Deuteronomy 28

1 It shall happen, if you shall listen diligently to the voice of YHWH your God, to observe to do all his commandments which I command you this day, that YHWH your God will set you on high above all the nations of the earth:

“So then, if you will listen to the voice of the Lord your God, so as to keep and do all of his commandments, which I instruct to you this day, the Lord your God will cause you to be more exalted than all the nations which exist upon the earth.

2 and all these blessings shall come on you, and overtake you, if you shall listen to the voice of YHWH your God.

And all these blessings shall come to you and take hold of you, but only if you listen to his precepts.

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

Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed in the field.

4 You shall be blessed in the fruit of your body, the fruit of your ground, the fruit of your animals, the increase of your livestock, and the young of your flock.

Blessed shall be the fruit of your loins, and the fruit of your land, and the fruit of your cattle, the droves of your herds, and the folds of your sheep.

5 Your basket and your kneading trough shall be blessed.

Blessed shall be your barns, and blessed your storehouses.

6 You shall be blessed when you come in, and you shall be blessed when you go out.

Blessed shall you be entering and departing.

7 YHWH will cause your enemies who rise up against you to be struck before you. They will come out against you one way, and will flee before you seven ways.

The Lord will grant that your enemies, who rise up against you, will fall down in your sight. They will come against you by one way, and they will flee from your face by seven ways.

8 YHWH will command the blessing on you in your storehouses, and in all that you put your hand to; and he will bless you in the land which YHWH your God gives you.

The Lord will send forth a blessing upon your cellars, and upon all the works of your hands. And he will bless you in the land that you shall receive.

9 YHWH will establish you for a holy people to himself, as he has sworn to you; if you shall keep the commandments of YHWH your God, and walk in his ways.

The Lord will raise you up as a holy people for himself, just as he swore to you, if you will keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and walk in his ways.

10 All the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of YHWH; and they shall be afraid of you.

And all the peoples of the earth shall see that the name of the Lord has been invoked over you, and they shall fear you.

11 YHWH will make you plenteous for good, in the fruit of your body, and in the fruit of your livestock, and in the fruit of your ground, in the land which YHWH swore to your fathers to give you.

The Lord will cause you to be abundant in every good thing: in the fruit of your womb, and in the fruit of your cattle, and in the fruit of your land, which the Lord swore to your fathers that he would give to you.

12 YHWH will open to you his good treasure in the sky, to give the rain of your land in its season, and to bless all the work of your hand: and you shall lend to many nations, and you shall not borrow.

The Lord will open his excellent treasury, the heavens, so that it may distribute rain in due time. And he will bless all the works of your hands. And you shall lend to many nations, but you yourself will borrow nothing from anyone.

13 YHWH will make you the head, and not the tail; and you shall be above only, and you shall not be beneath; if you shall listen to the commandments of YHWH your God, which I command you this day, to observe and to do,

And the Lord will appoint you as the head, and not as the tail. And you shall be always above, and not beneath. But only if you will listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, which I entrust to you this day, and will keep and do them,

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

and will not turn aside from them, neither to the right, nor to the left, nor follow strange gods, nor worship them.

15 But it shall come to pass, if you will not listen to the voice of YHWH your God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command you this day, that all these curses shall come on you, and overtake you.

But if you are not willing to listen to the voice of the Lord your God, so as to keep and do all his commandments and ceremonies, which I instruct to you this day, all these curses shall come to you, and take hold of you.

16 You shall be cursed in the city, and you shall be cursed in the field.

Cursed shall you be in the city, cursed in the field.

17 Your basket and your kneading trough shall be cursed.

Cursed shall be your barn, and cursed your storehouses.

18 The fruit of your body, the fruit of your ground, the increase of your livestock, and the young of your flock shall be cursed.

Cursed shall be the fruit of your loins, and the fruit of your land, the herds of your oxen, and the flocks of your sheep.

19 You shall be cursed when you come in, and you shall be cursed when you go out.

Cursed shall you be entering, and cursed departing.

