Daughters, a Precious Gift

"Now Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter; but his sons were with his livestock in the field, so Jacob kept silent until they came in. Then Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to speak with him. Now the sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard it; and the men were grieved, and they were very angry because he had done a disgraceful thing in Israel by lying with Jacob’s daughter, for such a thing ought not to be done." -Genesis 34.5-7

Here we find a story that is odd to me. Jacob's daughter is raped, and we see him do nothing. His sons are in the field, and instead of doing something he allows them to continue with their task until they return. In some ways there is wisdom in this. The situation is one that would rouse them to anger, justly, but might cause them to act rashly, which may be justice, but may be blood thirsty vengeance.

But when they finally do come in, we see that they are the angry ones, and from what we can gather, Jacob at the most is grieved, but possibly pretty indifferent. We've seen so much growth in his life, and yet now, when he is perhaps needed most as a father, we get nothing from him. And as we'll see later in Scripture, this same response happens again.

The very least Jacob should do is go to his daughter and wrap his arms around her. He needs to comfort her, and love her. And then he, as the leader, needs to seek justice. And I believe that is the order things must take place. I don't know of a good dad who wouldn't be feeling like justice first, I know what my reaction would be, but I don't think it's a good idea to write it out. But we must remember that a young girl has been violated. More than she needs justice she needs comfort and reassurance, and these can only come from her daddy.

Men, let us do what we can to prevent things like this from ever happening. Let us raise daughters to know their value and worth. Let us teach them about the priceless treasure they are, and the captivating beauty they possess. Let us be intentionally involved in the relationships they pursue, guiding them away from the people and situations that lead to this. I'm also a big believer in teaching daughters self-defense, so if need be they can fight off an attacker.

But most importantly let us pray. No matter what we do, no matter how involved we are, no matter what we teach, we simply can't be everywhere, or prevent everything. Sadly, this world is getting worse every minute, but even in this, prayer is the greatest weapon we have. And so I believe every father's daily prayer over his daughter should include, "God, keep her safe from the things I can't protect her from."

A daughter is a precious gift. God has lovingly placed His princess into your life to protect and guide back to Him. Don't fail her. Love, protect, and value her like the treasure she is.

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

To God alone be the Glory!

Strength and Honor