65 And among these H1992 nations H1471 shalt thou find no ease, H7280 neither shall the sole H3709 of thy foot H7272 have rest: H4494 but the LORD H3068 shall give H5414 thee there a trembling H7268 heart, H3820 and failing H3631 of eyes, H5869 and sorrow H1671 of mind: H5315
They shall walk H3212 after H310 the LORD: H3068 he shall roar H7580 like a lion: H738 when he shall roar, H7580 then the children H1121 shall tremble H2729 from the west. H3220 They shall tremble H2729 as a bird H6833 out of Egypt, H4714 and as a dove H3123 out of the land H776 of Assyria: H804 and I will place H3427 them in their houses, H1004 saith H5002 the LORD. H3068
For, lo, I will command, H6680 and I will sift H5128 the house H1004 of Israel H3478 among all nations, H1471 like as corn is sifted H5128 in a sieve, H3531 yet shall not the least grain H6872 fall H5307 upon the earth. H776 All the sinners H2400 of my people H5971 shall die H4191 by the sword, H2719 which say, H559 The evil H7451 shall not overtake H5066 nor prevent H6923 us.
And that which cometh H5927 into your mind H7307 shall not be at all, that ye say, H559 We will be H1961 as the heathen, H1471 as the families H4940 of the countries, H776 to serve H8334 wood H6086 and stone. H68 As I live, H2416 saith H5002 the Lord H136 GOD, H3069 surely with a mighty H2389 hand, H3027 and with a stretched out H5186 arm, H2220 and with fury H2534 poured out, H8210 will I rule H4427 over you: And I will bring you out H3318 from the people, H5971 and will gather H6908 you out of the countries H776 wherein ye are scattered, H6327 with a mighty H2389 hand, H3027 and with a stretched out H5186 arm, H2220 and with fury H2534 poured out. H8210 And I will bring H935 you into the wilderness H4057 of the people, H5971 and there will I plead H8199 with you face H6440 to face. H6440
Son H1121 of man, H120 eat H398 thy bread H3899 with quaking, H7494 and drink H8354 thy water H4325 with trembling H7269 and with carefulness; H1674 And say H559 unto the people H5971 of the land, H127 Thus saith H559 the Lord H136 GOD H3069 of the inhabitants H3427 of Jerusalem, H3389 and of the land H776 of Israel; H3478 They shall eat H398 their bread H3899 with carefulness, H1674 and drink H8354 their water H4325 with astonishment, H8078 that her land H776 may be desolate H3456 from all that is therein, H4393 because of the violence H2555 of all them that dwell H3427 therein.
A third part H7992 of thee shall die H4191 with the pestilence, H1698 and with famine H7458 shall they be consumed H3615 in the midst H8432 of thee: and a third part H7992 shall fall H5307 by the sword H2719 round about H5439 thee; and I will scatter H2219 a third part H7992 into all the winds, H7307 and I will draw out H7324 a sword H2719 after H310 them. Thus shall mine anger H639 be accomplished, H3615 and I will cause my fury H2534 to rest H5117 upon them, and I will be comforted: H5162 and they shall know H3045 that I the LORD H3068 have spoken H1696 it in my zeal, H7068 when I have accomplished H3615 my fury H2534 in them. Moreover I will make H5414 thee waste, H2723 and a reproach H2781 among the nations H1471 that are round about H5439 thee, in the sight H5869 of all that pass by. H5674 So it shall be a reproach H2781 and a taunt, H1422 an instruction H4148 and an astonishment H4923 unto the nations H1471 that are round about H5439 thee, when I shall execute H6213 judgments H8201 in thee in anger H639 and in fury H2534 and in furious H2534 rebukes. H8433 I the LORD H3068 have spoken H1696 it. When I shall send H7971 upon them the evil H7451 arrows H2671 of famine, H7458 which shall be for their destruction, H4889 and which I will send H7971 to destroy H7843 you: and I will increase H3254 the famine H7458 upon you, and will break H7665 your staff H4294 of bread: H3899 So will I send H7971 upon you famine H7458 and evil H7451 beasts, H2416 and they shall bereave H7921 thee; and pestilence H1698 and blood H1818 shall pass through H5674 thee; and I will bring H935 the sword H2719 upon thee. I the LORD H3068 have spoken H1696 it.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Deuteronomy 28
Commentary on Deuteronomy 28 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 28
De 28:1-68. The Blessings for Obedience.
1. if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God—In this chapter the blessings and curses are enumerated at length, and in various minute details, so that on the first entrance of the Israelites into the land of promise, their whole destiny was laid before them, as it was to result from their obedience or the contrary.
2. all these blessings shall come on thee—Their national obedience was to be rewarded by extraordinary and universal prosperity.
7. flee before thee seven ways—that is, in various directions, as always happens in a rout.
10. called by the name of the Lord—That they are really and actually His people (De 14:1; 26:18).
11. the Lord shall make thee plenteous in goods—Beside the natural capabilities of Canaan, its extraordinary fruitfulness was traceable to the special blessing of Heaven.
12. The Lord shall open unto thee his good treasure—The seasonable supply of the early and latter rain was one of the principal means by which their land was so uncommonly fruitful.
thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow—that is, thou shalt be in such affluent circumstances, as to be capable, out of thy superfluous wealth, to give aid to thy poorer neighbors.
