Deuteronomy 28:58-68

Deuteronomy 28:58-68

[58] If thou wilt not observe  to do  all the words  of this law  that are written  in this book,  that thou mayest fear  this glorious  and fearful  name,  THE LORD  THY GOD;  [59] Then the LORD  thy plagues  wonderful,  and the plagues  of thy seed,  even great  plagues,  and of long continuance,  and sore  sicknesses,  and of long continuance.  [60] Moreover he will bring  upon thee all the diseases  of Egypt,  which thou wast afraid  of;  and they shall cleave  unto thee. [61] 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.  [62] And ye shall be left  few  in number,  whereas  ye were as the stars  of heaven  for multitude;  because thou wouldest not obey  the voice  of the LORD  thy 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 to bring you to nought;  and ye shall be plucked  from off the land  whither thou goest  to possess  [64] And the LORD  shall scatter  thee among all people,  from the one end  of the earth  even unto the other;  and there thou shalt serve  other  gods,  which neither thou nor thy fathers  have known,  even wood  and stone.  [65] And among these  nations  shalt thou find no ease,  neither shall the sole  of thy foot  have rest:  but the LORD  shall give  thee there a trembling  heart,  and failing  of eyes,  and sorrow  of mind:  [66] And thy life  shall hang  in doubt before  thee; and thou shalt fear  day  and night,  and shalt have none assurance  of thy life:  [67] In the morning  thou shalt say,  Would God it were  even!  thou shalt say,  Would God it were  morning!  for the fear  of thine heart  wherewith thou shalt fear,  and for the sight  of thine eyes  which thou shalt see.  [68] And the LORD  thee into Egypt  again  with ships,  by the way  whereof I spake  unto thee, Thou shalt see  it no more again:  and there ye shall be sold  unto your enemies  for bondmen  and bondwomen,  and no man shall buy  you.

What does Deuteronomy 28:58-68 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

The fifth view shows Israel deprived of all the benefits she had formerly enjoyed (cf. Deuteronomy 6:21-23; Deuteronomy 26:5-9). This section deals with disease and disasters in the land ( Deuteronomy 28:58-63) and deportation from the land ( Deuteronomy 28:64-68). Both parts picture a reversal of Exodus blessings.
In the later history of Israel the punishments God predicted here took place very literally when the people disobeyed His law. What Moses described in Deuteronomy 28:32-36 happened in the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities. Deuteronomy 28:52-57 found fulfillment then as well as in the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and Israel in A.D70. Deuteronomy 28:64-68 have taken place during the Roman invasion of A.D70 , in the Middle Ages, the Russian pogroms, Nazi Germany, and the present day.
God designed these blessings and curses to persuade His people to obey His covenant with them. Stronger proof of the blessing of obedience and the blasting of disobedience is hardly imaginable. God"s will was, and Isaiah , very clear and simple: obey His Word.
This section of Deuteronomy (chs27-28) is one of the most important ones in Scripture because it records the two options open to Israel as she entered the Promised Land. Obedience to the revealed Word of God would result in blessing, but disobedience would result in blasting. Scholars who do not believe in supernatural prophecy have said that it would have been impossible for Moses to have written these words. They say the subsequent history of Israel so accurately fulfilled these warnings that someone must have written them much later, perhaps after the Babylonian captivity. The books of Joshua ,, Judges , Samuel, and Kings take pains to point out how God fulfilled what Moses said here in Israel"s later history. [1] Martin Noth advanced the theory that one man or a group of men later in Israel"s history edited Joshua ,, Judges , Samuel, and Kings to validate what the writer of Deuteronomy predicted. [2] Internal evidence as well as Jewish tradition, however, suggest that these books had separate writers, and their writers composed them earlier than Noth proposed.
"For understanding and explaining Israel"s history as recorded throughout the Old Testament, there are perhaps no more important chapters than Deuteronomy 28-30." [3]
The purpose of the whole ceremony Moses described here was to impress the Israelites with the importance and solemnity of entering into and perpetuating covenant relationship with Yahweh. This ceremony was to be a formal occasion that the Canaanites as well as the Israelites would perceive as a covenant renewal ritual.
"When the Greeks invaded Palestine in332 B.C, the Samaritans sought and obtained permission from the Greeks to build a temple on Mt. Gerizim. This temple was later destroyed and replaced by a Roman temple, but the Samaritans have observed their sacred festivals, including the Passover, on Mt. Gerizim ever since." [4]