Deuteronomy Chapter 28
Blessing and Cursing
A. Blessings on obedience
Deuteronomy 28:1–2 (KJV)
“And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.”
The blessing begins with a condition. God promises extraordinary favor, but only “if thou shalt hearken diligently” to His voice and keep His commandments. The word “if” is foundational because it presents Israel with a deliberate covenantal choice. God is not speaking to isolated individuals but to the nation as a whole, binding them to the covenant established at Sinai. The covenant consists of the Law that reveals God’s holy standards, the Sacrificial system that provides atonement when those standards are broken, and the Choice that determines whether the nation will experience blessing or cursing. This moment in Deuteronomy is a renewal of that covenant as Israel prepares to enter the Promised Land. The Lord declares that if they walk in obedience, He will “set thee on high above all nations of the earth,” meaning Israel would be exalted politically, militarily, and spiritually. This promise echoes Exodus 19:5–6, “ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people … and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.”
To be overtaken by blessings means that the favor of God would actively pursue them. They would not have to chase prosperity, it would chase them. The language is intentional. The same verb “overtake” will later be used for curses in Deuteronomy 28:15, meaning blessing and cursing both have momentum. One or the other will eventually catch up with Israel, depending on obedience. God’s purpose in blessing Israel was never merely for their comfort, but for His glory among the nations. If they obeyed, their prosperity would testify to the world that only the true God of Israel could bestow such abundance. If they rebelled, their devastation would equally testify that only God could judge a nation and yet preserve it from annihilation. This theological reality is reflected in Ezekiel 36:22, where God says, “I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name.”
Ancient Near Eastern treaties between kings and vassals commonly ended with blessings for loyalty and curses for rebellion. Moses follows the same form, but with a critical difference. This is not a treaty between equal parties. This is the covenant between the sovereign God and His chosen people. He promises blessings beyond human treaties, but also holds them to a higher moral standard. The covenant is not legalism, because obedience was always tied to faith in God’s character and promises. The blessings here are not symbolic or spiritualized. They are concrete, national, and material. God promises tangible evidence of His favor. Yet underlying every material blessing is a spiritual truth, that fellowship with God brings life, prosperity, and peace. Disobedience brings ruin.
2. (Deuteronomy 28:3–14) God will richly bless Israel’s obedience to the covenant
Deuteronomy 28:3–14 (KJV)
“Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store. Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out. The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways. The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways. And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee. And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee. The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow. And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them: and thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.”
These verses describe in detail the blessings that would overtake the nation if they lived in obedience to the covenant. The blessing of God would not be limited to one area of life, it would be total. “Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field” shows that whether one lived in a place of commerce and government or worked the land in rural areas, the hand of God would be evident. Every part of daily life would bear the mark of God’s favor. Their families would grow in strength and number as the “fruit of thy body” was blessed. Their economy would flourish. Fields would produce abundantly, herds and flocks would multiply, and even the simplest acts of daily labor, symbolized by the basket and store, would prosper. This is the opposite of the curse where God tells Adam, “cursed is the ground for thy sake” in Genesis 3:17. Here the ground cooperates and responds favorably because God has commanded the blessing.
God also promises military protection. Enemies might rise, but they would be humiliated and scattered. They would come in one unified force and flee in confusion “seven ways.” This is more than military strategy, it is divine intervention. God states in Psalm 127:1, “Except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.” The victory of Israel would be unmistakably from God, not from their own strength or numbers. This would be seen during the days of Joshua and David, where obedience brought military success far beyond natural ability.
In verse 9, the Lord emphasizes what is the richest blessing, beyond harvests or victories. “The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself.” This links back to Exodus 19:5–6, where Israel was called to be a special people set apart for God’s purposes. The presence of God among them was their greatest treasure. Material blessings without holiness would mean nothing. Holiness means separation unto God, walking in His ways, keeping His commandments from a heart of faith and love. If they obeyed, the nations would recognize that Israel was uniquely marked by God. “All people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD.” This is covenantal identity. The nations would fear Israel, not because of their power, but because they saw the hand of the Lord upon them, as Rahab did in Joshua 2:9–11 when she said, “I know that the LORD hath given you the land.”
