The Blessings of Obedience (Leviticus 25:18–22)
1 WBS And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently to the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day; that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: BSB BSB: “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.
2 WBS And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God. BSB BSB: And all these blessings will come upon you and overtake you, if you will obey the voice of the LORD your God:
3 WBS Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. BSB BSB: You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.
4 WBS Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy cattle, and the flocks of thy sheep. BSB BSB: 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.
5 WBS Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store. BSB BSB: Your basket and kneading bowl will be blessed.
6 WBS Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out. BSB BSB: You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.
7 WBS The LORD shall cause thy enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways. BSB BSB: 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.
8 WBS The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy store-houses, and in all that thou settest thy hand to: and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. BSB BSB: 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.
9 WBS The LORD shall establish thee a holy people to himself, as he hath sworn to thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways. BSB BSB: 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.
10 WBS And all the people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee. BSB BSB: 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.
11 WBS And the LORD shall make thee to abound in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD swore to thy fathers to give thee. BSB BSB: 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.
12 WBS The LORD shall open to thee his good treasure, the heaven to give rain to thy land in its season, and to bless all the work of thy hand: and thou shalt lend to many nations, and thou shalt not borrow. BSB BSB: 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.
13 WBS And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if thou shalt hearken to the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them : BSB BSB: 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.
14 WBS And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them. BSB BSB: 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.
The Curses of Disobedience (Leviticus 20:1–9; Leviticus 26:14–39)
15 WBS But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken to 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: BSB BSB: If, however, you do not obey the LORD your God by carefully following all His commandments and statutes I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:
16 WBS Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field. BSB BSB: You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country.
17 WBS Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store. BSB BSB: Your basket and kneading bowl will be cursed.
18 WBS Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. BSB BSB: The 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.
19 WBS Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out. BSB BSB: You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out.
20 WBS The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou undertakest to perform, until thou shalt be destroyed, and until thou shalt perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings by which thou hast forsaken me. BSB BSB: The LORD will send curses upon you, confusion and reproof in all to which you put your hand, until you are destroyed and quickly perish because of the wickedness you have committed in forsaking Him.
21 WBS The LORD shall make the pestilence cleave to thee, until he shall have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it. BSB BSB: The LORD will make the plague cling to you until He has exterminated you from the land that you are entering to possess.
22 WBS The 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 dost perish. BSB BSB: The LORD will strike you with wasting disease, with fever and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, and with blight and mildew; these will pursue you until you perish.
23 WBS And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron. BSB BSB: The sky over your head will be bronze, and the earth beneath you iron.
24 WBS The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou art destroyed. BSB BSB: The LORD will turn the rain of your land into dust and powder; it will descend on you from the sky until you are destroyed.
25 WBS The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thy 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. BSB BSB: The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will march out against them in one direction but flee from them in seven. You will be an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.
26 WBS And thy carcass shall be food to all fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the earth, and no man shall drive them away. BSB BSB: Your corpses will be food for all the birds of the air and beasts of the earth, with no one to scare them away.
27 WBS The LORD will smite thee with the botch of Egypt, and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, of which thou canst not be healed. BSB BSB: The LORD will afflict you with the boils of Egypt, with tumors and scabs and itch from which you cannot be cured.
28 WBS The LORD shall smite thee with the madness, and blindness, and astonishment of heart: BSB BSB: The LORD will afflict you with madness, blindness, and confusion of mind,
29 WBS And thou shalt grope at noon-day, 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 . BSB BSB: and at noon you will grope about like a blind man in the darkness. You will not prosper in your ways. Day after day you will be oppressed and plundered, with no one to save you.
30 WBS Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: thou shalt build a house, and thou shalt not dwell in it: thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not gather the grapes of it. BSB BSB: You will be pledged in marriage to a woman, but another man will violate her. You will build a house but will not live in it. You will plant a vineyard but will not enjoy its fruit.
31 WBS Thy ox shall be slain before thy eyes, and thou shalt not eat of it: thy ass shall be violently taken away from before thy face, and shall not be restored to thee: thy sheep shall be given to thy enemies, and thou shalt have none to rescue them . BSB BSB: Your ox will be slaughtered before your eyes, but you will not eat any of it. Your donkey will be taken away and not returned to you. Your flock will be given to your enemies, and no one will save you.
