Start for FREE. As the curses are terrible, the blessings are wonderful. All these teachers chose to find the relationship between curses and blessings, and we are left wondering how they were able to make that choice. Deuteronomy, Holman Old Testament Commentary by Doug McIntosh. (DT) There you will offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you. Thereupon Balak said to Balaam, Dont curse them and dont bless them! In reply, Balaam said to Balak, But I told you: Whatever Adonai says, that I must do. Then Balak said to Balaam, Come now, I will take you to another place. My Jewish Learning is a not-for-profit and relies on your help. Pronunced: TORE-uh, Origin: Hebrew, the Five Books of Moses. On the other mountain, Mount Ebal, will be tribes representing the curses that come from disobedience to the law. The Apostle Paul quotes Deuteronomy twice regarding cursing in his letter to the Galatians. The Lord your God will bless(K) you in the land he is giving you. He wants you to know him in all his fullness. 1. We must never presume upon Gods mercy. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven. 6You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. 27 You will get the blessing if you listen and obey the commands of the Lord your God that I have told you today. And fill the earth. This is always the danger, though. There is a true and lasting food that physical food points to.. Its almost as if God knew what was in Israels heart before they even received the promised inheritance. Start your free trial today! 18). These Children of Israel are at home in their Land and their society, and so are at home in their world. 26Today I am giving you a choice. When all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse. (C) 2All these blessings will come on you(D) and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God: 3You will be blessed(E) in the city and blessed in the country. 1568). Jesus bore the curse for all those who no longer rely on their works, but lean on him. 114) and the curses for disobedience (vv. The application of these curses and blessings is to follow the law where it points to Christ, to receive him and follow him all the days of your life, with diligence and passion and commitment. (CE) 47Because you did not serve(CF) the Lord your God joyfully and gladly(CG) in the time of prosperity, 48therefore in hunger and thirst,(CH) in nakedness and dire poverty, you will serve the enemies the Lord sends against you. Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl was kidnapped while tracking down a lead on Richard Reid, the shoe-bomber suspect. New King James Version (NKJV). 32Your sons and your daughters shall be given to (AL)another people, and your eyes shall look and (AM)fail with longing for them all day long; and there shall be [i]no strength in your (AN)hand. 2002-2023 My Jewish Learning. There the Lord will give you an anxious mind, eyes(DQ) weary with longing, and a despairing heart. For what then matters is to bear witness to the uniquely human potential at its best, which is to transform a personal tragedy into a triumph, to turn ones predicament into a human achievement. A blessing and a curse.--Literally, blessing and cursing--the blessing if ye obey, and the curse if ye do not. In the Garden of Eden: God blessed Adam and Eve and said: Be fruitful. They will pursue you and overtake you(CC) until you are destroyed,(CD) because you did not obey the Lord your God and observe the commands and decrees he gave you. 52They shall (BF)besiege you at all your gates until your high and fortified walls, in which you trust, come down throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you at all your gates throughout all your land which the Lord your God has given you. For all the saints. 5 Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. He was later murdered in Pakistan. August 14, 2016 by Christian Chiakulas. McConville explains: Deuteronomy 30:23 pictures the people's repentance in exile, which in turn precipitates a restoration of their fortunes, here explicitly involving a return to the land. They will pursue you and overtake you until you are destroyed, because you did not obey the Lord your God and observe the commands and decrees he gave you. , will be tribes representing the curses that come from disobedience to the law. Be warned. And thou shalt call them to mind.--An awakening among the people themselves must precede their restoration. They will besiege all the cities throughout the land the Lord your God is giving you.(CT). The Blessed Life Beholds Christ. Handed down. (BC) 31Your ox will be slaughtered before your eyes, but you will eat none of it. What does Deuteronomy 24 teach about divorce. This article is part of the The Unfolding of Biblical Eschatology collection. 5 "Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. V. 20: Because you have forsaken me, the Lord. 210).1 This foreseen restoration from exile, however, raises an important question. 