God also promises prosperity on a national scale. Israel would be a lender and not a borrower, the head and not the tail. These images describe leadership, stability, and influence. To lend means to have abundance. To be the head means to lead rather than be led, to influence rather than be controlled by other nations. This was partially fulfilled in the days of Solomon. When the Queen of Sheba visited, she testified that what she saw could only be because the Lord favored Israel (1 Kings 10:1–9). Yet these blessings remained conditioned upon obedience, as the passage repeats, “if thou hearken … if thou keep … if thou walk in his ways.” Turning aside to idols, even slightly to the right or left, would break the flow of blessing and call forth the curses that follow in the chapter.
The overall message is clear. Obedience brings blessing. Not random blessing, but promised, deliberate, covenantal blessing. God ties His name to Israel so that His glory would be revealed whether they walk in obedience or disobedience. Blessing is not an end in itself. It is designed to reveal God to the world, to set Israel apart, to draw the nations to the knowledge of the true God. This theme runs throughout Scripture, seen again in Matthew 5:16, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”
B. Curses on Disobedience
1. (Deuteronomy 28:15) Introduction to the curses
Deuteronomy 28:15 (KJV)
“But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee.”
This verse introduces the most solemn and fearful portion of the covenant. As the blessings depended upon obedience, the curses now hinge upon disobedience. The covenant is like a two-edged sword. The same God who promised to make Israel “high above all nations of the earth” if they obeyed also promises that if they will not hear His voice, then “all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee.” Just as the blessings would pursue them, the curses would chase them down and surround them inescapably. The language is parallel to verse 2, but now reversed. Instead of blessings overtaking them, judgment would overtake them. This shows the certainty and inevitability of divine justice. God is not indifferent. He takes covenant loyalty seriously.
The key issue is hearing and obeying the voice of the Lord. Disobedience is not merely the breaking of a rule. It is the rejection of God’s authority, His goodness, and His revealed will. Israel would not be cursed by accident or chance, but by deliberate divine action in response to rebellion. As Amos 3:2 says of Israel, “You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.” Greater privilege always carries greater accountability.
The phrase “all these curses” prepares the reader for the overwhelming detail that follows. The curses are presented in escalating intensity. They affect cities and fields, bodies and land, families and flocks, weather and warfare, health and harvests. They touch every part of life just as the blessings did, but in reverse. Blessing would lift Israel up for the world to glorify God. Cursing would bring Israel low for the world to fear God’s justice. The structure of the chapter intentionally mirrors ancient Near Eastern treaty forms where kings listed curses for rebellion. Yet what follows in Deuteronomy is far more severe, because it is issued by the living God.
Commentator Thompson notes that the section is not arranged for logical precision but for emotional impact. It is a relentless unfolding of calamity meant to grip the conscience. The message is not only intellectual. It is meant to be felt, feared, and remembered. Moses paints picture after picture until the nation understands that the refusal to obey God is not a trivial matter, it is deadly. There is a seriousness to the covenant that modern hearers often ignore. God is merciful and loving, but He is also holy, just, and will not be mocked. Galatians 6:7 warns, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.”
These curses would come not because God ceased to love Israel, but because His holiness requires that sin be judged. Even His discipline is a form of covenant faithfulness. The coming verses will unfold this judgment in detail, showing famine, disease, drought, defeat, madness, invasion, siege, exile, and worldwide scattering. Yet even within the darkest curses, God preserves a remnant, for He cannot forsake His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
2. (Deuteronomy 28:16–68) The curses upon Israel’s disobedience
Section 1: Deuteronomy 28:16–24
Deuteronomy 28:16–24 (KJV)
“Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field. Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store. Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out. The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly, because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me. The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it. The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew, and they shall pursue thee until thou perish. And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron. The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust, from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.”
