Deuteronomy 28

1 And it shall come to pass, if you will indeed hear the voice of the Lord your God, to observe and do all these commands, which I charge you this day, that the Lord your God shall set you on high above all the nations of the earth;

“Now if you faithfully obey the voice of the LORD your God and are careful to follow all His commandments I am giving you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth.

2 and all these blessings shall come upon you, and shall find you. If you will indeed hear the voice of the Lord your God,

And all these blessings will come upon you and overtake you, if you will obey the voice of the LORD your God:

3 blessed [shall] you [be] in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field.

You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.

4 Blessed shall be the offspring of your body, and the fruits of your land, and the herds of your oxen, and the flocks of your sheep.

The fruit of your womb will be blessed, as well as the produce of your land and the offspring of your livestock— the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.

5 Blessed shall be your barns, and your stores.

Your basket and kneading bowl will be blessed.

6 Blessed shall you be in your coming in, and blessed shall you be in your going out.

You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.

7 The Lord deliver your enemies that withstand you utterly broken before your face: they shall come out against you one way, and they shall flee seven ways from before you.

The LORD will cause the enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you. They will march out against you in one direction but flee from you in seven.

8 The Lord send upon you his blessing in your barns, and on all on which you shall put your hand, in the land which the Lord your God gives you.

The LORD will decree a blessing on your barns and on everything to which you put your hand; the LORD your God will bless you in the land He is giving you.

9 The Lord raise you up for himself a holy people, as he sware to your fathers; if you will hear the voice of the Lord your God, and walk in all his ways.

The LORD will establish you as His holy people, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in His ways.

10 And all the nations of the earth shall see you, that the name of the Lord is called upon you, and they shall stand in awe of you.

Then all the peoples of the earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will stand in awe of you.

11 And the Lord your God shall multiply you for good in the offspring of your body, and in the offspring of your cattle, and in the fruits of your land, on your land which the Lord sware to your fathers to give to you.

The LORD will make you prosper abundantly—in the fruit of your womb, the offspring of your livestock, and the produce of your land—in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers to give you.

12 May the Lord open to you his good treasure, the heaven, to give rain to your land in season: may he bless all the works of your hands: so shall you lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow; and you shall rule over many nations, but they shall not rule over you.

The LORD will open the heavens, His abundant storehouse, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations, but borrow from none.

13 The Lord your God make you the head, and not the tail; and you shall then be above and you shall not be below, if you will listen to the voice of the Lord your God, in all things that I charge you this day to observe.

The LORD will make you the head and not the tail; you will only move upward and never downward, if you hear and carefully follow the commandments of the LORD your God, which I am giving you today.

14 You shall not turn aside from any of the commandments, which I charge you this day, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.

Do not turn aside to the right or to the left from any of the words I command you today, and do not go after other gods to serve them.

15 But it shall come to pass, if you will not listen to the voice of the Lord your God, to observe all his commandments, as many as I charge you this day, then all these curses shall come on you, and overtake you.

If, however, you do not obey the LORD your God by carefully following all His commandments and statutes I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:

16 Cursed [shall] you [be] in the city, and cursed shall you be in the field.

You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country.

17 Cursed shall be your barns and your stores.

Your basket and kneading bowl will be cursed.

18 Cursed shall be the offspring of your body, and the fruits of your land, the herds of your oxen, and the flocks of your sheep.

The fruit of your womb will be cursed, as well as the produce of your land, the calves of your herds, and the lambs of your flocks.

19 Cursed shall you be in your coming in, and cursed shall you be in your going out.

You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out.

20 The Lord send upon you lack, and famine, and consumption of all things on which you shall put your hand, until he shall have utterly destroyed you, and until he shall have consumed you quickly because of your evil devices, because you have forsaken me.

The LORD will send curses upon you, confusion and reproof in all to which you put your hand, until you are destroyed and quickly perish because of the wickedness you have committed in forsaking Him.

21 The Lord cause the pestilence to cleave to you, until he shall have consumed you off the land into which you go to inherit it.

The LORD will make the plague cling to you until He has exterminated you from the land that you are entering to possess.

22 The Lord strike you with distress, and fever, and cold, and inflammation, and blighting, and paleness, and they shall pursue you until they have destroyed you.

The LORD will strike you with wasting disease, with fever and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, and with blight and mildew; these will pursue you until you perish.

23 And you shall have over your head a sky of brass, and the earth under you shall be iron.

The sky over your head will be bronze, and the earth beneath you iron.

24 The Lord your God make the rain of your land dust; and dust shall come down from heaven, until it shall have destroyed you, and until it shall have quickly consumed you.

The LORD will turn the rain of your land into dust and powder; it will descend on you from the sky until you are destroyed.

25 The Lord give you up for slaughter before your enemies: you shall go out against them one way, and flee from their face seven ways; and you shall be a dispersion in all the kingdoms of the earth.

The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will march out against them in one direction but flee from them in seven. You will be an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.