58If you do not carefully observe all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear (BK)this glorious and awesome name, THE LORD YOUR GOD, 59then the Lord will bring upon you and your descendants (BL)extraordinary plaguesgreat and prolonged plaguesand serious and prolonged sicknesses. Start for FREE. (DO) 65Among those nations you will find no repose, no resting place(DP) for the sole of your foot. Our fate lies in the choices we make. 2:20; 4:10, Lev. In Deuteronomy 28, God provides a list of blessings for obedience in verses 1-14 followed by a list of curses for disobedience in verses 15-68. My fervent prayer for all of us this Shabbat is that we choose to realize the blessings in the world and in our lives. 45All these curses will come on you. Access 50+ premium resources. (BZ) 44They will lend to you, but you will not lend to them. To receive from the hand of God because youre so bent on proving your worth. [a] 21The Lord will plague you with diseases until he has destroyed you from the land you are entering to possess. 20The Lord will send on you (W)cursing, (X)confusion, and (Y)rebuke in all that you set your hand to do, until you are destroyed and until you perish quickly, because of the wickedness of your doings in which you have forsaken Me. 25The Lord will cause you to be defeated(AR) before your enemies. 2022 Christ the Redeemer. 46They will be a sign and a wonder to you and your descendants forever. The curses are terribleexile, worship of pagan idols, being beaten in battle, vicious attack, infertile soil and unproductive efforts, even to the extent of starvation under siege, such that mother and father eat their children. In his final address, Moses foresees that the people will not remain true to God and that the curses of the covenant, including exile, will ultimately fall upon them (cf. Thats not the issue. Youre so bent on being in control. 68And the Lord (BZ)will take you back to Egypt in ships, by the way of which I said to you, (CA)You shall never see it again. And there you shall be offered for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you.. Too often we take his love and blessing for granted. BEST VALUE in digital Bible study. 49(BC)The Lord will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, (BD)as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you will not understand, 50a nation of fierce countenance, (BE)which does not respect the elderly nor show favor to the young. 43The foreigners who reside among you will rise above you higher and higher, but you will sink lower and lower. 64Then the Lord will scatter(DL) you among all nations,(DM) from one end of the earth to the other. 26(AD)Your carcasses shall be food for all the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and no one shall frighten them away. It is considered the final part of the Torah or Pentateuch, but in . The Daniel Pearl Foundation was formedby Dannys family and friendsin memory of journalist Daniel Pearl to further the ideals that inspired Daniels life and work. All rights reserved. Access 50+ premium resources. 4 Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb, the fruit of your ground, and the fruit of your livestock, both the increase of your cattle and the issue of your flock. It is highly repetitive and based upon a simple idea and instruction. Deuteronomy 27:11.) One commentator said, Blessing and curse are the rubrics under which all OT history is written (McConville, 409). 18Cursed shall be the [e]fruit of your body and the produce of your land, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flocks. (AJ) 22The Lord will strike you with wasting disease,(AK) with fever and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought,(AL) with blight(AM) and mildew, which will plague(AN) you until you perish. It will be all he has left because of the suffering your enemy will inflict on you during the siege of all your cities. V. 20: Because you have forsaken me, the Lord. 17Cursed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. The law code of the book of Deuteronomy is capped with a series of blessings and curses that either promise reward or threaten harm upon the individuals subject to the Deuteronomic laws. 11And (O)the Lord will grant you plenty of goods, in the fruit of your body, in the increase of your livestock, and in the produce of your ground, in the land of which the Lord [b]swore to your fathers to give you. On those stones they shall write the words of the law. The curses listed are God's actively reversing all the blessings he would bestow on his people. