Commento su Genesi 34:21

שלמים means peaceable and whole hearted.

THESE MEN ARE PEACEABLE WITH US. The men of the city thought that they hated them as they saw them dejected, and it angered them very much. Perhaps they guarded themselves against them and installed in their city bars and doors, for Jacob’s sons were mighty men and valiant men for the war.¹⁷⁴Jeremiah 48:14. But now Hamor and his son Shechem told them, “Do not fear and do not keep distant from them for they are whole-hearted with us.”

שלמים הם אתנו, they are of a totally peaceful disposition towards us. They do not intend to revenge themselves for the indignity their family has suffered.

שלמים הם אתנו, "they are at peace with us." They do not harbour hatred against us that we should have to be afraid they are out to trick us.

האנשים האלה שלמים הם אתנו, they are quite peaceful towards us even though I raped their sister; the reason is that they are anxious to live side by side with us and to become one people. They are asking for a very minor concession on our part, that all out males must circumcise themselves as they are all circumcised themselves. He argued that acceptance of such a demand would not deprive his townsfolk of anything of value. In return for complying with their demand his countrymen would become co-owners of the extensive property of Yaakov’s family רחבת ידים לפניהם. Even though they do possess extensive herds and flocks, the land is more than adequate to support these animals without our having to limit the grazing land allocated to our livestock.

שלמים הם אתנו, “they are of a peaceful disposition toward us.” Chamor and Shechem made this statement as the people of their town believed that Dinah’s family now hated everyone in their town, having had visual evidence of the faces of Yaakov’s sons after the rape of their sister.

רחבת ידים, “enough large places:” we find the word: יד used in this sense also in Deuteronomy. 23,13 ויד תהיה לך, “you shall have a small place there” and explained in this sense by Ibn Ezra.

והארץ הנה רחבת ידים FOR THE LAND, BEHOLD, IT IS LARGE ENOUGH (literally, wide-handed) — the metaphor is that of a man whose hand is large and generous, and the idea is: “You will lose nothing if they dwell and trade in the land, for much merchandise is brought here and there are no buyers for it”.

רחבת ידים, “the land is big enough,” according to Ibn Ezra this is a reference to the many areas in the region which offered good pasture.

When the Torah quotes Chamor and Shechem as saying: "we will take their daughters for ourselves," this was a clever ploy by Chamor and Shechem who wanted to make their own people believe them that Jacob's sons harboured no enmity because they considered the local people superior, so much so that they looked forward to intermarry with them.