Great Chapters of the Bible
Deuteronomy 28 - Blessings and Curses

A Sermon by Dr. Neil Chadwick


The 28th chapter of Deuteronomy is the ultimate representative of the proverbial "Good News - Bad News" routine.

    Here's one of my favorite "Good News - Bad News" stories. Dusty, the Crop Duster was sitting on the bench outside the General Store when a friend came by and sat next to him. "You're looking kind of banged up, Dusty, what happened?" "Well," answered Dusty rather slowly, "I was doing the field east of town when my engine gave out." "That's bad!" "Thankfully I had my parachute on and jumped out." "That's good!" "But my parachute didn't open." "That's bad!" "There was a large haystack right below me." "That's good!" "There was a pitchfork in the middle of the haystack." "That's bad!" "I missed the pitchfork." "That's good!" "No, that's bad - I missed the haystack!"

Here in Deuteronomy 28, the good news about Blessings is really good, but the bad news about Curses is really bad.

In order to make sure the people would not forget these Blessings and Curses, Moses established a plan, and according to Joshua 8:30, his successor carried it out.

It was a little known ritual that Moses established. They were to build up a pillar made of field stones which were not to be embellished with tools. They were then to put plaster on this pillar, and in the plaster, engrave the words of the law.

Then the people were to be divided according to their tribes. The members of six tribes would stand on the mountainside of Mt. Gerizim, and recite the blessings. The other six tribes would stand on the facing mountainside of Mt. Ebal and recite the curses.

Divided into two groups the congregation would then call back and forth to each other the Blessings and the Curses. Perhaps it would be like this:

    From Mt. Gerizim, a Blessing: "If you obey the LORD your God, you will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country."

    From Mt. Ebal, a Curse: "If you do not obey the LORD your God You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country."

    From Mt. Gerizim, a Blessing: "If you obey the LORD your God, the fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock--the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks."

    From Mt. Ebal, a Curse: "If you do not obey the LORD your God The fruit of your womb will be cursed, and the crops of your land, and the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks."

    From Mt. Gerizim, a Blessing: "If you obey the LORD your God, your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed."

    From Mt. Ebal, a Curse: "If you do not obey the LORD your God Your basket and your kneading trough will be cursed."

    From Mt. Gerizim, a Blessing: "If you obey the LORD your God, you will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out."

    From Mt. Ebal, a Curse: "If you do not obey the LORD your God You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out."

    Now, let's listen to the "Good News" - the Blessings promised if the people of God obey Him and walk in His ways.

    The opening fourteen verses are dedicated to the Blessings which were promised by Moses if the newly formed nation of Israel would obey God's commands and refuse to follow other gods.

    The structure of this speech is quite simple. An opening statement identifies the conditions for receiving God's Blessing, there is a general review of the Blessings which are being offered to city dwellers as well as country folk; the Blessings will cover what they do not have control over (produce) as well as what they do ("kneading"), and all their day to day activities ("when you come in and go out"). Then follows a few added items with some amplification, and a closing recital of the condition.

    The Blessed will receive Protection, Prosperity, and Priority - they will have victory over their enemies; they will be wealthy; and they will be respected among the nations.

    Fourteen verses; seven specific blessings; two conditions: obey God and don't serve other gods. (Not worshipping other gods for them was a very real temptation, a "big deal". Even today, adding another god is no problem for Hindus, Parsees and many other religions, but renouncing all others to accept the reality of One True God, is a problem.)

    Before moving on, the question arises, "Can we lay claim to these Blessings, or were they only meant for Israel?" When I was growing up, there was a chorus we used to sing, "Every promise in the book is mine, every chapter every verse every line." Really? Can we claim "every" promise?

    Well, actually, when a promise is delivered to a specific individual, it may not have universal application. Let me provide four examples:

      God promised to make a great nation from Abraham;

      He promised David that one of his descendants would always sit on the throne;

      In Luke's birth narratives we learn about Simeon who received a promise that he would not see death until he would see, with his own eyes, the Messiah;

      A promise was made to Paul that he would testify before Caesar. These are all promises which we cannot claim - they were meant for particular persons at a particular time.

    Furthermore, the prophets are filled with promises specifically made to the nations that are named. For example, a whole section of Isaiah is given over to prophetic utterances for Babylon, Assyria, Egypt, and Tyre. (Isaiah 14-23) In the midst of this section there is also a prophecy for Jerusalem. Other prophets follow a similar pattern, and we understand that promises contained in those passages had to do with those nations, at that time in history. Concerning the Jews, there are specific promises which have to do with their nationhood, such as the promise that they will be returned to their homeland.