These first curses mirror the blessings of verses three through six, but in exact reversal. The covenant sanctions are total, they reach into city and field, home and workplace, entrance and exit. The language is comprehensive to show that life outside obedient fellowship with God collapses at every seam. The basket and store are images of daily provision, the curse here promises chronic shortage and frustrated labor. What was promised as overflowing in obedience is now promised as withering in disobedience. The fruit of the body and of the land, the herds and flocks, all suffer because the God who commands blessing now commands judgment. This is not impersonal fate, it is personal covenant response.
Verse twenty introduces the inner climate of judgment, cursing, vexation, and rebuke. Vexation speaks of inward agitation and anguish that spoils every endeavor. The text grounds this in the moral cause, because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me. Rebellion is not merely failing at rules, it is forsaking God. Therefore the Lord sends pestilence that cleaves, lingering disease that does not pass, and a cluster of physical afflictions, consumption and fever and inflammation and extreme burning. The chain continues with hostile conditions against agriculture, blasting and mildew, the very elements working against the farmer. Scripture consistently ties covenant obedience to fruitful seasons and rain, and disobedience to drought and crop failure. Leviticus 26:19 states, “And I will make your heaven as iron, and your earth as brass.” The imagery in Deuteronomy reverses the metals to stress the same point, the unyielding sky gives no rain and the hardened earth gives no increase. Amos 4:7–8 records a historical example of selective drought under the covenant, “And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest, and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city, one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered, so two or three cities wandered unto one city, to drink water, but they were not satisfied.” The theological principle is simple and severe, when God is resisted, creation itself bears witness through frustration and famine.
The moral dimension of this section must be underlined. God explains judgment before He sends it, so that Israel will interpret calamity rightly. These are not random cycles, they are covenant signs meant to drive the nation to repentance. Deuteronomy 8:3 had taught that Israel lives by the Word of God, not by bread alone. When bread fails, the nation is being summoned back to that Word. The pastoral application follows for every age, outward scarcity and inward vexation often expose a deeper spiritual estrangement. Yet the purpose is restorative, that a people who have forsaken the Lord would return with whole heart. Joel 2:12–13 calls, “Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning, and rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.”
2. (Deuteronomy 28:16–68) The curses upon Israel’s disobedience
Section 2: Deuteronomy 28:25–35
Deuteronomy 28:25–35 (KJV)
“The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth. And thy carcase shall be meat unto all fowls of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and no man shall fray them away. The LORD will smite thee with the botch of Egypt, and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed. The LORD shall smite thee with madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart: and thou shalt grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness, and thou shalt not prosper in thy ways: and thou shalt be only oppressed and spoiled evermore, and no man shall save thee. Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: thou shalt build an house, and thou shalt not dwell therein: thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not gather the grapes thereof. Thine ox shall be slain before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof: thine ass shall be violently taken away from before thy face, and shall not be restored to thee: thy sheep shall be given unto thine enemies, and thou shalt have none to rescue them. Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day long: and there shall be no might in thine hand. The fruit of thy land, and all thy labours, shall a nation which thou knowest not eat up: and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed alway: so that thou shalt be mad for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see. The LORD shall smite thee in the knees, and in the legs, with a sore botch that cannot be healed, from the sole of thy foot unto the top of thy head.”
This section transitions from agricultural, environmental, and physical affliction into social collapse, military defeat, psychological torment, and personal tragedy. Everything that was promised as blessing in verses seven through ten is now reversed. Instead of enemies fleeing seven ways, Israel would flee seven ways before them. Instead of being exalted above all nations, they would be “removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.” This ultimately took place during the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities and finds its long-term fulfillment in the worldwide Jewish diaspora.