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. And yet, he is relentless in his pursuit of you. Save on BibleGateway+ with code FAITH. (BK) There you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone. 20:6; Job 31:8; Jer. The Baal Shem Tov was enraptured by his intuition that evil concealed a seed of the good; yet the good and the holy might at times be pregnant with unpremeditated evil. The Baal Shem Tov taught that evil was a temporary manifestation of the as-yet-hidden good; it had a subsidiary function, acting as a kind of footstool to the good. Genesis 4:14 Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. Deuteronomy 4:30 When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the LORD thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice; Leviticus 26:40-46 If they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, with their trespass which they trespassed against me, and that also they have walked contrary unto me; , Deuteronomy 30:15,19 See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil; , Deuteronomy 11:26-28 Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; , Deuteronomy 27:1-28:65 And Moses with the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying, Keep all the commandments which I command you this day. 53Because of the suffering your enemy will inflict on you during the siege, you will eat the fruit of the womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters the Lord your God has given you. (See Deuteronomy 27:14-28:68 for blessings and curses that come from obeying or rejecting God's commands). (U) 13The Lord will make you the head, not the tail. The chapters are worth reading in full. If you have any questions, please review our Privacy Policy or email us at privacy@biblegateway.com. 6 Comments. But what exactly is a curse? (H), 7The Lord will grant that the enemies(I) who rise up against you will be defeated before you. This chapter of Deuteronomyin future perfect tenseis as close as the Torah comes to a vision of sacred social order. (AP) 24The Lord will turn the rain(AQ) of your country into dust and powder; it will come down from the skies until you are destroyed. To be carried by the Spirit of God into a Land of Promise. 38You will sow much seed in the field but you will harvest little,(BQ) because locusts(BR) will devour(BS) it. 19Cursed shall you be when you come in, and cursed shall you be when you go out. (2) Deuteronomy 28.15-24 What is cursing? Pronounced: shuh-BAHT or shah-BAHT, Origin: Hebrew, the Sabbath, from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. That it would sprout thorns. All Rights Reserved, Embark on a Jewish Journey of Transformation, The Israelites are instructed to express their gratitude to God for their bountiful harvests and freedom from slavery by tithing ten percent of their crops for the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow. 47 Because you did not serve the Lord your God joyfully and gladly in the time of prosperity, 48 therefore in hunger a. After the people enter the land, six of the tribes are to stand on Mount Gerizim and six are to stand on Mount Ebal (vv. (W) 14Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left,(X) following other gods and serving them. He will put an iron yoke(CI) on your neck(CJ) until he has destroyed you. 3 Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field. I fell in love. He is at pains to topple over those set against him. Blessing comes with a warning, though. 30(AI)You shall betroth a wife, but another man shall lie with her; (AJ)you shall build a house, but you shall not dwell in it; (AK)you shall plant a vineyard, but shall not gather its grapes. Copyright 2019 by Zondervan. While this method of divine encouragement to keep the commandments of God might seem surprising from a . 3 Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. According to the great Jewish historian Josephus, they did happen. 1113). It also makes you rejoice to obey. Physical blessings are given by God to show where your true treasure is. What would the personal cost be to you if you couldnt? Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Luke 11:28 says, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it." The purpose of the consequences was to draw the people back to God. KJV, Deluxe Reference Bible, Super Giant Print, Red Letter Edition, Comfort Print, KJV, The King James Study Bible, Red Letter, Full-Color Edition: KJV Holy Bible, KJV, Word Study Bible, Red Letter Edition: 1,700 Key Words that Unlock the Meaning of the Bible, KJV, Reference Bible, Center-Column Giant Print, Red Letter Edition, Comfort Print, KJV, Journal the Word Bible, Large Print, Red Letter Edition: Reflect, Journal, or Create Art Next to Your Favorite Verses, KJV Study Bible, Large Print, Red Letter Edition: Second Edition. Previously published in From Age to Age The Unfolding of Biblical Eschatology by Keith Mathison. 10Then all peoples of the earth shall see that you are (M)called by the name of the Lord, and they shall be (N)afraid of you. 28The Lord will afflict you with madness, blindness and confusion of mind. To live in houses you did not build. So dont stop living the way I command you today, and dont follow other gods that you dont know. 7:14; Is. The Levites are then to recite a summary of the curses of the covenant (vv. 23:15; Dan. If the last section was somewhat apparently miscellaneousthough there was actually an undergirding logic, even if it was one that was relatively hard to discernthis section has a. basic structure. A desire to usurp his authority to do whatever he pleases. 