In Genesis chapter thirty-four, verse seven, the sons of Jacob were justifiably angry about the violation of their sister and knew they could not tolerate such a disgraceful deed. They sinned, however, by retaliating in an excessive ruthless manner.
Why were Jacob’s sons upset? Before the reaction from what Jacob’s sons heard about their sister Dinah, they were attending to their father’s cattle in the field, helping Jacob. However, Hamor, the father of Shechem, came to visit Dinah’s father to propose something to him. During the proposal, the sons of Jacob responded to Hamor and his son deceitfully.
The sons of Jacob were angry about what had happened to Dinah. The fact that the father of Shechem comes and expects to get what his son wants is one thing, but to persuade them with a trade offer is another. In this chapter, Hamor does not even come to apologize on his son’s behalf. He communes with Jacob expecting to receive Dinah as a daughter-in-law and a wife for Shechem. Jacob’s sons object to the proposal.
Simeon and Levi are the sons of Jacob. They took full advantage of the hospitality of Hamor and Shechem and were looking to avenge the cruel act toward their sister Dinah. The incident with Hamor’s son Shechem did not settle well with them from the time it occurred until now. Simeon and Levi not only killed all the males of the city but also looted the city and captured the woman and children. This cruel action resulted in Simeon and Levi losing their leadership. God distinguishes between justifiable war and ruthless cruelty. The approach of Simeon and Levi is similar to what Shechem did earlier. They raped, looted the city, took it further, and killed all the males. Jacob’s sons were operating in their way and did not do it in God’s way. This activity was physical and had nothing to do with the spiritual.