So that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his children whom he shall eat: because he hath nothing left him in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee in all thy gates.
Read it in contextThe Curses of Disobedience
Start reading at Deuteronomy 28:15 (Deuteronomy 28:15 to Deuteronomy 28:68).
An editorial reading unit, not a claim that the surrounding context stops here. Book background below applies to the shared passage; individual verses may need more specific explanation.
This unit closes the chapter’s selected reading divisions. The speeches set out covenant consequences and call Israel to choose life through love and obedience rather than presume upon privilege.
28:15But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe 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:
28:16Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.
28:17Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store.
28:18Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.
28:19Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out.
28:20The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me.
28:21The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it.
28:22The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
28:23And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
28:24The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.
28:25The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.
28:26And thy carcase shall be meat unto all fowls of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and no man shall fray them away.
28:27The LORD will smite thee with the botch of Egypt, and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed.
28:28The LORD shall smite thee with madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart:
28:29And 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 evermore, and no man shall save thee.
28:30Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: thou shalt build an house, and thou shalt not dwell therein: thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not gather the grapes thereof.
28:31Thine ox shall be slain before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof: thine ass shall be violently taken away from before thy face, and shall not be restored to thee: thy sheep shall be given unto thine enemies, and thou shalt have none to rescue them.
28:32Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day long: and there shall be no might in thine hand:
28:33The fruit of thy land, and all thy labours, shall a nation which thou knowest not eat up; and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed alway:
28:34So that thou shalt be mad for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see.
28:35The LORD shall smite thee in the knees, and in the legs, with a sore botch that cannot be healed, from the sole of thy foot unto the top of thy head.
28:36The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone.
28:37And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations whither the LORD shall lead thee.
28:38Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather but little in; for the locust shall consume it.
28:39Thou shalt plant vineyards, and dress them, but shalt neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them.
28:40Thou shalt have olive trees throughout all thy coasts, but thou shalt not anoint thyself with the oil; for thine olive shall cast his fruit.
28:41Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them; for they shall go into captivity.
28:42All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust consume.
28:43The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high; and thou shalt come down very low.
28:44He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail.
28:45Moreover all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou be destroyed; because thou hearkenedst not unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee:
28:46And they shall be upon thee for a sign and for a wonder, and upon thy seed for ever.
28:47Because thou servedst not the LORD thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things;
28:48Therefore shalt thou serve thine enemies which the LORD shall send against thee, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron upon thy neck, until he have destroyed thee.
28:49The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand;
28:50A nation of fierce countenance, which shall not regard the person of the old, nor shew favour to the young:
28:51And he shall eat the fruit of thy cattle, and the fruit of thy land, until thou be destroyed: which also shall not leave thee either corn, wine, or oil, or the increase of thy kine, or flocks of thy sheep, until he have destroyed thee.
28:52And he shall besiege thee in all thy gates, until thy high and fenced walls come down, wherein thou trustedst, throughout all thy land: and he shall besiege thee in all thy gates throughout all thy land, which the LORD thy God hath given thee.
28:53And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the LORD thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee:
28:54So that the man that 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 which he shall leave:
28:55So that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his children whom he shall eat: because he hath nothing left him in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee in all thy gates.
28:56The tender and delicate woman among you, which would not adventure to set the sole of her foot upon 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,
28:57And toward her young one that cometh out from between her feet, and toward her children which she shall bear: for she shall eat them for want of all things secretly in the siege and straitness, wherewith thine enemy shall distress thee in thy gates.
28:58If 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;
28:59Then the LORD will make thy plagues wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and sore sicknesses, and of long continuance.
28:60Moreover he will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt, which thou wast afraid of; and they shall cleave unto thee.
28:61Also 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.
28:62And 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.
28:63And 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 it.
28:64And 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.
28:65And 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:
28:66And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life:
28:67In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even! and at 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.
28:68And the LORD shall bring 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.
Study content, not yet reviewed.
