Answers. Questions. Deuteronomy 28:1-68

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1 1 Answers to Questions on Deuteronomy 28: Israel had obligated themselves to obey the law of the Lord, the Torah. (See Hamilton.) 2. Verses 1 14 of this chapter specify blessings God will bestow on those who keep the terms of this covenant. 3. Verses of this chapter specify punishments God will bring on those who do not keep the terms of this covenant. 4. As expressed, the curses are the reverse of the blessings to a significant degree. 5. Hall wrote, Ancient near eastern treaties included at or near the end a list of blessings and/or curses to provide motivation for adherence to the treaty. Moses followed this ancient custom regarding the inclusion of blessings and curses. 6. Coffman wrote that only God could have revealed in advance a record of a nation covering more than thirty-five hundred (3,500) years which is accurate in all respects.

2 According to verse 1, what would Israel have to do to be blessed by the Lord? Israel would have to obey the Lord and observe all His commandments. 8. List the blessings enumerated by Moses in verses 1-14 which would result from faithfully serving God. 1) They would be blessed in the city and in the field. 2) Their children as well as crops, livestock, caves and lambs would be blessed. 3) Their baskets and mixing bowls would be blessed. 4) Their coming and going, their daily activities would be blessed. 5) They would be protected from their enemies. 6) Their barns would be full. 7) As God s people all nations would respect them. 8) Their children and their livestock would greatly multiply. 9) Their land would be blessed with rain for the crops. 10) They would lend to nations but not have to borrow. 11) They would be at the head of all matters, not on the bottom.

3 God would bless Israel if they obeyed the Lord. 10. What would happen to Israel if they were disobedient to God? List the curses enumerated in verses which would result from disobedience. 1) They would be cursed in the cities and fields. 2) Baskets and mixing bowls would be cursed. 3) Their children, crops and livestock would be cursed. 4) Daily activities of coming and going would be cursed. 5) Their every undertaking would be cursed and destroyed. 6) They would be cursed with diseases and plagues. 7) They would be cursed with confusion. 8) They would suffer weakness, fevers and infections until they perished. 9) Drought would plague their land until they were destroyed. 10) God would no longer protect them from their enemies. 11) Their corpses would be food for the carrion eaters. 12) Their bodies would be cursed with the plagues of Egypt. 13) They would suffer madness, blindness and confusion. 14) Their betrothed would be raped and their villages and vineyards plagued. 15) Their work animals would be slaughtered or stolen and their flocks taken by enemies. 16) Another nation would consume all of their produce. 17) Seeing these curses happen would cause them to go insane. 18) Their bodies would be afflicted with painful boils. 19) A plague of locusts would cover their land. 20) They would be taken into slavery. 21) They would be besieged by foreigners, and eat the flesh of their families. 22) They would be decimated by famine and warfare and their remnants scattered among nations.

4 All God s blessings collectively and each one separately were contingent on Israel s obeying the Lord their God. 12. People lived in villages (cities) and daily left their residences to work in their nearby fields. Of course, some lived and worked in town. The Israelites of that era were largely involved in agrarian vocational enterprises. 13. Canaan was a land flowing with milk and honey, a land of abundant food. However, on occasion, famine had been a serious recurrence in the land. (See Hall.)

5 Identify Baal and Astarte. Why were the Israelites attracted to Baal and Astarte? Baal and Astarte were worshiped as providers of fertility by Canaanites and Phoenicians. The Israelites who worshiped them did not trust the Lord to bless them with abundant crops, flocks, herds and children that He had promised. Instead they placed their faith in false gods made by man. 15. For what were baskets and mixing bowls used? (See verse 5.) Baskets were used to gather and carry produce. Mixing bowls were used to knead bread dough. 16. Those on God s side will be victorious. The righteous will be secure. 17. God promised to give military victory to the faithful. 18. As long as Israel remained faithful to God, they would be successful in life s pursuits.

