The XXXIIII. Chapter.
[ A] DIna ye doughter of Lea, which she bare vnto Iacob, wente out to be∣holde the doughters of the londe. Whan Sichem the sonne of Hemor the He∣nite (which was lorde of the lōde) sawe her, he toke her, and laye with her, and forced her, and his hert hanged vpon her, and he loued ye damsell, and talked louyngly with her, and spake to his father Hemor: Get me this mayden to wife.
And Iacob vnderstode, that Dina his doughter was defyled, and his sonnes were with the catell in the felde, and Iacob helde his tonge tyll they came. Then Hemor the father of Sichem wente forth vnto Iacob to comen with him. In the meane season ca¦me Iacobs sonnes from ye felde. And whan they herde it, it greued the men, and they we∣re very wroth, that he had wrought foly in Israel, and lyen with Iacobs doughter: for so was not the vse to do.
[ B] Then comened Hemor with thē, and say¦de: My sonne Sichems hert longeth for you¦re doughter, O ge••e hir him to wife: make frendshipe with vs, geue vs youre dough∣ters, and take ye oure doughters, and dwell with vs, the londe shall be open vnto you, dwell and occupie, and haue youre possessi∣ons therin. And Sichem sayde vnto hir fa∣ther and brethren: Let me fynde grace with you: loke what ye appoynte me, I will ge∣ue it: requyre the dowrye and gift of me har¦dely, I wyll geue it acordinge as ye wyll axe, onely geue me the damsell to wife.
Then Iacobs sonnes answered Sichem and Hemor his father (and spake disceatful¦ly, because their sister Dina was defyled) & sayde vnto them: That can we not do, to ge¦ue oure sister to an vncircumcided man: for that were a shame vnto vs.
[ C] Neuertheles we wyll consente vnto you, yf ye wylbe like vnto vs, and be circumci∣ded as many as are males amonge you: then will we geue you oure doughters, and take youre doughters vnto vs, and dwell with you, and be one people. But yf ye wyll not herken vnto vs, to be circumcided, then wyl we take oure doughter, and go oure waye.
These wordes pleased Hemor and his son¦ne wel, and the yonge man defe••de not to do the same, for he had lust to Iacobs dough∣ter: and he was holden in honoure aboue all in his fathers house. Then came Hemor and Sichem his sonne vnder ye gate of cite, and comened with the citisens of the cite, and saide: These men are peaceable with vs, and will dwell in the lande and occupye: now is the londe brode of both the sydes, we wyl ta¦ke their doughters vnto vs, and geue them oure doughters.
But then wyll they consent vnto vs, to [ D] dwell by vs, and to be one people with vs, yf we circumcyse all the men children amon¦ge vs, like as they are circumcysed: their ca¦tell and goodes, and all that they haue, shal be ours, yf we consent vnto them, that they maye dwel with vs.
And they herkened vnto Hemor and Si∣chem his sonne, as many as wente out and in at ye gate of his cite, and circumcided all the males, that wente out and in at his cite. And vpon the thirde daye (whan it was pa¦nefull to them) the two sonnes of Iacob Si¦meon and Leui Dinas brethren,* 1.1 toke euery man his swerde, and wente boldly in to the cite,* 1.2 and slew all the males, and slew He∣mor also and Sichem his sonne with the ed∣ge of the swerde, and toke their sister Di∣na out of Sichems house, and wente their waye.
Then came Iacobs sonnes ouer the slay¦ne, [ E] and spoyled the cite (because they had defyled their sister) and toke their shepe, oxen, Asses, and what so euer was in the ci∣te and in the londe, and all maner of goodes: All their children and wyues toke they cap∣tyue, and spoyled all yt was in the houses.
And Iacob sayde vnto Symeon and Le¦ui: Ye haue brought it so to passe, yt I styn∣ke before the inhabiters of this lande, ye Ca¦nanites and Pheresites, & I am but a small nombre: Yf they gather them selues now to¦gether against me, they shal slaye me, so shal I be destroyed with my house. But they an∣swered: Shulde they thē deale with oure sis¦ter as with an whoore?