Deuteronomy Instructions Pt. 4
Moses has reached the end of the instructions. Moses now lays some hard facts on them. They will see exactly the benefits or costs; blessings, or curses.
Moses mentioned the blessings and curses in chapter 11. I thought he was going to go into them and that I would have to figure a way to move them to the end. I didn’t need to worry about that because God did it already. And He put more in there than I previously remembered.
One thing I noticed with the blessings and curses speech is that the elders of the people stood with Moses when he presented this to the people. To me, that says that they had already made up their minds about this decision. Did Moses present it to them first? What would have happened if they said “No”? God knew what the answer would be before He even posed the question. Let’s join the congregation as they hear their choices.
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Moses stood before the people again this morning. They had assembled on their own, just as they had done since Moses started recounting their journey and going back over the statutes of the Lord. Today would be the day that he laid out the blessings and curses for them. These he had briefly mentioned earlier. Today, they would hear them in detail. And they would write them down as a memorial forever.
“I spoke to you earlier about blessings and curses and Mt Ebal and Mt Gerizim. You will hear the fullness of what is to be done now.”
Moses looked at the people with flint in his eyes and spoke with steel in his voice. “Keep the whole commandment that I command you today. And on the day you cross over the Jordan to the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall set up large stones and plaster them with plaster. And you shall write on them all the words of this law, when you cross over to enter the land that the Lord your God is giving you, a land flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you. And when you have crossed over the Jordan, you shall set up these stones, concerning which I command you today, on Mount Ebal, and you shall plaster them with plaster. And there you shall build an altar to the Lord your God, an altar of stones. You shall wield no iron tool on them; you shall build an altar to the Lord your God of uncut[a] stones. And you shall offer burnt offerings on it to the Lord your God and you shall sacrifice peace offerings and shall eat there, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God. And you shall write on the stones all the words of this law very plainly.” (Deuteronomy 27:1b-8)
Moses had spoken to Eleazar about what was coming next. Before he continued, Eleazar and two other Levites stepped up beside Moses. “Keep silence and hear, O Israel: this day you have become the people of the Lord your God. You shall therefore obey the voice of the Lord your God, keeping his commandments and his statutes, which I command you today.” (Deuteronomy 27:9-10)
“When you have crossed over the Jordan, these shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin. And these shall stand on Mount Ebal for the curse: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.” (Deuteronomy 27:12-13)
Moses told the people what was coming next. “The Levites will begin pronouncing the curses I have given them from the Lord. At the end of every curse, you are to either agree, or disagree. Agreement will be signified by responding; “Amen.”
Eleazar was the one to pronounce the curses for the people. He stepped in the place of Moses and began listing the curses.
“‘Cursed be the man who makes a carved or cast metal image, an abomination to the Lord, a thing made by the hands of a craftsman, and sets it up in secret.’ And all the people shall answer and say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who dishonors his father or his mother.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who moves his neighbor’s landmark.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who misleads a blind man on the road.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who perverts the justice due to the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who lies with his father’s wife, because he has uncovered his father’s nakedness.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who lies with any kind of animal.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who lies with his sister, whether the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who lies with his mother-in-law.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who strikes down his neighbor in secret.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who takes a bribe to shed innocent blood.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
“‘Cursed be anyone who does not confirm the words of this law by doing them.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’” (Deuteronomy 27:15-26)
Moses listened closely to the words Eleazar shared and the people’s response. Both pleased him. After Eleazar finished, Moses stepped back into his place. “This is what awaits this nation. Listen carefully to ALL I am telling you. You will have to choose for yourselves.”
“And if you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of the Lord your God. Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock. Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.” (Deuteronomy 28:1-5)
Moses paused for a moment and commented on what the Lord had him just share with the people. He wanted their full attention when he continued. “This is just a broad sense of the blessings the Lord has in store for you if you will follow Him. There is more.”