6 Of all the world s peoples, why did God choose Israel to be his chosen people? God chose a small, insignificant tribe to demonstrate to the world His love for mankind and how great His blessings are for those who believe, honor and obey His commands. Throughout history He has used average people to show His power and blessings to the world to inspire others to believe and worship Him. Isaiah 41: The world watches those of us who profess to follow the Lord. If we are faithful and are blessed because of our dedication to God, others will respect the Lord and will want to also serve the Lord. The opposite is also true. 21. The world would see Israel s prosperity and would revere Israel s God who provided Israel s blessings. (See The Pulpit Commentary.) 22. As long as Israel remained faithful to God, they would enjoy prosperity. God would open to them his good treasure house. 23. Define God s treasure house. God s treasure house is the heavens from which He gives abundant sunshine and rain that provide the bounty of the earth to sustain man. God controls the heavens and He promised to make their lands fruitful.

7 Upon those who sincerely obeyed the Lord, prosperity, success and prominence would be bestowed. 25. Contrast the blessings of the righteous with the plight of the wicked then and now. The blessings of the righteous and the plight of the wicked are the exact opposite of each other as evidenced by contrasting heaven with hell, life with death, etc. 26. The word if is used repeatedly in this chapter to emphasize that everything good hinged on Israel s being faithful to God. 27. How many of God s commands did Israel have to obey to please the Lord? All of them!

8 From God s way we are to turn neither to the right nor the left. We are not to get on the right path and sit down either. 29. The disasters addressed in verses result from disobedience to God and lead to the disgrace of Israel before the nations. 30. God used both positive (blessings) and negative (curses) motivators to modify the behavior of the Israelites. (See Hall.) 31. Some of the blessings and curses were the natural result of the Israelites conduct while others were the result of direct divine intervention. 32. In what five paragraphs does Coffman say the curses of Deuteronomy 28 are arranged? Deuteronomy 28:20-26, Deuteronomy 28:27-37, Deuteronomy 28:38-48, Deuteronomy 28:49-57, Deuteronomy 28: Israel s sin led to the loss of Israel s status as God s chosen people. All manner of troubles would plague sinful Israel on their way to destruction. 34. Which blessings and curses are the exact opposite of each other. Cite the corresponding verses in which these opposites can be found. Verse 16 cursed in cities and fields. Verse

9 9 3 blessed in the cities and fields. Verse 17 cursed baskets and mixing bowls. Verse 5 blessed baskets and mixing bowls. Verse 18 cursed children. Verse 4 blessed children. Verse 19 cursed coming and going. Verse 6 blessed coming and going. 35. It is still true that we reap what we sow! 36. How does The Pulpit Commentary s grouping of the curses agree and disagree with Coffman s grouping? How important are these differences? Coffman Pulpit Commentary The differences are not significant and do not alter the message. 37. All manner of painful and incurable illnesses and injuries would befall those who rebelled against God.

10 Define sirocco. A hot, dry sandstorm that originates in the Sahara desert. 39. The results of such storms are death, destruction and devastation. 40. According to verse 5, how bad would sinful Israel s military defeats be? Define seven as used in this verse. They would face total military destruction. The reference to seven directions shows that the decimated Israelite army would flee in all directions in panic, nor is an orderly retreat. 41. What would happen to the carcasses of Israel s soldiers killed in battle according to verse 26? How did Israel view this desecration? Their bodies would be left on the battlefield to be eaten by wild animals and birds of prey. To be left in this state showed disrespect for the deceased.

11 What medical conditions do you fear the most? What can you do to avoid them? Answers will vary from one person to another. 43. Give examples, biblical and otherwise, illustrating the fact that sin can cause mental illness, that sin can drive you crazy. Daniel 4:19-37 chronicles the madness of king Nebuchadnezzar brought on by his unrighteousness. He lived like a wild animal eating grass. His sanity was later restored by God. 44. How would it be to fail at everything you try to do, to succeed in absolutely nothing, to be confused even in regard to the performance of the simplest tasks? To fail at everything you tried, regardless of difficulty, would be so frustrating it would drive you insane.