The imagery of “thy carcass shall be meat unto all fowls of the air” speaks of total defeat and public shame. Fallen bodies left unburied were considered a sign of absolute curse (Psalm 79:1–3). God then describes diseases similar to the plagues of Egypt, including boils, tumors, scabs, and incurable itching. These afflictions signify a reversal of the Exodus; the people who were once delivered from Egyptian plagues would now receive them for disobedience. The phrase “madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart” refers to mental anguish, despair, and confusion. They would grope in life like a blind man at noon, unable to make sense of their condition or find a way out.
The breakdown of family and labor follows. Men would be engaged to a wife, only to have her violated by others. They would build homes and never live in them, plant vineyards and never enjoy their fruit, a direct reversal of covenant promise found in Deuteronomy 20:5–7 and later reaffirmed in Isaiah 65:21–22. The livestock imagery continues, oxen killed before their eyes, donkeys stolen, sheep taken by enemies, all highlighting powerless humiliation. This is total societal vulnerability.
Then comes one of the most painful judgments: “Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look and fail with longing for them all the day long.” The pain of family separation under oppression has been a recurring reality for Israel through history, from Assyria and Babylon to Rome and beyond. This emotional curse is described vividly in Jeremiah 31:15, “Rachel weeping for her children refused to be comforted, because they were not.”
Verse thirty-four captures the mental effect of witnessing such devastation: “So that thou shalt be mad for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.” The word “mad” here means driven to insanity from grief, loss, and helplessness. It is the complete unraveling of national stability, mental peace, and spiritual rest.
Verse thirty-five closes this section with yet more incurable disease — boils from foot to head — symbolizing total judgment. Just as blessing touched every part of life in obedience, so now curse touches every part of life in rebellion.
Deuteronomy 28:36–48 (KJV)
“The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone. And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations whither the LORD shall lead thee. Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather but little in; for the locust shall consume it. Thou shalt plant vineyards, and dress them, but shalt neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them. Thou shalt have olive trees throughout all thy coasts, but thou shalt not anoint thyself with the oil; for thine olive shall cast his fruit. Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them; for they shall go into captivity. All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust consume. The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high; and thou shalt come down very low. He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail. Moreover all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be destroyed; because thou hearkenedst not unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee: and they shall be upon thee for a sign and for a wonder, and upon thy seed for ever. Because thou servedst not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things; therefore shalt thou serve thine enemies which the LORD shall send against thee, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron upon thy neck, until he have destroyed thee.”
This portion of the curse expands the judgment from personal and local disasters to national displacement, foreign domination, and spiritual humiliation. God declares that He Himself will bring Israel, “and thy king which thou shalt set over thee,” into exile among foreign nations. This was fulfilled when the northern kingdom of Israel was taken by Assyria (2 Kings 17), and the southern kingdom, including its king Zedekiah, was taken to Babylon (2 Kings 25). The nation that was meant to be a kingdom of priests (Exodus 19:6) would instead serve idols made of “wood and stone,” in direct violation of the first and second commandments.
Israel would become “an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword” among the nations. Instead of being a testimony of God’s blessing as in Deuteronomy 28:10, they would become a global illustration of divine judgment. Foreign nations would mock and use Israel as a warning story. This prophecy has followed Israel throughout history — from Babylonian captivity, to Roman destruction, to medieval dispersion, and even into the modern era of anti-Semitism.
The curses touch again on agriculture and labor. Even if Israel labored diligently — sowing seed, planting vineyards, cultivating olive trees — natural disasters like locusts, worms, and crop failure would destroy their efforts. The same is promised in Joel 1:4, “That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten.” The judgment is that effort no longer equals reward. Labor is no longer blessed. Harvest is no longer guaranteed.
Another painful reversal appears — “Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them; for they shall go into captivity.” Family joy would be destroyed by slavery, exile, and foreign oppression. The most basic blessing of the covenant — one’s children — would be ripped away because of idolatry and rebellion.
