Deuteronomy 28

1 'And it hath been, if thou dost hearken diligently to the voice of Jehovah thy God, to observe to do all His commands which I am commanding thee to-day, that Jehovah thy God hath made thee uppermost 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 have come upon thee, and overtaken thee, because thou dost hearken to the voice of Jehovah thy 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 [art] thou in the city, and blessed [art] thou in the field.

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

4 'Blessed [is] the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, increase of thine oxen, and wealth of thy flock.

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 [is] thy basket and thy kneading-trough.

Your basket and kneading bowl will be blessed.

6 'Blessed [art] thou in thy coming in, and blessed [art] thou in thy going out.

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

7 'Jehovah giveth thine enemies, who are rising up against thee — smitten before thy face; in one way they come out unto thee, and in seven ways they flee before thee.

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 'Jehovah commandeth with thee the blessing in thy storehouses, and in every putting forth of thy hand, and hath blessed thee in the land which Jehovah thy God is giving to thee.

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 'Jehovah doth establish thee to Himself for a holy people, as He hath sworn to thee, when thou keepest the commands of Jehovah thy God, and hast walked in 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 peoples of the land have seen that the name of Jehovah is called upon thee, and they have been afraid of thee.

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 Jehovah hath made thee abundant in good, in the fruit of the womb, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, on the ground which Jehovah hath sworn to thy fathers to give to thee.

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 'Jehovah doth open to thee his good treasure — the heavens — to give the rain of thy land in its season, and to bless all the work of thy hand, and thou hast lent to many nations, and thou — thou dost not borrow.

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 'And Jehovah hath given thee for head, and not for tail; and thou hast been only above, and art not beneath, for thou dost hearken unto the commands of Jehovah thy God, which I am commanding thee to-day, to keep and to do,

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 and thou dost not turn aside from all the words which I am commanding you to-day — right or 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 'And it hath been, if thou dost not hearken unto the voice of Jehovah thy God to observe to do all His commands, and His statutes, which I am commanding thee to-day, that all these revilings have come upon thee, and overtaken thee:

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 [art] thou in the city, and cursed [art] thou in the field.

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

17 'Cursed [is] thy basket and thy kneading-trough.

Your basket and kneading bowl will be cursed.

18 'Cursed [is] the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, increase of thine oxen, and wealth of thy flock.

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 [art] thou in thy coming in, and cursed [art] thou in thy going out.

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

20 'Jehovah doth send on thee the curse, the trouble, and the rebuke, in every putting forth of thy hand which thou dost, till thou art destroyed, and till thou perish hastily, because of the evil of thy doings [by] which thou hast 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 'Jehovah doth cause to cleave to thee the pestilence, till He consume thee from off the ground whither thou art going in to possess 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 'Jehovah doth smite thee with consumption, and with fever, and with inflammation, and with extreme burning, and with sword, and with blasting, and with mildew, and they have pursued thee till thou perish

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 thy heavens which [are] over thy head have been brass, and the earth which [is] under thee iron;

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

24 Jehovah giveth the rain of thy land — dust and ashes; from the heavens it cometh down on thee till thou art destroyed.

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 'Jehovah giveth thee smitten before thine enemies; in one way thou goest out unto them, and in seven ways dost flee before them, and thou hast been for a trembling to all 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 thy carcase hath been for food to every fowl of the heavens, and to the beast of the earth, and there is none causing trembling.

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 'Jehovah doth smite thee with the ulcer of Egypt, and with emerods, and with scurvy, and with itch, of which thou art not able to 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 'Jehovah doth smite thee with madness, and with blindness, and with astonishment of heart;

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

29 and thou hast been gropling at noon, as the blind gropeth in darkness; and thou dost not cause thy ways to prosper; and thou hast been only oppressed and plundered all the days, and there is no saviour.

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 'A woman thou dost betroth, and another man doth lie with her; a house thou dost build, and dost not dwell in it; a vineyard thou dost plant, and dost not make it common;

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 thine ox [is] slaughtered before thine eyes, and thou dost not eat of it; thine ass [is] taken violently away from before thee, and it is not given back to thee; thy sheep [are] given to thine enemies, and there is no saviour for thee.

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 'Thy sons and thy daughters [are] given to another people, and thine eyes are looking and consuming for them all the day, and thy hand is not to God!

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 The fruit of thy ground, and all thy labour, eat up doth a people whom thou hast not known; and thou hast been only oppressed and bruised all the days;

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 thou hast been mad, because of the sight of thine eyes which thou dost see.

You will be driven mad by the sights you see.

35 'Jehovah doth smite thee with an evil ulcer, on the knees, and on the legs (of which thou art not able to be healed), from the sole of thy foot even unto thy crown.