32 WBS Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given to another people, and thy eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day long: and there shall be no might in thy hand. BSB BSB: Your sons and daughters will be given to another nation, while your eyes grow weary looking for them day after day, with no power in your hand.
33 WBS The fruit of thy land, and all thy labors, shall be eaten by a nation which thou knowest not: and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed always: BSB BSB: A people you do not know will eat the produce of your land and of all your toil. All your days you will be oppressed and crushed.
34 WBS So that thou shalt be mad for the sight of thy eyes which thou shalt see. BSB BSB: You will be driven mad by the sights you see.
35 WBS The 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 to the top of thy head. BSB BSB: The LORD will afflict you with painful, incurable boils on your knees and thighs, from the soles of your feet to the top of your head.
36 WBS The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shalt set over thee, to a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone. BSB BSB: The LORD will bring you and the king you appoint to a nation neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you will worship other gods—gods of wood and stone.
37 WBS And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a by-word, among all nations whither the LORD shall lead thee. BSB BSB: You will become an object of horror, scorn, and ridicule among all the nations to which the LORD will drive you.
38 WBS Thou shalt carry much seed into the field, and shalt gather but little: for the locust shall consume it. BSB BSB: You will sow much seed in the field but harvest little, because the locusts will consume it.
39 WBS Thou shalt plant vineyards and dress them , but shalt neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes : for the worm shall eat them. BSB BSB: You will plant and cultivate vineyards, but will neither drink the wine nor gather the grapes, because worms will eat them.
40 WBS Thou shalt have olive-trees throughout all thy coasts, but thou shalt not anoint thyself with the oil: for thy olive shall cast its fruit . BSB BSB: You will have olive trees throughout your territory but will never anoint yourself with oil, because the olives will drop off.
41 WBS Thou shalt beget sons and daughters, but thou shalt not enjoy them: for they shall go into captivity. BSB BSB: You will father sons and daughters, but they will not remain yours, because they will go into captivity.
42 WBS All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust consume. BSB BSB: Swarms of locusts will consume all your trees and the produce of your land.
43 WBS The stranger that is within thee shall rise above thee very high; and thou shalt come down very low. BSB BSB: The foreigner living among you will rise higher and higher above you, while you sink down lower and lower.
44 WBS He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail. BSB BSB: He will lend to you, but you will not lend to him. He will be the head, and you will be the tail.
45 WBS Moreover, all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, till thou art destroyed: because thou hearkenedst not to the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee: BSB BSB: All these curses will come upon you. They will pursue you and overtake you until you are destroyed, since you did not obey the LORD your God and keep the commandments and statutes He gave you.
46 WBS And they shall be upon thee for a sign and for a wonder, and upon thy seed for ever. BSB BSB: These curses will be a sign and a wonder upon you and your descendants forever.
47 WBS Because thou didst not serve the LORD thy God with joyfulness and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things : BSB BSB: Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart in all your abundance,
48 WBS Therefore shalt thou serve thy 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 hath destroyed thee. BSB BSB: you will serve your enemies the LORD will send against you in famine, thirst, nakedness, and destitution. He will place an iron yoke on your neck until He has destroyed you.
49 WBS The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth, a nation whose language thou shalt not understand: BSB BSB: The LORD will bring a nation from afar, from the ends of the earth, to swoop down upon you like an eagle—a nation whose language you will not understand,
50 WBS A nation of fierce countenance, which shall not regard the person of the old, nor show favor to the young: BSB BSB: a ruthless nation with no respect for the old and no pity for the young.
51 WBS And he shall eat the fruit of thy cattle, and the fruit of thy land, until thou art destroyed: which also shall not leave thee either corn, wine, or oil, or the increase of thy cattle, or flocks of thy sheep, until he hath destroyed thee. BSB BSB: They will eat the offspring of your livestock and the produce of your land until you are destroyed. They will leave you no grain or new wine or oil, no calves of your herds or lambs of your flocks, until they have caused you to perish.