    However, when these two rules do not apply, it is appropriate to claim the promises of God's Word.

    Besides, when Paul tells Timothy that "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness" (II Timothy 3:16), what Scripture was he referring to? What we now call the Old Testament - certainly this must include the blessings of Deuteronomy 28!

    Perhaps that's what Paul had in mind when he wrote, "These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come." (I Corinthians 10:11)

    In the Blessings of Deuteronomy, there are some parts intended solely for Israel: "the Lord will set you high above the nations of the earth" (v.1); "You will lend to many nations but borrow from none" (v.12). However, the overall message of promised Blessings is for everyone who fulfills the conditions.

    You see, God deals with His people essentially the same, as James says, God "does not change like shifting shadows." (James 1:17)

    When the "Rich Young Ruler" asked, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" what did Jesus answer? "Keep the commandments. " The same condition still applies, so also will the Blessings; after all, what greater blessing is there than to inherit eternal life?

    Please understand, God does have a purpose for the seed of Israel, but it is important to understand clearly the Blessing of salvation and eternal life are for all who believe. The New Testament leaders grappled with this. At first there was a significant portion who wanted converts to come through the door of Judaism - if they had been successful, Christianity would have been nothing more than a sect of Judaism. Paul, the former "Pharisee of Pharisees" rejected this. He saw the value of Israel: they had the "oracles", the law and the temple. Paul also wanted His people to be saved; to the "Jew first" was a strategy he adopted. However, Paul also taught that in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek - circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing. As for salvation, all come through the one gate which is Jesus; but as to function, the nation of Israel had, and will ultimately fulfill a special God-given purpose. Theirs is not a privileged class, but a responsible people - and their responsibility is yet to be completely fulfilled.

    So we can confidently say, the Good News is that the essence of the pronounced Blessings is available for all who fulfill the conditions.

    That opens up the big box called "Prosperity Gospel" - the so called Good News that God wants His children to live like King's Kids, to dress fancy, to drive big cars, to live in palaces. Do you really want that? Do you really want "Paparazzi"? Do you want your every sneeze recorded and every gesture analyzed? PTL founder and former president, Jim Bakker, preached it for many years, and he showed us what it would look like: glitz, glamour and girls. But he now sadly admits that he spent very little time with his kids, when their birthdays would come, an assistant bought the gift. He lost his marriage, he lost his integrity, and for five years he lost his liberty. Today if you ask Jim Bakker if he believes in the "Prosperity Gospel", he will flat out say "no way" - today he humbly admits he was wrong all those years.

    In his recent book, Bakker tells about a man who wanted to know, "Where's my hundred houses? I'm waiting for my hundred houses." Of course he got that idea from Jesus when He said to His disciples, "And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life." (Matthew 19:29) To this man the question about his 100 houses was serious, to us it is too silly to even warrant a response. It seems that only in materialistic America could such a religious doctrine take a foothold. It certainly doesn't take much depth of insight to understand that spirituality and faith should never be measured merely by bucks, bricks or Buicks.

    There's another obvious question which arises when we declare that the obedient will prosper but the disobedient will not. This is a question asked from the first days of the writing of the Bible (Job 10:3; 21:7). At times it seems that just the opposite is true - the wicked prosper and the righteous wear rags. Some of the saintliest people you will ever meet on earth live in poverty, while some of the most foul-mouthed, womanizing, wagering, worldly, wicked fly in private jets between luxurious homes on three continents!

    Yet any schoolboy can make a comparison between the now defunct, atheistic USSR with the God-fearing US of A and see that the contrast is stark. Prosperity comes to a people whose God is the Lord.

    By the way, did you notice verse 47+48)? "Because you did not serve the LORD your God joyfully and gladly in the time of prosperity, therefore in hunger and thirst, in nakedness and dire poverty, you will serve the enemies the LORD sends against you." This certainly is a warning for us who do bathe in the opulence of the American economy.

    So, that's the "God News", God's rich Blessings upon those who obey His laws.

    Now comes the "Bad News", the Curses.

    For the Curses, 53 verses are dedicated, almost 4 times as many as given to the Blessings. Notice also that as for the Blessings, they will "come upon you" (v.2), like soft falling rain, but with the Curses, they will "pursue you and overcome you." (v.45) And there are many more Curses than Blessings - I counted at least 36 different Curses.

