Shechem shares his name with the city or region where Jacob and his family now live. Perhaps he is named after its founder: His father, Hamor the Hivite, is the “prince” or ruler of the city. Shechem, then, is the son of a powerful man. This influential man comes across Dinah, a daughter of Jacob and Leah, and assaults her: He did not seduce her or trick her. Shechem saw Dinah, attacked her, and raped her.
In that culture, a woman who was not to be a virgin had limited prospects for marriage. The stigma and shame associated with rape would have made this even worse. At this moment, Shechem not only violated Dinah physically and emotionally, he all but destroyed her future. Hard as it is to imagine, the following verse indicates Shechem’s despicable act wasn’t random. However, it seems to have been due to a lack of self-control; he will immediately campaign to marry Dinah, professing his deep love for the young woman he has defiled.
Both Dinah and her parents were at fault. First, Jacob fails by choosing to live in the vicinity of evil and immoral people, just as Lot had done. He fails to establish correct boundaries and rules for his children concerning their interaction with unbelievers and supervision. For her part, Dinah appears to have been seeking companionship with the ungodly “daughters of the land.”The result was a tragedy, hurt, and shame for Jacob, his daughter, and his family.
Parents who fail to protect their children from evil companions put them in a place of temptation and compromise, along with potential shame and disaster. However, some parents make the best of what they can afford and do their best to ward off the negative influences on their children externally. Parents will try their best to communicate with them to strengthen them internally.