Who
Who wrote the book? Moses is the principal speaker and is expressly credited with writing the law. The account of his death was supplied by a later hand; identifying that final writer as Joshua is traditional, not certain. Biblical references: Deuteronomy 31:9; Deuteronomy 31:24; Deuteronomy 34:5. Historical source: Babylonian Talmud, Bava Batra 14b–15a (record of Jewish attribution, not contemporary proof). stated in the text
Who was present or being addressed in this passage? In the surrounding chapter context (Deuteronomy 27:1–30:20): Moses addresses the assembled covenant community, including leaders, women, children, and resident strangers, concerning the covenant, its consequences, and the call to choose life. stated in the text
Who was the book written to? Israel assembled in Moab before entering Canaan, and their children and later generations who were to hear the law read. Biblical references: Deuteronomy 1:1; Deuteronomy 29:10; Deuteronomy 31:12. stated in the text
What
What is the topic of this reading unit? The Curses of Disobedience. Read Deuteronomy 28:15 through Deuteronomy 28:68 as a connected unit. interpretation
How does it contribute to the book? This unit closes the chapter’s selected reading divisions. The speeches set out covenant consequences and call Israel to choose life through love and obedience rather than presume upon privilege. interpretation
When
When are the events or message set? Moses speaks at the end of the wilderness period, before Israel crosses the Jordan. Deuteronomy 1:3 identifies the fortieth year and gives a month and day. book background
Where
What is the book’s geographic setting? The speeches are set in Moab east of the Jordan, recalling earlier places and anticipating life in Canaan. book background
Where does the context start?
This passage sits in The Curses of Disobedience (Deuteronomy 28:15 to Deuteronomy 28:68).
Start reading at Deuteronomy 28:15. An editorial reading unit, not a claim that the surrounding context stops here. Book background below applies to the shared passage; individual verses may need more specific explanation.
How
How does this book connect with Jesus Christ? Acts applies Moses' promise of a prophet to Jesus, and Jesus uses Deuteronomy in His answers during temptation. These are explicit New Testament connections to the book. See Deuteronomy 18:15, Acts 3:22, Matthew 4:4, Matthew 4:7. interpretation
How should this book guide our response? Remember what God has done and join hearing with obedience. Preserve the covenant audience and conditions when applying promises about land, blessing, judgment, and return. interpretation
Cited: Deuteronomy 28:15, Deuteronomy 28:68, Deuteronomy 18:15, Acts 3:22, Matthew 4:4, Matthew 4:7
Early traditionJewish tradition (Baba Bathra 14b) and the early church name Moses.
What is debatedChapter 34 records the death of Moses, so even conservative scholars hold that a later hand, often identified as Joshua, added the closing account. Critical scholars date the book much later, to the seventh century B.C.
Cross references from CrossReferences-org (CC BY 4.0).
Macro-Structure
See how this passage fits the chapter and the book.
Macro-Structure of Deuteronomy 28
Prefilled outline, not yet reviewed.
Moses addresses Israel in Moab before the people cross the Jordan. The speeches recall the wilderness, expound covenant obligations, and confront the next generation with choices and consequences. Local headings and stanza divisions are editorial reading aids adapted from public-domain BSB headings; verse boundaries and Scripture links use the KJV. Connections describe the surrounding book movement.
Connection to the wholeThis opening unit introduces the chapter’s movement. The speeches set out covenant consequences and call Israel to choose life through love and obedience rather than presume upon privilege.
Connection to the wholeThis unit closes the chapter’s selected reading divisions. The speeches set out covenant consequences and call Israel to choose life through love and obedience rather than presume upon privilege.
interpretation
Suggested literary divisions. Headings summarize the passage; they are not part of the biblical text.
Macro-Structure of Deuteronomy
Prefilled outline, not yet reviewed.
Moses addresses Israel in Moab before the people cross the Jordan. The speeches recall the wilderness, expound covenant obligations, and confront the next generation with choices and consequences.
Connection to the wholeThe covenant commands and appeals join exclusive devotion to the LORD with hearing, remembering, teaching, and obeying His words.
Connection to the wholeDetailed commands apply covenant faithfulness to public worship, leadership, households, work, and the care of vulnerable people.
Connection to the wholeThe speeches set out covenant consequences and call Israel to choose life through love and obedience rather than presume upon privilege.