And Dina the daughter of Lia went out to see the women of that country.

Egressa est autem Dina filia Liæ ut videret mulieres regionis illius.

A time came when Dina, Lia’s daughter, went out to visit some of the women who dwelt in that country.

And when Sichem the son of Hemor the Hevite, the prince of that land, saw her, he was in love with her: and took her away, and lay with her, ravishing the virgin.

Quam cum vidisset Sichem filius Hemor Hevæi, princeps terræ illius, adamavit eam: et rapuit, et dormivit cum illa, vi opprimens virginem.

And one of the chieftains, Sichem, son of Hemor the Hevite, cast longing eyes at her; then seized her and mated with her, violating her virginity.

And his soul was fast knit unto her, and whereas she was sad, he comforted her with sweet words.

Et conglutinata est anima ejus cum ea, tristemque delinivit blanditiis.

And indeed his heart was set on her, so he comforted her sorrow,

And going to Hemor his father, he said: Get me this damsel to wife.

Et pergens ad Hemor patrem suum: Accipe, inquit, mihi puellam hanc conjugem.

and went to his father Hemor, asking him to demand the girl’s hand in marriage.

But when Jacob had heard this, his sons being absent, and employed in feeding the cattle, he held his peace till they came back.

Quod cum audisset Jacob absentibus filiis, et in pastu pecorum occupatis, siluit donec redirent.

When Jacob was told of it, his sons were away, engaged in feeding their cattle; so he kept silence, awaiting their return.

And when Hemor the father of Sichem was come out to speak to Jacob,

Egresso autem Hemor patre Sichem ut loqueretur ad Jacob,

But even as Hemor, Sichem’s father, was on his way to confer with Jacob,

Behold his sons came from the field: and hearing what had passed, they were exceeding angry, because he had done a foul thing in Israel, and committed an unlawful act, in ravishing Jacob’s daughter.

ecce filii ejus veniebant de agro: auditoque quod acciderat, irati sunt valde, eo quod fœdam rem operatus esset in Israël et, violata filia Jacob, rem illicitam perpetrasset.

Jacob’s sons came back from the plains and heard what had befallen. They fell into a great rage; Sichem had dishonoured the whole race of Israel, and done great wrong, by violating their father’s daughter.

And Hemor spoke to them: The soul of my son Sichem has a longing for your daughter: give her him to wife:

Locutus est itaque Hemor ad eos: Sichem filii mei adhæsit anima filiæ vestræ: date eam illi uxorem:

And now Hemor began to plead with them, My son Sichem has set his heart on this maid of yours; grant him her hand in marriage.

And let us contract marriages one with another: give us your daughters and take you our daughters,

et jungamus vicissim connubia: filias vestras tradite nobis, et filias nostras accipite,

It is well that we should intermarry, that you should give us your daughters, and wed ours,

And dwell with us: the land is at your command, till, trade, and possess it.

et habitate nobiscum: terra in potestate vestra est: exercete, negotiamini, et possidete eam.

and settle down amongst us. Our country is yours; you may till and trade and have your dwelling here.

Sichem also said to her father and to her brethren: Let me find favour in your sight: and whatsoever you shall appoint I will give.

Sed et Sichem ad patrem et ad fratres ejus ait: Inveniam gratiam coram vobis: et quæcumque statueritis, dabo:

Sichem, too, said to her father and her brethren, Grant my request, and I will pay whatever price you name.

Raise the dowry, and ask gifts, and I will gladly give what you shall demand: only give me this damsel to wife.

augete dotem, et munera postulate, et libenter tribuam quod petieritis: tantum date mihi puellam hanc uxorem.

Increase the sum of the dowry, ask for presents in addition, you shall have what you will so you will let me make the girl my wife.

The sons of Jacob answered Sichem and his father deceitfully, being enraged at the deflowering of their sister:

Responderunt filii Jacob Sichem et patri ejus in dolo, sævientes ob stuprum sororis:

But the sons of Jacob, enraged at their sister’s disgrace, made a treacherous answer to Sichem and his father:

We cannot do what you demand, nor give our sister to one that is uncircumcised, which with us is unlawful and abominable.

Non possumus facere quod petitis, nec dare sororem nostram homini incircumciso: quod illicitum et nefarium est apud nos.

We cannot grant your request, if it means bestowing our sister’s hand on a husband who is not circumcised; that is a forbidden thing, abominable to us.

But in this we may be allied with you, if you will be like us, and all the male sex among you be circumcised:

Sed in hoc valebimus fœderari, si volueritis esse similes nostri, et circumcidatur in vobis omne masculini sexus;

But we can enter into a treaty with you, if you will consent to be like ourselves, and have every male among you circumcised;

Then will we mutually give and take your daughters, and ours: and we will dwell with you, and will be one people:

tunc dabimus et accipiemus mutuo filias vestras ac nostras: et habitabimus vobiscum, erimusque unus populus.

then we will give our daughters to you in marriage, and accept yours; we will share your country, and form one people with you.