    Not only do the Curses carry the threat of physical calamity, but also of emotional and mental distress:

      * "madness, blindness and confusion of mind." (v.28)

      * "The sights you see will drive you mad." (v.34)

      * "the LORD will give you an anxious mind, eyes weary with longing, and a despairing heart. You will live in constant suspense, filled with dread both night and day" ( vs.65,66)

    Also, there are spiritual, or religious consequences. Twice the Israelites are told that they will end up worshipping "other gods--gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known." (v. 64, also v. 36)

    There will be severe and lingering diseases (v.21, 59). As for these cursed diseases, the KJV makes it alarmingly vivid:

      "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." (v.22)

      "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. " (v.27)

      And if that's not enough, here's an "etcetera" statement: "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." (v.61)

    For the disobedient, there will also be:

      * Defeat (v.25); failure (v.29) and frustration (v.30).

      * They will be driven out into an alien, heathen nation (v.36);

      * They will suffer famine (v.38); be disgraced and demoralized (v.43);

      * They will become hungry, naked, and poor, serving as slaves to the Lord's enemies (v.48);

      * There will be harsh and prolonged disasters (v.59).

    No matter how you look at it, these curses are horrible!
      * The sky which should produce rain will become like bronze, and the ground which should produce crops like iron (v.23); instead of rain, there will be dust storms (v.24).

      * Their dead bodies, slain by their victorious enemies will become food for the birds, and what's more, "there will be no one to frighten them away" (v.26). * They will be oppressed and robbed, but there will be no one to rescue them (v.29).

      * They will lose their sons and daughters to foreign slave traders, (listen to the pathos) they will wear out their eyes "watching for them day after day, powerless to lift a hand." (v.32)

      * The locusts will eat the harvest, the worms will destroy the grapes, and the olives will fall off the trees. (vs.38-40)

    Some Curse results are not only mentioned once, but repeated for special emphasis. (vs. 21, 59)

    The climax of this tale of woes is that due to the threatened siege of an enemy, they will stoop to eating their own offspring! (vs.53-57)

    But the ultimate indication of the Curse is that they will be taken back to Egypt from where they had been miraculously delivered (v.68); the Exodus will be reversed, they'll be back in slavery, but now offering themselves willingly as the only hope for survival. Then comes this final word, "but no one will buy you"!

    These are terrible, and we ask, "What kind of loving Creator God would do such things to His own people?" And look at verse 63, "Just as it pleased the LORD to make you prosper and increase in number, so it will please him to ruin and destroy you." God gets pleasure out of inflicting these terrible things!

    "Why in the world would you want to categorize this among the 'Great Chapters of the Bible?'" you may ask. "This chapter should be left out of the Bible all together!" Who knows, maybe this is why some Christians want to throw out the Old Testament. "Not only is this God revealed as One who brings terrible Curses upon those who disobey Him, He even gets some satisfaction from doing it!" However, if we are "People of the Book", and if we believe that "all Scripture is inspired", then we must accept this too as a valid representation of who God is.

    Earlier we were eager to claim the Blessings, to be reassured, at least in principle, that the Blessings promised to obedient Israel would also accrue to the obedient of the Gentile believers. Here's the flip-side, if the Blessings are for us, so are the Curses. Like sings the song, "You can't have one without the other."

    Now it's clear to me that the Apostle Paul must have been reading Deuteronomy when he wrote Galatians chapter 3: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law." (verse 10)

    How can it ever be possible for anyone to avoid coming under the Curse? Obviously Israel didn't. Paul was known to be one of the truly bright stars of Judaism, "a Hebrew of Hebrews . . . a Pharisee . . . as for legalistic righteousness, faultless." (Philippians 3:5,6) And yet he too had come to the conclusion that he was under the Curse of God. So we are all doomed! All these terrible diseases, defeats, disasters, desolations, and deprivations are going to pursue us - there is no escaping them!

    But then, in a burst of inspiration, two verses later, Paul says, "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: 'Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.'"

    Can you guess the location referred to in the words, "it is written"? Deuteronomy!

    "If a man guilty of a capital offense is put to death and his body is hung on a tree, you must not leave his body on the tree overnight. Be sure to bury him that same day, because anyone who is hung on a tree is under God's curse. You must not desecrate the land the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance." (Deuteronomy 21:22,23)

    This is a remarkable connection made by Paul, because the Israelites of Moses' day knew nothing of the later Roman practice of crucifixion. What Moses' Law provided for was a brief public display of the dead body after the condemned person had been stoned - this was to be evidence that they were under the Curse of God. When Jesus died, His body was also hung on a tree, and taken down that same day to show that He was momentarily under a curse. Paul makes it very clear, Jesus was under the curse intended for you and me.

    We are immensely thankful for the abundant Blessings. We are amazed and sobered by the horrible Curses. But more than anything, we are humbled by the awareness that Jesus suffered them in our stead so that through faith in Him, we might have eternal life.

    The summary for Deuteronomy 28 comes in chapter 30, verses 19 and 20: "This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life."

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