13, 14. the head, and not the tail—an Oriental form of expression, indicating the possession of independent power and great dignity and acknowledged excellence (Isa 9:14; 19:15).
15-20. But … if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord—Curses that were to follow them in the event of disobedience are now enumerated, and they are almost exact counterparts of the blessings which were described in the preceding context as the reward of a faithful adherence to the covenant.
21. pestilence—some fatal epidemic. There is no reason, however, to think that the plague, which is the great modern scourge of the East, is referred to.
22. a consumption—a wasting disorder; but the modern tuberculosis is almost unknown in Asia.
fever … inflammation … extreme burning—Fever is rendered "burning ague" (Le 26:16), and the others mentioned along with it evidently point to those febrile affections which are of malignant character and great frequency in the East.
the sword—rather, "dryness"—the effect on the human body of such violent disorders.
blasting, and with mildew—two atmospheric influences fatal to grain.
23. heaven … brass … earth … iron—strong Oriental figures used to describe the effects of long-continued drought. This want of regular and seasonable rain is allowed by the most intelligent observers to be one great cause of the present sterility of Palestine.
24. the rain of thy land powder and dust—an allusion probably to the dreadful effects of tornadoes in the East, which, raising the sands in immense twisted pillars, drive them along with the fury of a tempest. These shifting sands are most destructive to cultivated lands; and in consequence of their encroachments, many once fertile regions of the East are now barren deserts.
27. the botch of Egypt—a troublesome eruption, marked by red pimples, to which, at the rising of the Nile, the Egyptians are subject.
emerods—fistulæ or piles.
scab—scurvy.
itch—the disease commonly known by that name; but it is far more malignant in the East than is ever witnessed in our part of the world.
28. madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart—They would be bewildered and paralyzed with terror at the extent of their calamities.
29-33. thou shalt grope at noonday—a general description of the painful uncertainty in which they would live. During the Middle Ages the Jews were driven from society into hiding-places which they were afraid to leave, not knowing from what quarter they might be assailed and their children dragged into captivity, from which no friend could rescue, and no money ransom them.
35. the Lord shall smite thee in the knees, and in the legs—This is an exact description of elephantiasis, a horrible disease, something like leprosy, which attacks particularly the lower extremities.
36. The Lord shall bring thee, and thy king, &c.—This shows how widespread would be the national calamity; and at the same time how hopeless, when he who should have been their defender shared the captive fate of his subjects.
there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone—The Hebrew exiles, with some honorable exceptions, were seduced or compelled into idolatry in the Assyrian and Babylonish captivities (Jer 44:17-19). Thus, the sin to which they had too often betrayed a perverse fondness, a deep-rooted propensity, became their punishment and their misery.
37. And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations whither the Lord shall lead thee, &c.—The annals of almost every nation, for eighteen hundred years, afford abundant proofs that this has been, as it still is, the case—the very name of Jew being a universally recognized term for extreme degradation and wretchedness.
49. The Lord shall bring a nation against thee from far—the invasion of the Romans—"they came from far." The soldiers of the invading army were taken from France, Spain, and Britain—then considered "the end of the earth." Julius Severus, the commander, afterwards Vespasian and Hadrian, left Britain for the scene of contest. Moreover, the ensign on the standards of the Roman army was "an eagle"; and the dialects spoken by the soldiers of the different nations that composed that army were altogether unintelligible to the Jews.
50. A nation of fierce countenance—a just description of the Romans, who were not only bold and unyielding, but ruthless and implacable.
51. he shall eat the fruit of thy cattle, &c.—According to the Jewish historian, every district of the country through which they passed was strewn with the wrecks of their devastation.
52. he shall besiege thee … until thy high and fenced walls come down—All the fortified places to which the people betook themselves for safety were burnt or demolished, and the walls of Jerusalem itself razed to the ground.
53-57. And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body—(See 2Ki 6:29; La 4:10). Such were the dreadful extremities to which the inhabitants during the siege were reduced that many women sustained a wretched existence by eating the flesh of their own children. Parental affection was extinguished, and the nearest relatives were jealously, avoided, lest they should discover and demand a share of the revolting viands.
62. ye shall be left few in number—There has been, ever since the destruction of Jerusalem, only an inconsiderable remnant of Jews existing in that land—aliens in the land of their fathers; and of all classes of the inhabitants they are the most degraded and miserable beings, dependent for their support on contributions from other lands.
63. ye shall be plucked from off the land—Hadrian issued a proclamation, forbidding any Jews to reside in Judea, or even to approach its confines.
64. the Lord shall scatter thee among all people—There is, perhaps, not a country in the world where Jews are not to be found. Who that looks on this condition of the Hebrews is not filled with awe, when he considers the fulfilment of this prophecy?
68. The Lord shall bring thee into Egypt again with ships—The accomplishment of this prediction took place under Titus, when, according to Josephus, multitudes of Jews were transported in ships to the land of the Nile, and sold as slaves. "Here, then, are instances of prophecies delivered above three thousand years ago; and yet, as we see, being fulfilled in the world at this very time; and what stronger proofs can we desire of the divine legation of Moses? How these instances may affect others I know not; but for myself, I must acknowledge, they not only convince but amaze and astonish me beyond expression; they are truly, as Moses foretold (De 28:45, 46) they would be, 'a sign and a wonder for ever'" [Bishop Newton].