20 YHWH will send on you cursing, confusion, and rebuke, in all that you put your hand to do, until you are destroyed, and until you perish quickly; because of the evil of your doings, by which you have forsaken me.

The Lord will send famine and hunger upon you, and a rebuke upon all the works that you do, until he quickly crushes and perishes you, because of your very wicked innovations, by which you have forsaken me.

21 YHWH will make the pestilence cling to you, until he has consumed you from off the land, where you go in to possess it.

May the Lord join a pestilence to you, until he consumes you from the land, which you shall enter so as to possess.

22 YHWH will strike you with consumption, and with fever, and with inflammation, and with fiery heat, and with the sword, and with blight, and with mildew; and they shall pursue you until you perish.

May the Lord strike you with destitution, with fever and cold, with burning and heat, and with polluted air and rot, and may he pursue you until you perish.

23 Your sky that is over your head shall be bronze, and the earth that is under you shall be iron.

May the heavens which are above you be of brass, and may the ground upon which you tread be of iron.

24 YHWH will make the rain of your land powder and dust: from the sky shall it come down on you, until you are destroyed.

May the Lord give you dust instead of rain upon your land, and may ashes descend from heaven over you, until you have been wiped away.

25 YHWH will cause you to be struck before your enemies; you shall go out one way against them, and shall flee seven ways before them: and you shall be tossed back and forth among all the kingdoms of the earth.

May the Lord hand you over to fall before your enemies. May you go forth against them by one way, and flee by seven ways, and may you be scattered across all the kingdoms of the earth.

26 Your dead body shall be food to all birds of the sky, and to the animals of the earth; and there shall be none to frighten them away.

And may your carcass be food for all the flying things of the air and the wild beasts of the land, and may there be no one to drive them away.

27 YHWH will strike you with the boil of Egypt, and with the tumors, and with the scurvy, and with the itch, of which you can not be healed.

May the Lord strike you with the ulcer of Egypt, and may he strike the part of your body, through which the dung goes out, with disease as well as itch, so much so that you are unable to be cured.

28 YHWH will strike you with madness, and with blindness, and with astonishment of heart;

May the Lord strike you with frenzy and blindness and a madness of the mind.

29 and you shall grope at noonday, as the blind gropes in darkness, and you shall not prosper in your ways: and you shall be only oppressed and robbed always, and there shall be none to save you.

And may you grope at midday, just as a blind man is accustomed to grope in darkness, and may your paths not be straight. And at all times may you suffer slander and be oppressed with violence, and may you have no one who may free you.

30 You shall betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: you shall build a house, and you shall not dwell in it: you shall plant a vineyard, and shall not use its fruit.

May you take a wife, though another sleeps with her. May you build a house, but not live within it. May you plant a vineyard, and not gather its vintage.

31 Your ox shall be slain before your eyes, and you shall not eat of it: your donkey shall be violently taken away from before your face, and shall not be restored to you: your sheep shall be given to your enemies, and you shall have none to save you.

May your ox be immolated before you, though you do not eat from it. May your donkey be seized in your sight, and not restored to you. May your sheep be given to your enemies, and may there be no one who may help you.

32 Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people; and your eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day: and there shall be nothing in the power of your hand.

May your sons and your daughters be handed over to another people, as your eyes watch and languish at the sight of them throughout the day, and may there be no strength in your hand.

33 The fruit of your ground, and all your labors, shall a nation which you do not know eat up; and you shall be only oppressed and crushed always;

May a people you do not know eat the fruits of your land and of all your labors. And may you continually suffer from slander and oppression every day.

34 so that you shall be mad for the sight of your eyes which you shall see.

And may you be stupefied at the terror of the things your eyes will see.

35 YHWH will strike you in the knees, and in the legs, with a sore boil, of which you can not be healed, from the sole of your foot to the crown of your head.

May the Lord strike you with a very grievous ulcer in the knees and in the legs, and may you be unable to attain health, from the sole of the foot to the top of the head.