Verses 43–44 reveal a complete social reversal. The stranger, once a sojourner under Israel’s protection, will become the lender and master. Israel, once the lender and the head (verse 12–13), will become the borrower and the tail. Economic slavery replaces national independence. This exposes the root cause — Israel refused to serve God. Therefore, “thou shalt serve thine enemies which the LORD shall send against thee, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things.” Service to God brings freedom. Refusal to serve God brings bondage to men.
One of the most sobering statements in this section is verse 47: God judged them “because thou servedst not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things.” In other words, ungrateful worship is sin. They did not lose blessing because they lacked resources, they lost blessing because they lacked joyful obedience. God hates cold religion. The absence of thankfulness is the beginning of idolatry (Romans 1:21).
Finally, the Lord promises “a yoke of iron” placed on their neck — a symbol of political slavery, crushing oppression, and irreversible domination. This prophetic language perfectly describes Babylonian captivity and later Roman tyranny, in which Israel could neither overthrow their masters nor escape their bondage.
Deuteronomy 28:49–57 (KJV)
“The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand; a nation of fierce countenance, which shall not regard the person of the old, nor shew favour to the young: and he shall eat the fruit of thy cattle, and the fruit of thy land, until thou be destroyed: which also shall not leave thee either corn, wine, or oil, or the increase of thy kine, or flocks of thy sheep, until he have destroyed thee. And he shall besiege thee in all thy gates, until thy high and fenced walls come down, wherein thou trustedst, throughout all thy land: and he shall besiege thee in all thy gates throughout all thy land, which the LORD thy God hath given thee. And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the LORD thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee: so that the man that is tender among you, and very delicate, his eye shall be evil toward his brother, and toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the remnant of his children which he shall leave: so that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his children whom he shall eat: because he hath nothing left him in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee in all thy gates. The tender and delicate woman among you, which would not adventure to set the sole of her foot upon the ground for delicateness and tenderness, her eye shall be evil toward the husband of her bosom, and toward her son, and toward her daughter, and toward her young one that cometh out from between her feet, and toward her children which she shall bear: for she shall eat them for want of all things secretly in the siege and straitness, wherewith thine enemy shall distress thee in thy gates.”
This is one of the most severe and horrifying parts of the chapter, describing military invasion, siege warfare, starvation, and the collapse of even the most basic human affection. God declares that He Himself will bring a nation “from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth.” The eagle is a symbol of speed, power, and predatory judgment. Historically, this was vividly fulfilled in the Assyrian conquest of the northern kingdom (722 B.C.) and the Babylonian conquest of Judah (586 B.C.). The Babylonians used the eagle as a symbol of their empire (compare Habakkuk 1:6–8). Rome later completed this judgment in A.D. 70, and their military banners also bore the eagle.
This invading nation would speak a language Israel did not understand, showing that this is not a nearby tribe but a distant power raised up by God. They are described as “a nation of fierce countenance, which shall not regard the person of the old, nor shew favour to the young.” No mercy. No compassion. This is divine judgment executed through pagan armies.
The siege described is graphic and accurate. Israel’s strong walls, in which they trusted instead of trusting in God, would collapse. Siege warfare in ancient times meant surrounding a city, cutting off food and water, and waiting until starvation broke the people. Verse 52 says, “he shall besiege thee in all thy gates… throughout all thy land, which the LORD thy God hath given thee.”
Then comes one of the most dreadful prophecies in Scripture: cannibalism within the city during the siege. “Thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters.” This actually happened in Israel’s history.
2 Kings 6:28–29 records two women in Samaria agreeing to eat their sons during the Syrian siege.
Lamentations 4:10 describes mothers boiling their children during the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem.
Josephus records similar horrors during the Roman siege in A.D. 70.
What makes this judgment even more tragic is the transformation of once gentle and refined people. The text describes “the man that is tender among you, and very delicate” becoming hardened, selfish, even violent toward his own family during starvation. He refuses to share the flesh of his own dead child. Likewise, the once delicate woman, who would not even place her bare foot on the ground due to refinement, will secretly eat her newborn child in desperation. Morality, compassion, and natural affection disintegrate under the judgment of God.