“The Lord will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you. They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways. The Lord will command the blessing on you in your barns and in all that you undertake. And he will bless you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. The Lord will establish you as a people holy to himself, as he has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God and walk in his ways. And all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord, and they shall be afraid of you. And the Lord will make you abound in prosperity, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your livestock and in the fruit of your ground, within the land that the Lord swore to your fathers to give you. The Lord will open to you his good treasury, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hands. And you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you shall only go up and not down, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, being careful to do them, and if you do not turn aside from any of the words that I command you today, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.” (Deuteronomy 28:7-14)
Moses’ voice rose in excitement with each blessing he pronounced. By the time he ended, the entire congregation was shouting out praises to the Lord. Moses waited until they calmed down before moving to the curses.
“Now for the other side of the decision. The curses that will come upon you if you reject the Lord your God.”
Moses began solemnly. “But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord your God or be careful to do all his commandments and his statutes that I command you today, then all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you. Cursed shall you be in the city, and cursed shall you be in the field. 17 Cursed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. Cursed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock. Cursed shall you be when you come in, and cursed shall you be when you go out.” (Deuteronomy 28:15-19)
“As with the blessings, this is only a taste of what will befall you if you reject the Lord. Listen and understand the choice.”
“The Lord will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You shall go out one way against them and flee seven ways before them. And you shall be a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. And your dead body shall be food for all birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth, and there shall be no one to frighten them away. The Lord will strike you with the boils of Egypt, and with tumors and scabs and itch, of which you cannot be healed. The Lord will strike you with madness and blindness and confusion of mind, and you shall grope at noonday, as the blind grope in darkness, and you shall not prosper in your ways. And you shall be only oppressed and robbed continually, and there shall be no one to help you. You shall betroth a wife, but another man shall ravish her. You shall build a house, but you shall not dwell in it. You shall plant a vineyard, but you shall not enjoy its fruit. Your ox shall be slaughtered before your eyes, but you shall not eat any of it. Your donkey shall be seized before your face, but shall not be restored to you. Your sheep shall be given to your enemies, but there shall be no one to help you. Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people, while your eyes look on and fail with longing for them all day long, but you shall be helpless. A nation that you have not known shall eat up the fruit of your ground and of all your labors, and you shall be only oppressed and crushed continually, so that you are driven mad by the sights that your eyes see. The Lord will strike you on the knees and on the legs with grievous boils of which you cannot be healed, from the sole of your foot to the crown of your head.
“The Lord will bring you and your king whom you set over you to a nation that neither you nor your fathers have known. And there you shall serve other gods of wood and stone. And you shall become a horror, a proverb, and a byword among all the peoples where the Lord will lead you away. You shall carry much seed into the field and shall gather in little, for the locust shall consume it. You shall plant vineyards and dress them, but you shall neither drink of the wine nor gather the grapes, for the worm shall eat them. You shall have olive trees throughout all your territory, but you shall not anoint yourself with the oil, for your olives shall drop off. You shall father sons and daughters, but they shall not be yours, for they shall go into captivity. The cricket shall possess all your trees and the fruit of your ground. The sojourner who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower. He shall lend to you, and you shall not lend to him. He shall be the head, and you shall be the tail.
“All these curses shall come upon you and pursue you and overtake you till you are destroyed, because you did not obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that he commanded you. They shall be a sign and a wonder against you and your offspring forever. Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joyfulness and gladness of heart, because of the abundance of all things, therefore you shall serve your enemies whom the Lord will send against you, in hunger and thirst, in nakedness, and lacking everything. And he will put a yoke of iron on your neck until he has destroyed you. The Lord will bring a nation against you from far away, from the end of the earth, swooping down like the eagle, a nation whose language you do not understand, a hard-faced nation who shall not respect the old or show mercy to the young. It shall eat the offspring of your cattle and the fruit of your ground, until you are destroyed; it also shall not leave you grain, wine, or oil, the increase of your herds or the young of your flock, until they have caused you to perish.” (Deuteronomy 28:25-51)
Moses began to pace as he pronounced the curses that would befall the people. His voice rose in pitch and pain with each pronouncement. When he reached the end of this list, he stopped, dropped his head to his chest and breathed a heavy sigh.
