Marriage and the Bible -- Part 9 -- The Intermarrying Issue Again!

Of all the people in the Bible that most interpreters of Scripture get it wrong about, I think Simeon and Levi when they kill Hamor and Schechim and their men get the worst look of all.  The real idiot of the story is Jacob -- a) He does not seem to care one whit for his daughter getting RAPED and b) when he comes back from Laban he does not camp where he promised God he would (Bethel); had he done, so none of this would have happened.  Lesson: keep your promises to God and you don't open yourself up for this nonsense.  It also points out one of the flaws the family had -- favoratism.  Dinah was after all the daughter of Leah.

The reason I say this is that when Jacob curses both at the end of his life neither curse seems ot work and when you look at the Law of Moses later they actually fulfill it on two count's 1) The punishment for rape in the Law is death which is what Schechem recieved along with all those who would have protected him and 2) The Law will later specifically forbid intermarrying of the children of Israel with outsiders who are not Israelites with only one acception -- girls who were virgins from foreign lands who they conquered.  Jacob would allowed the violation of both principles.  Simeon and Levi will not allow it and through cleverness (they are outnumbered) they exact the proper punishment. 
 
In the end, history vindicates both Simeon and Levi.  Levi's tribe becomes the preisthood for Israel and Simeon does indeed get an inheritence in the land in the end.  In short Jacob's curses don't work.

The quesiton of intermarriage is not a race one; it is about faith and worship.  The issue is the draw of pagan spouses on their husbands or wives that would cause others to leave their faith in God.

Next: Judah and Tamar