to pursue it. The enemy will easily seduce us into accomplishing his goal instead of ours. We must be ever vigilant against the deceptions of the enemy and the tricks he implores to lead us down paths we would never travel in our right minds. When Yeshua warned his disciples about vain repetition, was he criticizing Jewish liturgy? Most people think so, but is that really what he was saying? If you want to understand what Yeshua actually meant and how Jewish prayer is designed to draw us into the presence of the King, watch our latest lunch and learn class on Jewish prayer that my wife and I recently taught together. Just click on the link right here to get started. Sam.
