How does Genesis 34:27 connect with God's commandment against stealing? Setting the Scene Genesis 34:27: “Jacob’s sons came upon the slain, and they looted the city because their sister had been defiled.” What the Brothers Actually Took • Livestock (v. 28) • Wealth—silver, gold, clothing, household goods (v. 29) • Women and children as captives (v. 29) The action was calculated, sweeping, and motivated by revenge rather than need. God’s Command: “You Shall Not Steal” Exodus 20:15: “You shall not steal.” Deuteronomy 5:19 repeats it verbatim. Leviticus 19:13 strengthens the prohibition: “You must not defraud your neighbor or rob him.” The commandment protects both personal property and human dignity—exactly what the brothers violated when they stripped an entire city of its goods and people. How Genesis 34:27 Collides with the Command • Revenge does not excuse theft. Simeon and Levi avenged Dinah’s violation, yet their brothers’ plundering went beyond retribution into outright stealing. • Theft compounds sin. Murder (vv. 25–26) was already committed; adding plunder magnified guilt (cf. Hosea 4:2). • God condemns “devoting” things to oneself after violence. Joshua 7:1 shows that taking spoils against God’s moral order brings judgment—exactly what Jacob feared (Genesis 34:30). • Ownership is God-given. Psalm 24:1: “The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof.” Taking what God entrusted to another person is ultimately taking from Him. Echoes in the New Testament • Romans 12:19: “Never avenge yourselves… ‘Vengeance is Mine; I will repay,’ says the Lord.” • Ephesians 4:28: “He who steals must steal no longer, but rather labor… so that he may share with the one in need.” The brothers did the opposite—seizing what was not theirs and leaving others in need. Key Takeaways for Today • Wrong done to us never licenses us to commit further wrong. • Theft includes plundering time, reputation, or opportunity, not just property. • God’s people are called to trust His justice instead of crafting their own. • True obedience to “You shall not steal” means protecting, not exploiting, the vulnerable (Proverbs 3:27–28). |
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