4458. Verses 13-17 And Jacob's sons answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, and [so] spoke, because he had defiled Dinah their sister. And they said to them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to a man who has a foreskin; for that would be a reproach to us. Only on this [condition] will we consent to you: If you will be as we are, by circumcising every male among you, then we will give our daughters to you, and your daughters we will take to ourselves, and we will dwell with you, and we will be one people. And if you do not listen to us to be circumcised, then we will take our daughter and go.

Jacob's sons answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully' means evil thought and intention regarding the truth and the good of the Church among the Ancients. 'And [so] spoke, because he had defiled Dinah their sister' means that the first stage in the joining together which could not be anything different was effected through acceptance. 'And they said to them, We cannot do this thing' means their disapproval. 'To give our sister to a man who has a foreskin' means unless they could identify the truth and the good of the Church with representatives and disregard the spiritual entities meant by these. 'For that would be a reproach to us' means that it would be contrary to them. 'Only on this [condition] will we consent to you: If you will be as we are' means acceptance of their semblance of religion. 'By circumcising every male among you' means a merely external representative, and then to them they would be pure. 'Then we will give our daughters to you, and your daughters we will take to ourselves' means a joining together in this manner. 'And we will dwell with you' means in life. 'And we will be one people' means in doctrine. 'And if you do not listen to us to be circumcised' means unless they forsook their own truths and accepted external representatives. 'Then we will take our daughter and go' means that there would be no joining together.