2:2, Deut. 58If you do not carefully follow all the words of this law,(CZ) which are written in this book, and do not revere(DA) this glorious and awesome name(DB)the Lord your God 59the Lord will send fearful plagues on you and your descendants, harsh and prolonged disasters, and severe and lingering illnesses. From death to life. "Be in by 11:00 PM!" BLESSING or a CURSE. The Blessing and the Curse The idea of a curse is that of vilification. The blessings are told first. (Deuteronomy 27:18), The Levites are to proclaim curses upon those who violate Gods commandments. 31Your ox shall be slaughtered before your eyes, but you shall not eat of it; your donkey shall be violently taken away from before you, and shall not be restored to you; your sheep shall be given to your enemies, and you shall have no one to rescue them. The biblical understanding of blessing is meant to expand your life. (AO) 23The sky over your head will be bronze, the ground beneath you iron. 4:27, 28; Neh. Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular, Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular, Preposition-l | Noun - masculine plural construct | second person masculine plural, Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine singular, by their own experience of God's great works, A careful study is required in God's words, Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers, OT Law: Deuteronomy 11:26 Behold I set before you this day (Deut. 29At midday you will grope(AY) about like a blind person in the dark. By submitting your email address, you understand that you will receive email communications from Bible Gateway, a division of The Zondervan Corporation, 3900 Sparks Drive SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546 USA, including commercial communications and messages from partners of Bible Gateway. What we need to realize that is you and I are at risk of forsaking God. To receive God Centered Life devotionals directly in your inbox, as well as other resources, enter your email address in the form at the bottom of this page and click "subscribe.". 16:13; Amos 9:9, NKJV, Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible, Red Letter Edition: Bringing to Life the Ancient World of Scripture, NKJV, The American Patriot's Bible: The Word of God and the Shaping of America, NKJV, Spirit-Filled Life Bible, Third Edition, Red Letter Edition, Comfort Print: Kingdom Equipping Through the Power of the Word. View our current career opportunities. Quite simply, it is in forsaking the Lord. (DN) There you will worship other godsgods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your ancestors have known. 36, 6465). Hear him say: Whatever may come, thirst or famine or crucifixionknowing him is the blessing. (BI), 36The Lord will drive you and the king(BJ) you set over you to a nation unknown to you or your ancestors. You have laid up treasure in the last days. 66Your life shall hang in doubt before you; you shall fear day and night, and have no assurance of life. And God will have no rivals. 5 Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store. (BL) 37You will become a thing of horror,(BM) a byword(BN) and an object of ridicule(BO) among all the peoples where the Lord will drive you.(BP). 15However, if you do not obey(Y) the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today,(Z) all these curses will come on you and overtake you:(AA), 16You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country. Moses teaches the Israelites the importance of expressing gratitude for all that God has given them: They are free, they are blessed with plenty to eat, and they have good leadership. Moses equates listening (or hearing) with obedience, because the Hebrew word shema can be translated either to hear or to obey. NKJV, Deluxe Gift Bible, Red Letter Edition, Comfort Print: Holy Bible, New King James Version, NKJV Study Bible, Full-Color, Comfort Print: The Complete Resource for Studying Gods Word. "Do your homework." BLESSING or a CURSE. 6:15, 2 Kin. I would be unfaithful to Scripture to not say that there are physical signs of Gods blessing. Now, if you obey Adonai your God to observe faithfully all Gods commandments that I enjoin upon you this day, Adonai your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. The answer to the problem of Israel's stubborn infidelity ultimately rests in God himself. 