But if you will not be circumcised, we will take our daughter and depart:

Si autem circumcidi nolueritis, tollemus filiam nostram, et recedemus.

If you refuse to be circumcised, we must take the girl with us and be gone.

Their offer pleased Hemor, and Sichem his son:

Placuit oblatio eorum Hemor, et Sichem filio ejus,

This offer of theirs commended itself to Hemor and his son Sichem;

And the young man made no delay, but forthwith fulfilled what was required, for he loved the damsel exceedingly, and he was the greatest man in all his father’s house.

nec distulit adolescens quin statim quod petebatur expleret: amabat enim puellam valde, et ipse erat inclytus in omni domo patris sui.

nor did the young man lose any time in having their request fulfilled, such was his love for the girl, and such was the influence he had with all his father’s kindred.

And going into the gate of the city they spoke to the people:

Ingressique portam urbis, locuti sunt ad populum:

They both went to the city gate, and there made it known to the people:

These men are peaceable and willing to dwell with us: let them trade in the land, and till it, which being large and wide wanteth men to till it: we shall take their daughters for wives, and we will give them ours.

Viri isti pacifici sunt, et volunt habitare nobiscum: negotientur in terra, et exerceant eam, quæ spatiosa et lata cultoribus indiget: filias eorum accipiemus uxores, et nostras illis dabimus.

These are peaceable folk, ready to share our country with us; let us allow them to trade here and to till the land, wide and open as it is, and in need of farming; let us marry their daughters, and give them ours in exchange.

One thing there is for which so great a good is deferred: We must circumcise every male among us, following the manner of the nation.

Unum est quo differtur tantum bonum: si circumcidamus masculos nostros, ritum gentis imitantes.

There is but one thing that stands in the way of this happy agreement. We must adopt the custom of their race, and have all the males among us circumcised.

And their substance, and cattle, and all that they possess, shall be ours: only in this let us condescend, and by dwelling together, we shall make one people.

Et substantia eorum, et pecora, et cuncta quæ possident, nostra erunt: tantum in hoc acquiescamus, et habitantes simul, unum efficiemus populum.

Then their wealth and these cattle of theirs and all they have will be ours too; we have only to humour them in this, to make them form one people with us.

And they all agreed, and circumcised all the males.

Assensique sunt omnes, circumcisis cunctis maribus.

To this everyone agreed, and all their men folk were circumcised.

And behold the third day, when the pain of the wound was greatest, two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, the brothers of Dina, taking their swords, entered boldly into the city, and slew all the men:

Et ecce, die tertio, quando gravissimus vulnerum dolor est: arreptis duo filii Jacob, Simeon et Levi fratres Dinæ, gladiis, ingressi sunt urbem confidenter: interfectisque omnibus masculis,

The third day came, which is the day on which the pain of the wound is most felt. Then, two of Jacob’s sons, who were brothers to Dina, Simeon and Levi, took up their swords, and made their way boldly into the city, where they killed all the men folk;

And they killed also Hemor and Sichem, and took away their sister Dina, out of Sichem’s house.

Hemor et Sichem pariter necaverunt, tollentes Dinam de domo Sichem sororem suam.

making an end of Hemor and Sichem with the rest, and carrying off their sister Dina from Sichem’s house.

And when they were gone out, the other sons of Jacob came upon the slain; and plundered the city in revenge of the rape.

Quibus egressis, irruerunt super occisos ceteri filii Jacob: et depopulati sunt urbem in ultionem stupri.

When they had left the city, the rest of Jacob’s sons broke in, to find the men already slain; so they plundered the city to avenge the wrong done;

And they took their sheep and their herds and their asses, wasting all they had in their houses and in the fields.

Oves eorum, et armenta, et asinos, cunctaque vastantes quæ in domibus et in agris erant,

making spoil of their sheep and oxen and asses and all they found in houses or in fields,

And their children and wives they took captive,

parvulos quoque eorum et uxores duxerunt captivas.

and seizing their children and their wives as captives.

And when they had boldly perpetrated these things, Jacob said to Simeon and Levi: You have troubled me, and made me hateful to the Chanaanites and Pherezites, the inhabitants of this land: we are few: they will gather themselves together and kill me; and both I, and my house, shall be destroyed.

Quibus patratis audacter, Jacob dixit ad Simeon et Levi: Turbastis me, et odiosum fecistis me Chananæis, et Pherezæis habitatoribus terræ hujus: nos pauci sumus; illi congregati percutient me, et delebor ego, et domus mea.

Recklessly the deed was done; in vain did Jacob protest to Simeon and Levi, You have much injured me, to Chanaanite and Pherezite all around making my name abominable; see how few we are! If they make common cause against me, I and mine will perish.

They answered: Should they abuse our sister as a strumpet?

Responderunt: Numquid ut scorto abuti debuere sorore nostra?

What, they answered, should we allow him to treat our sister like a harlot?