12 Why would a rational person follow a lifestyle that would cause him/her to be constantly oppressed, to be continually robbed and left with no one to save him? Answer thoughtfully. A rational person would not follow such a lifestyle that is the very definition of insanity, to keep repeating the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome. 46. Sin produces horrible heartbreak, emotional turmoil and distress. 47. What are the worse things that have ever happened to you? How do these things compare with what would happen to sinful Israel? Each person s answer will vary. 48. Everything of value would be forcefully taken away from sinful Israel leaving them destitute, and there was nothing they could do about it.

13 Utter agony!... witnessing their children being taken hostage by enemy nations or kidnapped and being powerless to do anything about it. 50. Describe the emotional turmoil you would experience if others got all you have labored to produce and you would be nothing but oppressed and crushed for the rest of your life... living with no hope that things would ever be any better. A feeling of utter despair would engulf you. You would reach the point of thinking why even try to accomplish anything when nothing works anymore? 51. Sin can drive you crazy!... Literally! 52. Incurable illness can be the result of sin. Facing an incurable illness can be totally devastating. Even facing a serious illness that is curable involves risks... anxiety, even more so if a person knows his sins have brought his troubles upon himself. 53. Give occasions when Israel was conquered and taken as prisoners to a foreign land where they worshiped idols made of wood and stone. 2 Kings 17:6-13; 2 Kings 24:20; 1 Chronicles 5:25-26; Isaiah 9:16-17; 10:5; 10:10-11; Ezekiel 33:25-29; Jeremiah 44:1-3.

14 Explain how Israel became an occasion of horror, an object of ridicule and a proverb. What is meant by these descriptive words? Their disobedience to God would bring curses upon them and their effect would be so dramatic that they would become an object of scorn and ridicule to other nations. This is just the opposite of the blessings in verse Sinful Israel would work hard in the fields, but would gather only a very small harvest. Why was this? God will forsake them if they turn away from Him. He will withhold His blessing of rainfall and sunshine necessary to raise crops and what they plant will fail. 56. Verses address every kind of labor and enterprise leading to the financial collapse of the nation. What crops were mentioned in verses 38-40? Grapes and olives.

15 According to verse 41, what would happen to their sons and daughters? What effect would this have on the nation? Their sons and daughters would be taken into captivity. This would rob a nation of it s future generations and take away the young adults who were working on the family farms and tending flocks and herds. The parents would suffer mental anguish seeing their offspring carried away into bondage. 58. Foreigners would move into Israel and would gain control of the nation elevating their status and forcing the Israelites to become subservient. How could, did this happen? While slaves, the Israelites became numerically superior to their Egyptian masters. Likewise, resident foreigners could outnumber the Israelites and gain control. After the temple and Jerusalem were decimated in 70 A.D., the Jews were dispersed. Palestine remained under Roman control until about 400 A.D. Israel finally became a country again in 1948.

16 Because of Israel s sins, foreigners would lend to Israel, but Israel would not lend to foreigners. Foreigners would become the head and Israel would become the tail. 60. How long would these curses continue to fall on Israel? They would continue until sinful Israel was destroyed. 61. Why would these curses fall on Israel? Because they did not obey God by keeping His commandments and statutes. 62. Israel had not served God joyfully and wholeheartedly with the abundance of everything they had. 63. Because of this, what would happen to Israel? They would be enslaved by their enemies.

