Deuteronomy 27–28

Chapter 27

¹And Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying, Keep all the commandment which I command you this day. ²And it shall be on the day when ye pass over the Jordan unto the land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee, that thou shalt set thee up great stones, and plaster them with plaster: ³and thou shalt write upon them all the words of this law, when thou goest over that thou mayest enter into the land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, as Jehovah the God of thy fathers hath promised thee. ⁴And it shall be when ye go over the Jordan, that ye shall set up these stones, as I command you this day, on mount Ebal, and thou shalt plaster them with plaster. ⁵And there shalt thou build an altar to Jehovah thy God, an altar of stones; thou shalt not lift up an iron tool upon them; ⁶of whole stones shalt thou build the altar of Jehovah thy God; and thou shalt offer up burnt-offerings thereon to Jehovah thy God. ⁷And thou shalt sacrifice peace-offerings, and shalt eat there, and rejoice before Jehovah thy God. ⁸And thou shalt write upon the stones all the words of this law very plainly. ⁹And Moses and the priests, the Levites, spoke to all Israel, saying, Be silent and hearken, Israel! this day thou art become the people of Jehovah thy God. ¹⁰And thou shalt hearken unto the voice of Jehovah thy God, and do his commandments and his statutes, which I command thee this day.

¹¹And Moses gave commandment to the people the same day, saying, ¹²These shall stand to bless the people upon mount Gerizim, when ye have gone over the Jordan: Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and Benjamin. ¹³And these shall stand upon mount Ebal to curse: Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali. ¹⁴And the Levites shall declare and say unto all the men of Israel with a loud voice: ¹⁵Cursed be the man that maketh a graven or molten image, an abomination to Jehovah, a work of the craftsman’s hand, and putteth it up secretly! And all the people shall answer and say, Amen. ¹⁶Cursed be he that slighteth his father or his mother! And all the people shall say, Amen. ¹⁷Cursed be he that removeth his neighbour’s landmark! And all the people shall say, Amen. ¹⁸Cursed be he that maketh the blind to wander out of the way! And all the people shall say, Amen. ¹⁹Cursed be he that perverteth the judgment of the stranger, fatherless, and widow! And all the people shall say, Amen. ²⁰Cursed be he that lieth with his father’s wife; for he uncovereth his father’s skirt! And all the people shall say, Amen. ²¹Cursed be he that lieth with any manner of beast! And all the people shall say, Amen. ²²Cursed be he that lieth with his sister, the daughter of his father, or the daughter of his mother! And all the people shall say, Amen. ²³Cursed be he that lieth with his mother-in-law! And all the people shall say, Amen. ²⁴Cursed be he that smiteth his neighbour secretly! And all the people shall say, Amen. ²⁵Cursed be he that taketh reward to smite mortally shedding innocent blood! And all the people shall say, Amen. ²⁶Cursed be he that confirmeth not the words of this law to do them! And all the people shall say, Amen.

Chapter 28

¹And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of Jehovah thy God, to take heed to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that Jehovah thy God will set thee supreme above all nations of the earth; ²and all these blessings shall come on thee and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of Jehovah thy God. ³Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. ⁴Blessed shall be the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the offspring of thy kine, and the increase of thy sheep. ⁵Blessed shall be thy basket and thy kneading-trough. ⁶Blessed shalt thou be in thy coming in, and blessed shalt thou be in thy going out. ⁷Jehovah will give up, smitten before thee, thine enemies that rise up against thee; they shall come out against thee one way, and by seven ways shall they flee before thee. ⁸Jehovah will command blessing on thee in thy granaries, and in all the business of thy hand; and he will bless thee in the land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee. ⁹Jehovah will establish thee unto himself a holy people as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou keep the commandments of Jehovah thy God, and walk in his ways. ¹⁰And all peoples of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of Jehovah, and they shall be afraid of thee. ¹¹And Jehovah will give thee abundance of good, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land that Jehovah swore unto thy fathers to give thee. ¹²Jehovah will open to thee his good treasure, the heavens, to give rain unto thy land in its season, and to bless all the work of thy hand; and thou shalt lend unto many nations, but thou shalt not borrow. ¹³And Jehovah will make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if thou hearken unto the commandments of Jehovah thy God, which I command thee this day, to keep and to do them, ¹⁴and if thou turn not aside from any of the words that I command thee this day, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.

¹⁵But it shall come to pass if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of Jehovah thy God, to take heed to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day, that all these curses shall come upon thee and overtake thee. ¹⁶Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field. ¹⁷Cursed shall be thy basket and thy kneading-trough. ¹⁸Cursed shall be the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy ground, the offspring of thy kine, and the increase of thy sheep. ¹⁹Cursed shalt thou be in thy coming in, and cursed shalt thou be in thy going out. ²⁰Jehovah will send upon thee cursing, confusion, and rebuke, in all the business of thy hand which thou doest, until thou be destroyed and until thou perish quickly, because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me. ²¹Jehovah will make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land whither thou goest to possess it. ²²Jehovah will smite thee with consumption, and with fever, and with inflammation, and with burning ague, and with drought, and with blight, and with mildew, and they shall pursue thee until thou perish. ²³And thy heavens which are over thy head shall be brass, and the earth which is under thee, iron. ²⁴Jehovah will give as the rain of thy land powder and dust; from the heavens shall it come down upon thee until thou be destroyed. ²⁵Jehovah will give thee up smitten before thine enemies; thou shalt go out against them one way, and by seven ways shalt thou flee before them; and thou shalt be driven hither and thither into all the kingdoms of the earth. ²⁶And thy carcase shall be meat unto all the fowl of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and there shall be no man to scare them away. ²⁷Jehovah will smite thee with the ulcers of Egypt, and with boils, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed. ²⁸Jehovah will smite thee with madness, and with blindness, and with astonishment of heart; ²⁹and thou shalt grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness, and thou shalt not prosper in thy ways; and thou shalt be only oppressed and spoiled continually, and there shall be none to save. ³⁰Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her; thou shalt build a house, and thou shalt not dwell therein; thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not eat of it. ³¹Thine ox shall be slaughtered before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof; thine ass shall be snatched away from before thy face, and shall not return to thee; thy sheep shall be given unto thine enemies, and thou shalt have none to recover them. ³²Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and languish for them all the day long; and there shall be no power in thy hand to help it. ³³The fruit of thy ground and all thy labour, shall a people that thou knowest not eat up; and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed continually. ³⁴And thou shalt be mad through the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see. ³⁵Jehovah will smite thee in the knees and in the legs with evil ulcers, whereof thou canst not be healed, from the sole of thy foot unto the top of thy head. ³⁶Jehovah will bring thee, and thy king whom thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation that neither thou nor thy fathers have known, and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone. ³⁷And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all the peoples whither Jehovah shall lead thee. ³⁸Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather little in; for the locust shall devour it. ³⁹Thou shalt plant and till vineyards, but shalt drink no wine, nor gather the fruit; for the worms shall eat it. ⁴⁰Olive-trees shalt thou have throughout all thy borders, but thou shalt not anoint thyself with oil; for thine olive-tree shall cast its fruit. ⁴¹Sons and daughters shalt thou beget, but thou shalt not have them to be with thee; for they shall go into captivity. ⁴²All thy trees and the fruit of thy ground shall the locust possess. ⁴³The sojourner that is in thy midst shall rise above thee higher and higher, and thou shalt sink down lower and lower. ⁴⁴He shall lend to thee, but thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail.

⁴⁵And all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, until thou be destroyed; because thou hearkenedst not unto the voice of Jehovah thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee. ⁴⁶And they shall be upon thee for a sign and for a wonder,…