Deuteronomy 28: 1 – 14“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. All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you, if you will obey the voice of the LORD your God:
You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.
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.
Your basket and kneading bowl will be blessed.
You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.
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.
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.
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. 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.
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.
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.
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. 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.”
Success! Abundance! Incredible wealth! Long life! Healthy families! When we read this list of blessings, they are almost incredible. This is the time of year when many churches are having services and promising great things for the coming year. But the list of blessings in Deuteronomy 28 makes most of the promises made by these churches pale by comparison.
These blessings are the ones to be pronounced over Israel by the six tribes standing on Mount Gerizim. The term “Gerizim” means “cut up” or “cutters,” and the altar on Gerizim was to be made of cut stones. Even though these verses do not command it, it is quite likely that the tribes would all shout “Amen!” as loudly as possible in agreement with these blessings.
APPLICATION: Reading this long list of wonderful things, we must wonder how could the Israelites have ever gone over these lists and then rebelled against God? Nothing makes sense! After all, if the Ruler of the Universe offered us this kind of a deal, we would certainly take it up and we would never go back on our promises…. Or would we?
The problem with human nature is that we are all human. Any fallacy that has tempted another person can equally tempt us. The days when the IsraelitThe Israeliteses heard these verses read, they undoubtedly intended to keep their covenant with God and to follow Him whole – heartedly. But then things became a little difficult and compromise began to look far more appealing.
The question Satan asked Eve in the garden of Eden was this, “Did God REALLY say….??” If we don’t pay strict attention to God’s Word, it’s easy to become confused and think we remember what He said when we don’t.
The Israelites listened, but the list of blessings never made it from their heads down into their hearts. Sometimes people feel that this list of blessings only existed for the Israelites; however, God still wants to bless those who will follow Him. Does this list of blessings mean that nothing bad will ever happen to us? No. But we can be assured that God does love us and that He wants to bless those who follow Him.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Thank You for Your blessings. Help us to honor You in every aspect of our lives. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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