This shows the full depth of rebellion’s consequence. When a nation abandons God, God gives them over to the consequences of their sin and the brutality of their enemies. The walls they trusted in collapse. The society they boasted in decays from within. Even the most sacred bond — a parent’s love for a child — is shattered.
The purpose of such a terrifying warning is not to delight in horror, but to sober the heart. These things were written “for our admonition” (1 Corinthians 10:11). Sin always takes further than expected, keeps longer than wanted, and costs more than imagined.
Deuteronomy 28:58–68 (KJV)
“If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that thou mayest fear this glorious and fearful name, THE LORD THY GOD; Then the LORD will make thy plagues wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and sore sicknesses, and of long continuance. Moreover he will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt, which thou wast afraid of; and they shall cleave unto thee. Also every sickness, and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law, them will the LORD bring upon thee, until thou be destroyed. And ye shall be left few in number, whereas ye were as the stars of heaven for multitude; because thou wouldest not obey the voice of the LORD thy God. And it shall come to pass, that as the LORD rejoiced over you to do you good, and to multiply you; so the LORD will rejoice over you to destroy you, and to bring you to nought; and ye shall be plucked from off the land whither thou goest to possess it. And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone. And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind: And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life: In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even! and at even thou shalt say, Would God it were morning! for the fear of thine heart wherewith thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see. And the LORD shall bring thee into Egypt again with ships, by the way whereof I spake unto thee, Thou shalt see it no more again: and there ye shall be sold unto your enemies for bondmen and bondwomen, and no man shall buy you.”
In this final section, the Lord declares that if Israel refuses to fear “this glorious and fearful name, THE LORD THY GOD,” then their judgment will reach unprecedented levels. The plagues will be “wonderful” — not in the sense of pleasant, but astonishing and extraordinary — unparalleled in suffering and duration. The text piles up terms: great plagues, prolonged plagues, sore sicknesses, long continuance. These judgments would not be momentary; they would extend throughout generations.
God says He will send every disease known in Egypt — the very land from which He redeemed them — and more than are written in this law. This includes not only physical afflictions but national reduction: “Ye shall be left few in number, whereas ye were as the stars of heaven for multitude.” This reverses the Abrahamic promise (Genesis 15:5); disobedience cuts them off from covenant enjoyment, though not from final covenant restoration.
Verse 63 is one of the most solemn declarations in all Scripture: “As the LORD rejoiced over you to do you good… so the LORD will rejoice over you to destroy you.” This does not mean God delights in cruelty, but that His justice is as perfect as His mercy. He is glorified in showing grace, and He is glorified in judging sin. Those who refuse His mercy must face His righteousness.
God then describes exile: “Ye shall be plucked from off the land” and “scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other.” This scattering — the Diaspora — began with Assyria and Babylon, intensified after Rome destroyed Jerusalem in A.D. 70, and continued for nearly 2,000 years. Among the nations they would find no ease, no rest, trembling heart, failing eyes, sorrow of mind. Fear would dominate their existence — longing for morning when it is night, longing for night when it is morning.
The closing verse is chilling: “The LORD shall bring thee into Egypt again with ships…” Egypt symbolizes bondage. God promised they would never return there, yet disobedience would carry them back in the most humiliating way — as slaves transported by ship. This was fulfilled literally after the Roman conquest, when Jewish captives were shipped to Egypt and sold, but the market was so flooded that “no man shall buy you.” This is total humiliation: to be enslaved, yet considered worthless even as slaves.
Yet, even in this darkness, this is not the end of Israel’s story. Deuteronomy 30 promises restoration after repentance. Ezekiel 37 shows dry bones brought back to life. Romans 11:26 says, “And so all Israel shall be saved.” The curses are real. The dispersion is real. But God’s covenant mercy is also real. Israel’s rejection is not final. God’s faithfulness is irrevocable.