67In the morning you will say, If only it were evening! and in the evening, If only it were morning!because of the terror that will fill your hearts and the sights that your eyes will see. 65And (BU)among those nations you shall find no rest, nor shall the sole of your foot have a resting place; (BV)but there the Lord will give you a [v]trembling heart, failing eyes, and (BW)anguish of soul. Just like the blessed life is a result of life with God, the cursed life is a result of a life without God. Life with God resulting in fullness and abundance. Why are there so many of them, and what do they have to do with Israel's covenant with Yahweh? Blessings and curses are directly associated with the covenant God made with the people of Israel, so they should be interpreted within that context. Isaiah 46:8 Remember this, and shew yourselves men: bring it again to mind, O ye transgressors. 28If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow(A) all his commands(B) I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. Money is not the root of all evil. But it is clear that wealth is a sign of Gods blessing. God had entered into a covenant relationship with the people of Israel. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven.(J). Why did God use a system of blessing and cursing with Israel (Deuteronomy 11:26)? This is a sinful and horrible teaching today. Sin shrinks your life. In fairness, its replete throughout this passageparticularly vv.11-13. One way to understand the interconnection between curses and blessings can be found at the beginning of this weeks Torah portion. (2) Deuteronomy 28.15-24 What is cursing? Ex. 2Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. In combination, our friends and our faith can enable us to transcend the challenge and find a blessing embedded within a curseand perhaps even convert a curse into a blessing. 30:1). 28The Lord will strike you with madness and blindness and (AG)confusion of heart. Blessings God gives you were never meant end filling your cup. You may unsubscribe from Bible Gateways emails at any time. All these blessings shall come upon you and take effect if you will but heed the word of Adonai your God. //. Commentary on Parashat Ki Tavo, Deuteronomy 26:1 - 29:8. Used by permission. How do I know? 26Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; 27A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day: 28And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known. 27The Lord will strike you with (AE)the boils of Egypt, with (AF)tumors, with the scab, and with the itch, from which you cannot be healed. If you pay attention to the commands of the Lord your God that I give you this day and carefully follow(V) them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. I. Request the classic book and Stephen Nichols companion teaching series. You can have wealth. (DR) 66You will live in constant suspense, filled with dread both night and day, never sure of your life. On those stones they shall write the words of the law. In some ways, this chapter is what much of the book of Deuteronomy has been leading up to. They are to offer burnt offerings and peace offerings to . Balak chose to listen to God. Start for FREE. 6 You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. He wants us to see that physical blessings are intended to be used to show that God is more valuable than having a certain number in the bank account. Man of sorrows. God also knew this. The story of King Balak and Balaam demonstrates that truly seeing others is what allows fears to dispel. 8 The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. Jesus said, Luke 12:33 "Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Sign up now for the latest news and deals from Bible Gateway! The love of money is. In effect, God is telling Israel in Deuteronomy that she cannot in her own strength obey the very law that he is giving her. 61Also every sickness and every plague, which is not written in this Book of the Law, will the Lord bring upon you until you are destroyed. (CU) 54Even the most gentle and sensitive man among you will have no compassion on his own brother or the wife he loves or his surviving children, 55and he will not give to one of them any of the flesh of his children that he is eating. You will come at them from one direction but flee from them in seven,(AS) and you will become a thing of horror(AT) to all the kingdoms on earth. Today I want us to consider the following issues: What blessing is. De Du). All Rights Reserved. 21The Lord will make the [f]plague cling to you until He has consumed you from the land which you are going to possess. In Deuteronomy 30:1-3, God says: (BX) 42Swarms of locusts(BY) will take over all your trees and the crops of your land. Scripture taken from the New King James Version. - (Cf. Ann Curry, the cohost of Today, asked [Daniel Pearls parents],What is it that you want to say about your son that takes us beyond seeing him as just a victim?. Howhave you been able to find this way of finding good in what horrible malice was done against your son? Mrs. Pearl [Daniel Pearls mother, Ruth] said, Thisthis was a survival technique.
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