17 What is the significance of the term iron yoke in verse 49? A well fit wooden yoke made the work easier on the animals. An iron yoke denotes the opposite, that it would be a harsh, heavy load for the Israelites to bear. 65. To what nation(s) do verses 49 and 50 refer? Give reasons for your answer. A very strong case can be made that the conquering nation was Rome. The eagle on their standards and their language match the description given by Moses. History also backs this up, In 63 B.C. the Roman general Pompey seized Jerusalem establishing Roman rule over the Jews which lasted until about 400 A.D. 66. What, according to verses 50-51, will this/these foreign nation(s) do to Israel? The invading armies will devour all

18 18 of the food, the crops and the livestock leaving nothing for the Israelites. 67. Describe the appearance and character of the soldiers of this/these foreign nation(s). They would be a nation of stern or fierce appearance. They would show no mercy or compassion for the elderly or the young. 68. What would the Israelites do because of the severity of the siege? Does the severity of the siege excuse Israel for their actions? Give reasons for your answer. They would engage in the most horrible behavior in order to survive. They would even eat their young. The will to survive is one of the strongest components of human nature, yet we also abhor cannibalism. The deprivation caused by lack of food and water causes people to become totally irrational and insane. It is part of the curse.

19 If all the things previously mentioned in this chapter did not bring Israel to repentance, what would the Lord do? Their punishment would increase and afflict future generations. They would suffer every imaginable sickness, plague and war until they perished. 70. Repentance involved obeying all the words of this law and fearing the glorious and awesome name of the Lord their God. 71. God can foresee the future as well as the past. God determines what will happen in the future. Everything is under divine control either by instituting the laws, of nature, providential care, or direct intervention. 72. Just as the Lord delighted to do Israel good and made them numerous, he will delight in destroying and decimating Israel. 73. What is meant by God s being delighted? Does it surprise you that God delighted in destroying and decimating disobedient Israel? Does this conflict with your opinion of God s nature? Give reasons for, explain your answers. In this instance delight may mean that God has finally run out of patience with

20 20 Israel s sinful ways. He had gone as far as He could with them and would be relieved to be rid of their disobedience and apostasy. We may view this as harsh punishment, but in all of the books of the Pentateuch, God repeatedly warned Israel of the consequences of disobedience. And, we can t say we weren t warned! 74. In view of verse 64, discuss the dispersion of Israelites among all the nations of the world. The diaspora and other dispersions are historical facts and those were terrible times for the Hebrews. But, later God used the dispersion to spread the gospel to the world outside Israel. The apostle Paul frequently found synagogues in the surrounding nations in which he could preach the good news of Jesus Christ. 75. What would Israel do in their dispersion, what sufferings would they endure? How bad would things become for those Israelites who were scattered among the nations of the world? They were destined to have a life full of misery and tribulations. They would have no rest, no peace in their

21 21 lives. They would constantly be anxious and full of despair, their lives full of uncertainty. 76. Because of their sins, Israel would return to slavery. They left Egypt by land as a free people, but would return by ship as slaves. 77. When did Israel s return to slavery occur? In A.D. 70 the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the temple and carried large numbers of Jews to Egypt in slavery. The Pulpit Commentary further states,... in the time of Hadrian, multitudes of Jews were sold into slavery. Hadrian was emperor of Rome A.D Defeated Israel offered themselves as slaves, but no one was interested in buying them. This is the pits, rock bottom, as low as you can get! This is what sin will do for you! 79. What does The Pulpit Commentary say about Israel in relation to the Romans, Titus and Hadrian? Jerusalem was destroyed by the Roman army under Titus and the Israelites were taken as slaves during the reign of Hadrian.

22 How can Deuteronomy 28 be summarized? If you obey God, you will be blessed. If you disobey, you will be punished. God will reward His faithful with blessings. The disobedient will suffer punishment for their transgressions. The torments of the curses reads like a preview of the eternal punishments that will afflict sinners in hell.

Deuteronomy 28:15-68 Curses for Failure to Obey Commandments of God Failure to Obey the Commandments of God will bring on the Curses of God

Deuteronomy 28:15-68 Curses for Failure to Obey Commandments of God Failure to Obey the Commandments of God will bring on the Curses of God 15 "But it shall come to pass, if you do not obey the voice of