Deuteronomy 28:19

¹⁸The fruit of your womb will be cursed, as well as the produce of your land, the calves of your herds, and the lambs of your flocks. ¹⁹You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out.

Summary

This verse is part of the blessings and curses pronounced by Moses upon the Israelites based on their obedience or disobedience to God's commands. Here, Moses warns of the consequences of turning away from the Lord, including the loss of crops and the destruction of their livelihood. It serves as a reminder of the importance of faithfulness and obedience to God's covenant, highlighting the direct correlation between their actions and the outcomes they experience. Ultimately, this verse underscores the principle of reaping what one sows, emphasizing the need for God's people to honor Him in all aspects of their lives.

Commentary

John Gill

John Gill Bible Commentary

The Lord shall smite thee with a consumption,.... An emaciation of their bodies, either through famine or wasting diseases, whereby the fluids are washed off, and men are reduced to skin and bones: and with a fever; a hot burning disease, which dries up the radical moisture, consumes it, and so threatens with death; of which there are various sorts, and some very pestilential and mortal Jarchi and Aben Ezra interpret it of a fire in the face, by which they seem to mean what is called St. Anthony's fire: and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning; either in the inward parts, as an inflammation of the lungs; or in the outward parts, as carbuncles, burning ulcers, and the like: and with the sword; in the margin it is, "with drought"; so Aben Ezra interprets the word, which seems better to suit with what it is in company with; and designs either drought in human bodies, occasioned by fevers, inflammations, and extreme burnings; or in the earth, through the force of the sun, and want of rain, which render the earth barren and unfruitful, and so cause a famine: and with blasting and with mildew; whereby the corn that is sown, and springs up, comes to nothing, being blasted by east winds, or turns pale and yellow by the mildew, and so withers away; the consequence of which is want of food, and so destruction and ruin; see Amo 4:9, and they shall pursue thee until thou perish; follow hard after them, and come so close one after another upon them, until they are utterly destroyed.