In a voice choked with sorrow, Moses stands rock still and continues. “They shall besiege you in all your towns, until your high and fortified walls, in which you trusted, come down throughout all your land. And they shall besiege you in all your towns throughout all your land, which the Lord your God has given you. And you shall eat the fruit of your womb, the flesh of your sons and daughters, whom the Lord your God has given you, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemies shall distress you. The man who is the most tender and refined among you will begrudge food to his brother, to the wife he embraces, and to the last of the children whom he has left, so that he will not give to any of them any of the flesh of his children whom he is eating, because he has nothing else left, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemy shall distress you in all your towns. The most tender and refined woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground because she is so delicate and tender, will begrudge to the husband she embraces, to her son and to her daughters her afterbirth that comes out from between her feet and her children whom she bears, because lacking everything she will eat them secretly, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemy shall distress you in your towns.” (Deuteronomy 28:52-57)
By the time Moses finishes, his voice is barely above a whisper. The people are leaning in with tears streaming down their faces.
Moses clears his throat before going on. His voice still holds pain, but he raises his volume to be heard. “If you are not careful to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, the Lord your God, then the Lord will bring on you and your offspring extraordinary afflictions, afflictions severe and lasting, and sicknesses grievous and lasting. And he will bring upon you again all the diseases of Egypt, of which you were afraid, and they shall cling to you. Every sickness also and every affliction that is not recorded in the book of this law, the Lord will bring upon you, until you are destroyed. Whereas you were as numerous as the stars of heaven, you shall be left few in number, because you did not obey the voice of the Lord your God. And as the Lord took delight in doing you good and multiplying you, so the Lord will take delight in bringing ruin upon you and destroying you. And you shall be plucked off the land that you are entering to take possession of it.
“And the Lord will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you shall serve other gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known. And among these nations you shall find no respite, and there shall be no resting place for the sole of your foot, but the Lord will give you there a trembling heart and failing eyes and a languishing soul. Your life shall hang in doubt before you. Night and day you shall be in dread and have no assurance of your life. In the morning you shall say, ‘If only it were evening!’ and at evening you shall say, ‘If only it were morning!’ because of the dread that your heart shall feel, and the sights that your eyes shall see. And the Lord will bring you back in ships to Egypt, a journey that I promised that you should never make again; and there you shall offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but there will be no buyer.” (Deuteronomy 28:59-68)
Moses stood still and looked out at the people. In silence they waited. They were afraid that he was going to go even farther in the curses. They waited with trembling hearts.
Moses closed his eyes and centered himself for a moment. “You need time again to absorb all that the Lord has shared with you today. Return to your tents and ponder the choice that is laid before you. We will meet again in the morning.”
The people slowly drifted away to their tents. The weight of the curses still ringing in their ears. They were hoping that tomorrow would bring something better.
(to be continued)
One of the hardest things to contemplate about the blessings and the curses is that Moses was speaking in prophecy. EVERYTHING Moses said in the curses would come to pass. Even the eating of their own children. We see these take place as Israel is split into two kingdoms and goes farther and farther from the Lord. If only they could have seen it. Would it have changed anything? What would my “blessings and curses” litany look like? I am MORE than grateful that it doesn’t include eating my children.
I know, I copied and pasted almost two full chapters from the Bible. It was grabbed by each word and couldn’t decide what to ‘leave out’. So, I kept it all. I hope you found the bits about how Moses experienced it a little thought provoking.
Father God, I choose the blessings side. The path that means I will follow you. Keep me walking with You Lord. I NEVER want to turn away. I know that the ‘blessings and curses’ were fulfilled when Jesus fulfilled the Law. But my actions, when not walking in Your will can have natural consequences that can be pretty dire. I also know that, because I live in a fallen world, that there are consequences of that as well. I pray You soften them for me; as You already have so MANY times before. Even in the lessons I had to walk through, You kept me from being seriously hurt. Thank You Lord for Your mercy and grace!