52 WBS And he shall besiege thee in all thy gates, until thy high and fortified walls come down, in which thou didst trust, 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. BSB BSB: They will besiege all the cities throughout your land, until the high and fortified walls in which you trust have fallen. They will besiege all your cities throughout the land that the LORD your God has given you.
53 WBS And thou shalt eat the fruit of thy 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 with which thy enemies shall distress thee: BSB BSB: Then you will eat the fruit of your womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters whom the LORD your God has given you, in the siege and distress that your enemy will inflict on you.
54 WBS So that the man that is tender among you, and very delicate, his eye shall be evil towards his brother, and towards the wife of his bosom, and towards the remnant of his children whom he shall leave:BSB BSB: The most gentle and refined man among you will begrudge his brother, the wife he embraces, and the rest of his children who have survived,
55 WBS 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 with which thy enemies shall distress thee in all thy gates. BSB BSB: refusing to share with any of them the flesh of his children he will eat because he has nothing left in the siege and distress that your enemy will inflict on you within all your gates.
56 WBS The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot upon the ground for delicateness and tenderness, her eye shall be evil towards the husband of her bosom, and towards her son, and towards her daughter, BSB BSB: The most gentle and refined woman among you, so gentle and refined she would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground, will begrudge the husband she embraces and her son and daughter
57 WBS And towards her young one, her own offspring, and towards her children which she shall bear: for she shall eat them for want of all things secretly in the siege and straitness with which thy enemy shall distress thee in thy gates. BSB BSB: the afterbirth that comes from between her legs and the children she bears, because she will secretly eat them for lack of anything else in the siege and distress that your enemy will inflict on you within your gates.
58 WBS If 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; BSB BSB: If you are not careful to observe all the words of this law which are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name—the LORD your God—
59 WBS Then the LORD will make thy plagues wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and severe sicknesses, and of long continuance. BSB BSB: He will bring upon you and your descendants extraordinary disasters, severe and lasting plagues, and terrible and chronic sicknesses.
60 WBS Moreover, he will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt, of which thou wast afraid; and they shall cleave to thee. BSB BSB: He will afflict you again with all the diseases you dreaded in Egypt, and they will cling to you.
61 WBS Also every sickness, and every plague which is not written in the book of this law, them will the LORD bring upon thee, until thou art destroyed. BSB BSB: The LORD will also bring upon you every sickness and plague not recorded in this Book of the Law, until you are destroyed.
62 WBS And ye shall be left few in number, whereas ye were as the stars of heaven for multitude; because thou wouldst not obey the voice of the LORD thy God. BSB BSB: You who were as numerous as the stars in the sky will be left few in number, because you would not obey the voice of the LORD your God.
63 WBS And 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 naught; and ye shall be plucked from off the land whither thou goest to possess it. BSB BSB: Just as it pleased the LORD to make you prosper and multiply, so also it will please Him to annihilate you and destroy you. And you will be uprooted from the land you are entering to possess.
64 WBS And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people from the one end of the earth even to the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone. BSB BSB: Then the LORD will scatter you among all the nations, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known.
65 WBS And 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: BSB BSB: Among those nations you will find no repose, not even a resting place for the sole of your foot. There the LORD will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and a despairing soul.
66 WBS And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have no assurance of thy life: BSB BSB: So your life will hang in doubt before you, and you will be afraid night and day, never certain of survival.
67 WBS In the morning thou shalt say, O that it were evening, and at evening thou shalt say, O that it were morning! for the fear of thy heart with which thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thy eyes which thou shalt see. BSB BSB: In the morning you will say, ‘If only it were evening!’ and in the evening you will say, ‘If only it were morning!’—because of the dread in your hearts of the terrifying sights you will see.
68 WBS And the LORD shall bring thee into Egypt again with ships, by the way of which I have said to thee, Thou shalt see it no more again: and there ye shall be sold to your enemies for bond-men and bond-women, and no man shall buy you . BSB BSB: The LORD will return you to Egypt in ships by a route that I said you should never see again. There you will sell yourselves to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you.”
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.