36 YHWH will bring you, and your king whom you shall set over you, to a nation that you have not known, you nor your fathers; and there you shall serve other gods, wood and stone.

May the Lord lead you and your king, whom you will have appointed over yourself, into a nation which you and your fathers have not known. And there you will serve foreign gods, of wood and of stone.

37 You shall become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all the peoples where YHWH shall lead you away.

And you will become nothing but a proverb and a fable to all the peoples to whom the Lord will lead you.

38 You shall carry much seed out into the field, and shall gather little in; for the locust shall consume it.

You will sow much seed upon the ground, but you will harvest little. For the locusts will devour everything.

39 You shall plant vineyards and dress them, but you shall neither drink of the wine, nor harvest; for the worm shall eat them.

You will dig and plant a vineyard, but you will not drink the wine, nor gather anything at all from it. For it will be devastated by worms.

40 You shall have olive trees throughout all your borders, but you shall not anoint yourself with the oil; for your olives shall drop off.

You will have olive trees in all your borders, but you will not be anointed with the oil. For the olives will fall off and perish.

41 You shall father sons and daughters, but they shall not be yours; for they shall go into captivity.

You will conceive sons and daughters, and you will not enjoy them. For they will be led into captivity.

42 All your trees and the fruit of your ground shall the locust possess.

Rot will consume all the trees, as well as the fruits of your land.

43 The foreigner who is in the midst of you shall mount up above you higher and higher; and you shall come down lower and lower.

The new arrival who lives with you in the land will ascend over you, and be higher. But you will descend, and be 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, and you will not lend to him. He will be as the head, and you will be as the tail.

45 All these curses shall come on you, and shall pursue you, and overtake you, until you are destroyed; because you did not listen to the voice of YHWH your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded you:

And all these curses shall come to you, and shall pursue you, and shall take hold of you, until you pass away, because you would not listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and you would not serve his commandments and ceremonies, which he has instructed to you.

46 and they shall be on you for a sign and for a wonder, and on your descendants forever.

And there will be the signs and portents with you, and with your offspring, forever.

47 Because you did not serve YHWH your God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, by reason of the abundance of all things;

Because you did not serve the Lord your God, with gladness and a joyful heart, over the abundance of all things.

48 therefore you shall serve your enemies whom YHWH shall send against you, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron on your neck, until he has destroyed you.

You will serve your enemy, whom the Lord will send to you, in hunger and thirst and nakedness, and in destitution of all things. And he will place an iron yoke upon your neck, until he has crushed you.

49 YHWH will bring a nation against you from far away, from a distant land, as the eagle flies; a nation whose language you shall not understand;

The Lord will lead over you a nation from far away, even from the furthest parts of the earth, like an eagle flying with great force, whose language you are not able to understand:

50 a nation of fierce facial expressions, that shall not respect the person of the old, nor show favor to the young,

a very insolent nation, which will show no deference to elders, nor take pity on little ones.

51 and shall eat the fruit of your livestock, and the fruit of your ground, until you are destroyed; that also shall not leave you grain, new wine, or oil, the increase of your livestock, or the young of your flock, until they have caused you to perish.

And he will devour the fruit of your cattle, and the fruits of your land, until you have passed away, without leaving behind you wheat, or wine, or oil, or herds of oxen, or flocks of sheep: until he utterly destroys you.

52 They shall besiege you in all your gates, until your high and fortified walls come down, in which you trusted, throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you in all your gates throughout all your land, which YHWH your God has given you.

And he will crush you in all your cities. And your strong and lofty walls, in which you trusted, will be destroyed throughout all your land. You will be besieged within your gates throughout all your land, which the Lord your God will give to you.

53 You shall eat the fruit of your own body, the flesh of your sons and of your daughters, whom YHWH your God has given you, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemies shall distress you.

And you will eat the fruit of your womb, and the flesh of your sons and of your daughters, which the Lord your God will give to you, due to the anguish and devastation with which your enemy will oppress you.