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 'Jehovah doth cause thee to go, and thy king whom thou raisest up over thee, unto a nation which thou hast not known, thou and thy fathers, and thou hast served there 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 and thou hast been for an astonishment, for a simile, and for a byword among all the peoples whither Jehovah doth lead thee.

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

38 'Much seed thou dost take out into the field, and little thou dost gather in, for the locust doth consume it;

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

39 vineyards thou dost plant, and hast laboured, and wine thou dost not drink nor gather, for the worm doth consume it;

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

40 olives are to thee in all thy border, and oil thou dost not pour out, for thine olive doth fall off.

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

41 'Sons and daughters thou dost beget, and they are not with thee, for they go into captivity;

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

42 all thy trees and the fruit of thy ground doth the locust possess;

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

43 the sojourner who [is] in thy midst goeth up above thee very high, and thou goest down very low;

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

44 he doth lend [to] thee, and thou dost not lend [to] him; he is for head, and thou art for 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 come upon thee have all these curses, and they have pursued thee, and overtaken thee, till thou art destroyed, because thou hast not hearkened to the voice of Jehovah thy God, to keep His commands, and His statutes, which he hath commanded thee;

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 they have been on thee for a sign and for a wonder, also on thy seed — to the age.

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

47 'Because that thou hast not served Jehovah thy God with joy, and with gladness of 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 thou hast served thine enemies, whom Jehovah sendeth against thee, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in lack of all things; and he hath put a yoke of iron on thy neck, till He hath destroyed thee.

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 'Jehovah doth lift up against thee a nation, from afar, from the end of the earth, as the eagle it flieth; a nation whose tongue thou hast not heard,

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 — fierce of countenance — which accepteth not the face of the aged, and the young doth not favour;

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

51 and it hath eaten the fruit of thy cattle, and the fruit of thy ground, till thou art destroyed; which leaveth not to thee corn, new wine, and oil, increase of thine oxen, and wealth of thy flock, till it hath destroyed thee.

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 it hath laid siege to thee in all thy gates, till thy walls come down, the high and the fenced ones in which thou art trusting, in all thy land; yea, it hath laid siege to thee in all thy gates, in all thy land, which Jehovah thy God hath given to thee;

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 thou hast eaten the fruit of thy body, flesh of thy sons and thy daughters (whom Jehovah thy God hath given to thee), in the siege, and in the straitness with which thine enemies do straiten thee.

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 'The man who is tender in thee, and who [is] very delicate — his eye is evil against his brother, and against the wife of his bosom, and against the remnant of his sons whom he leaveth,

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 against giving to one of them of the flesh of his sons whom he eateth, because he hath nothing left to him, in the siege, and in the straitness with which thine enemy doth straiten thee in all thy gates.

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 'The tender woman in thee, and the delicate, who hath not tried the sole of her foot to place on the ground because of delicateness and because of tenderness — her eye is evil against the husband of her bosom, and against her son, and against 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 against her seed which cometh out from between her feet, even against her sons whom she doth bear, for she doth eat them for the lacking of all things in secret, in the siege and in the straitness with which thine enemy doth straiten thee within thy gates.

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 thou dost not observe to do all the words of this law which are written in this book, to fear this honoured and fearful name — Jehovah thy 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 hath Jehovah made wonderful thy strokes, and the strokes of thy seed — great strokes, and stedfast, and evil sicknesses, and stedfast.

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

60 'And He hath brought back on thee all the diseases of Egypt, of the presence of which thou hast been afraid, and they have cleaved to thee;

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

61 also every sickness and every stroke which is not written in the book of this law; Jehovah doth cause them to go up upon thee till thou art destroyed,

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 ye have been left with few men, instead of which ye have been as stars of the heavens for multitude, because thou hast not hearkened to the voice of Jehovah thy 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 hath been, as Jehovah hath rejoiced over you to do you good, and to multiply you, so doth Jehovah rejoice over you to destroy you, and to lay you waste; and ye have been pulled away from off the ground whither thou art going in to possess 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 Jehovah hath scattered thee among all the peoples, from the end of the earth even unto the end of the earth; and thou hast served there other gods which thou hast not known, thou and thy fathers — wood and stone.

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 'And among those nations thou dost not rest, yea, there is no resting-place for the sole of thy foot, and Jehovah hath given to thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and grief of 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 thy life hath been hanging in suspense before thee, and thou hast been afraid by night and by day, and dost not believe in thy 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 thou sayest, O that it were evening! and in the evening thou sayest, O that it were morning! from the fear of thy heart, with which thou art afraid, and from the sight of thine eyes which thou seest.

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 Jehovah hath brought thee back to Egypt with ships, by a way of which I said to thee, Thou dost not add any more to see it, and ye have sold yourselves there to thine enemies, for men-servants and for maid-servants, and there is no buyer.'

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.”