26 And your dead men shall be food to the birds of the sky, and to the beasts of the earth; and there shall be none to scare them away.

Your corpses will be food for all the birds of the air and beasts of the earth, with no one to scare them away.

27 The Lord strike you with the botch of Egypt in the seat, and with a malignant scab, and itch, so that you can not be healed.

The LORD will afflict you with the boils of Egypt, with tumors and scabs and itch from which you cannot be cured.

28 The Lord strike you with insanity, and blindness, and astonishment of mind.

The LORD will afflict you with madness, blindness, and confusion of mind,

29 And you shall grope at mid-day, as a blind man would grope in the darkness, and you shall not prosper in your ways; and then you shall be unjustly treated, and plundered continually, and there shall be no helper.

and at noon you will grope about like a blind man in the darkness. You will not prosper in your ways. Day after day you will be oppressed and plundered, with no one to save you.

30 you shall take a wife, and another man shall have her; you shall build a house, and you shall not dwell in it; you shall plant a vineyard, and shall not gather the grapes of it.

You will be pledged in marriage to a woman, but another man will violate her. You will build a house but will not live in it. You will plant a vineyard but will not enjoy its fruit.

31 Your calf [shall be] slain before you, and you shall not eat of it; your ass shall be violently taken away from you, and shall not be restored to you: your sheep shall be given to your enemies, and you shall have no helper.

Your ox will be slaughtered before your eyes, but you will not eat any of it. Your donkey will be taken away and not returned to you. Your flock will be given to your enemies, and no one will save you.

32 Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another nation, and your eyes wasting away shall look for them: your hand shall have no strength.

Your sons and daughters will be given to another nation, while your eyes grow weary looking for them day after day, with no power in your hand.

33 A nation which you know not shall eat the produce of your land, and all your labours; and you shall be injured and crushed always.

A people you do not know will eat the produce of your land and of all your toil. All your days you will be oppressed and crushed.

34 And you shall be distracted, because of the sights of your eyes which you shall see.

You will be driven mad by the sights you see.

35 The Lord strike you with an evil sore, on the knees and the legs, so that you shall not be able to be healed from the sole of your foot to the crown of your head.

The LORD will afflict you with painful, incurable boils on your knees and thighs, from the soles of your feet to the top of your head.

36 The Lord carry away you and your princes, whom you shall set over you, to a nation which neither you nor your fathers know; and you shall there serve other gods, wood and stone.

The LORD will bring you and the king you appoint to a nation neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you will worship other gods—gods of wood and stone.

37 An you shall be there for a wonder, and a parable, and a tale, amongst all the nations, to which the Lord your God shall carry you away.

You will become an object of horror, scorn, and ridicule among all the nations to which the LORD will drive you.

38 You shall carry forth much seed into the field, and you shall bring in little, because the locust shall devour it.

You will sow much seed in the field but harvest little, because the locusts will consume it.

39 You shall plant a vineyard, and dress it, and shall not drink the wine, neither shall you delight yourself with it, because the worm shall devour it.

You will plant and cultivate vineyards, but will neither drink the wine nor gather the grapes, because worms will eat them.

40 You shall have olive trees in all your borders, and you shall not anoint you with oil, because your olive shall utterly cast [its fruit].

You will have olive trees throughout your territory but will never anoint yourself with oil, because the olives will drop off.

41 You shall beget sons and daughters, and they shall not be [your], for they shall depart into captivity.

You will father sons and daughters, but they will not remain yours, because they will go into captivity.

42 All your trees and the fruits of your land shall the blight consume.

Swarms of locusts will consume all your trees and the produce of your land.

43 The stranger that is within you shall get up very high, and you shall come down very low.

The foreigner living among you will rise higher and higher above you, while you sink down lower and lower.

44 He shall lend to you, and you shall not lend to him: he shall be the head, and you shall be the tail.

He will lend to you, but you will not lend to him. He will be the head, and you will be the tail.

45 And all these curses shall come upon you, and shall pursue you, and shall overtake you, until he shall have consumed you, and until he shall have destroyed you; because you did not listen to the voice of the Lord your God, to keep his commands, and his ordinances which he has commanded you.

All these curses will come upon you. They will pursue you and overtake you until you are destroyed, since you did not obey the LORD your God and keep the commandments and statutes He gave you.

46 And [these things] shall be signs in you, and wonders amongst your seed for ever;

These curses will be a sign and a wonder upon you and your descendants forever.

47 because you did not serve the Lord your God with gladness and a good heart, because of the abundance of all things.

Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart in all your abundance,

48 And you shall serve your enemies, which the Lord will send forth against you, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in the lack of all things; and you shall wear upon your neck a yoke of iron until he shall have destroyed you.

you will serve your enemies the LORD will send against you in famine, thirst, nakedness, and destitution. He will place an iron yoke on your neck until He has destroyed you.