54 The man who 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 whom he has remaining;

The man who is pampered and very self-indulgent among you will vie with his own brother, and with the wife who lies at his bosom,

55 so that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his children whom he shall eat, because he has nothing left him, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemy shall distress you in all your gates.

lest he give to them from the flesh of his sons, which he will eat. For he has nothing else due to the siege and the destitution, with which your enemies will devastate you within all your gates.

56 The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not adventure to set the sole of her foot on 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,

The tender and pampered woman, who would not walk upon the soil, nor step firmly with her foot due to her very great softness and tenderness, will vie with her husband, who lies at her bosom, over the flesh of son and of daughter,

57 and toward her young one who comes out from between her feet, and toward her children whom she shall bear; for she shall eat them for want of all things secretly, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemy shall distress you in your gates.

and over the filth of the afterbirth, which goes forth from between her thighs, and over the children who are born in the same hour. For they will eat them secretly, due to the scarcity of all things during the siege and the devastation, with which your enemy will oppress you within your gates.

58 If you will not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and fearful name, YHWH your God;

If you will not keep and do all the words of this law, which have been written in this volume, and fear his glorious and terrible name, that is, the Lord your God,

59 then YHWH will make your plagues extraordinary, and the plagues of your descendants, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and severe sicknesses, and of long continuance.

then the Lord will increase your plagues, and the plagues of your offspring, plagues great and long-lasting, infirmities very grievous and continuous.

60 He will bring on you again all the diseases of Egypt, which you were afraid of; and they shall cling to you.

And he will turn back upon you all the afflictions of Egypt, which you fear, and these will cling to you.

61 Also every sickness, and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law, YHWH will bring them on you, until you are destroyed.

In addition, the Lord will lead over you all the diseases and plagues that are not written in the volume of this law, until he crushes you.

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

And you will remain few in number, though you were before like the stars of heaven in multitude, because you would not listen to the voice of the Lord your God.

63 It shall happen that as YHWH rejoiced over you to do you good, and to multiply you, so YHWH will rejoice over you to cause you to perish, and to destroy you; and you shall be plucked from off the land where you go in to possess it.

And just as before, when the Lord rejoiced over you, doing good for you and multiplying you, so shall he rejoice, scattering and overturning you, so as to take you away from the land, which you shall enter in order to possess.

64 YHWH will scatter you among all peoples, from the one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth; and there you shall serve other gods, which you have not known, you nor your fathers, even wood and stone.

The Lord will disperse you among all the peoples, from the heights of the earth to its furthest limits. And there you will serve foreign gods of wood and of stone, which you and your fathers did not know.

65 Among these nations you shall find no ease, and there shall be no rest for the sole of your foot: but YHWH will give you there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and pining of soul;

Similarly, you will not have tranquility, even within those nations, nor will there be any rest for the steps of your feet. For the Lord will give to you in that place a fearful heart, and failing eyes, and a life consumed with grieving.

66 and your life shall hang in doubt before you; and you shall fear night and day, and shall have no assurance of your life.

And your life will be as if it were hanging before you. You will be afraid night and day, and you will not have confidence in your own life.

67 In the morning you shall say, "I wish it were evening." and at evening you shall say, "I wish it were morning." for the fear of your heart which you shall fear, and for the sight of your eyes which you shall see.

In the morning you will say, ‘Who will grant evening to me?’ and at evening, ‘Who will grant morning to me?’ because of the dread of your heart, with which you will be terrified, and because of those things that you will see with your eyes.

68 YHWH will bring you into Egypt again with ships, by the way of which I said to you, You shall see it no more again: and there you shall sell yourselves to your enemies for bondservants and for bondmaids, and no man shall buy you.

The Lord will lead you back into Egypt with a fleet of ships, along the way, about which he said to you that you would not see it again. In that place, you will be put up for sale as men and women servants to your enemies, but there will be no one willing to buy you.”