49 The Lord shall bring upon you a nation from the extremity of the earth, like the swift flying of an eagle, a nation whose voice you shall not understand;

The LORD will bring a nation from afar, from the ends of the earth, to swoop down upon you like an eagle—a nation whose language you will not understand,

50 a nation bold in countenance, which shall not respect the person of the aged and shall not pity the young.

a ruthless nation with no respect for the old and no pity for the young.

51 And it shall eat up the young of your cattle, and the fruits of your land, so as not to leave to you corn, wine, oil, the herds of your oxen, and the flocks of your sheep, until it shall have destroyed you;

They will eat the offspring of your livestock and the produce of your land until you are destroyed. They will leave you no grain or new wine or oil, no calves of your herds or lambs of your flocks, until they have caused you to perish.

52 and have utterly crushed you in your cities, until the high and strong walls be destroyed, in which you trust, in all your land; and it shall afflict you in your cities, which he has given to you.

They will besiege all the cities throughout your land, until the high and fortified walls in which you trust have fallen. They will besiege all your cities throughout the land that the LORD your God has given you.

53 And you shall eat the fruit of your body, the flesh of your sons and of your daughters, all that he has given you, in your straitness and your affliction, with which your enemy shall afflict you.

Then you will eat the fruit of your womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters whom the LORD your God has given you, in the siege and distress that your enemy will inflict on you.

54 He that is tender and very delicate within you shall look with an evil eye upon his brother, and the wife in his bosom, and the children that are left, which may have been left to him;

The most gentle and refined man among you will begrudge his brother, the wife he embraces, and the rest of his children who have survived,

55 so as [not] to give to one of them of the flesh of his children, whom he shall eat, because of his having nothing left him in your straitness, and in your affliction, with which your enemies shall afflict you in all your cities.

refusing to share with any of them the flesh of his children he will eat because he has nothing left in the siege and distress that your enemy will inflict on you within all your gates.

56 And she that is tender and delicate amongst you, whose foot has not assayed to go upon the earth for delicacy and tenderness, shall look with an evil eye on her husband in her bosom, and her son and her daughter,

The most gentle and refined woman among you, so gentle and refined she would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground, will begrudge the husband she embraces and her son and daughter

57 and her offspring that comes out between her feet, and the child which she shall bear; for she shall eat them because of the lack of all things, secretly in your straitness, and in your affliction, with which your enemy shall afflict you in your cities.

the afterbirth that comes from between her legs and the children she bears, because she will secretly eat them for lack of anything else in the siege and distress that your enemy will inflict on you within your gates.

58 If you will not listen to do all the words of this law, which have been written in this book, to fear this glorious and wonderful name, the Lord your God;

If you are not careful to observe all the words of this law which are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name—the LORD your God—

59 then the Lord shall magnify your plagues, and the plagues of your seed, great and wonderful plagues, and evil and dwelling diseases.

He will bring upon you and your descendants extraordinary disasters, severe and lasting plagues, and terrible and chronic sicknesses.

60 And he shall bring upon you all the evil pain of Egypt, of which you were afraid, and they shall cleave to you.

He will afflict you again with all the diseases you dreaded in Egypt, and they will cling to you.

61 And the Lord shall bring upon you every sickness, and every plague that is not written, and every one that is written in the book of this law, until he shall have destroyed you.

The LORD will also bring upon you every sickness and plague not recorded in this Book of the Law, until you are destroyed.

62 And you shall be left few in number, whereas you were as the stars of the sky in multitude; because you did not listen to the voice of the Lord your God.

You who were as numerous as the stars in the sky will be left few in number, because you would not obey the voice of the LORD your God.

63 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 you shall be quickly removed from the land, into which you go to inherit it.

Just as it pleased the LORD to make you prosper and multiply, so also it will please Him to annihilate you and destroy you. And you will be uprooted from the land you are entering to possess.

64 And the Lord your God shall scatter you amongst all nations, from one end of the earth to the other; and you shall there serve other gods, wood and stone, which you have not known, nor your fathers.

Then the LORD will scatter you among all the nations, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known.

65 Moreover amongst those nations he will not give you quiet, neither by any means shall the sole of your foot have rest; and the Lord shall give you there another and a misgiving heart, and failing eyes, and a wasting soul.

Among those nations you will find no repose, not even a resting place for the sole of your foot. There the LORD will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and a despairing soul.

66 And your life shall be in suspense before your eyes; and you shall be afraid by day and by night, and you shall have no assurance of your life.

So your life will hang in doubt before you, and you will be afraid night and day, never certain of survival.

67 In the morning you shall say, Would it were evening! and in the evening you shall say, Would it were morning! for the fear of your heart with which you shall fear, and for the sights of your eyes which you shall see.

In the morning you will say, ‘If only it were evening!’ and in the evening you will say, ‘If only it were morning!’—because of the dread in your hearts of the terrifying sights you will see.

68 And the Lord shall bring you back to Egypt in ships, by the way of which I said, You shall not see it again; and you shall be sold there to your enemies for bondmen and bondwomen, and none shall buy you.

The LORD will return you to Egypt in ships by a route that I said you should never see again. There you will sell yourselves to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you.”