Deut. 28 The blessings of obedience, Deut. 28:1–14. Curses for disobedience, Deut. 28:15–68.

i.e. Advance and honour thee with divers privileges and blessings, as it here follows.

Those blessings which others greedily follow after, and ofttimes never overtake, they shall follow after thee, and shall be thrown into thy lap by my special kindness.

i.e. It shall always be well replenished, and the provision thou hast there shall be preserved for, and in due time brought forth to, thy use and service. See Deut. 26:2, Deut. 26:10.

i.e. In all thy affairs and administrations, which are oft expressed by this phrase, as Num. 27:17, Deut. 31:2, 2 Sam. 3:25, 2 Chron. 1:10, Acts 1:21, Acts 9:28.

i.e. Many ways, as is usual when an army is totally overthrown and dissipated.

Shall command, i.e. shall by his sovereign and powerful providence give it, even when it seems furthest from thee, and not likely to come to time without a word of command from God himself.

Shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, i.e. shall confirm and establish his covenant with thee, by which he separated thee to himself as a holy and peculiar people, and shall publicly own thee for such, as it follows, Deut. 28:10.

i.e. That you are in deed and truth his people and children: see Deut. 14:1, Deut. 26:18. For to be called ofttimes signifies to be, as Isa. 47:1, Isa. 47:5, Isa. 56:7, Matt. 5:9, Matt. 5:19, Matt. 21:13.

The same things which were said before are repeated, to show that God would repeat and multiply his blessings upon them.

His good treasure, to wit, the heaven or the air, as it here follows, which is God’s storehouse, where he treasures up rain or wind or other things for man’s use. See Job 38:22, Ps. 33:7.

The head; the chief of all people in power, or at least in dignity and privileges; so that even they that are not under thine authority shall reverence thy greatness and excellency.

So as thou shalt not be able to escape them, as thou shalt vainly hope and endeavour to do.

Vexation, or, disturbance. This seems chiefly to concern the mind, and its torment arising from the disappointment of hopes, the presages of its approaching miseries.

With blasting, and with mildew; two plagues or evil affections of corn. See 1 Kings 8:37, 2 Chron. 6:28, Amos 4:9, Hag. 2:17.

Be brass, i.e. like brass, hard and dry, and shut up from giving rain. See Lev. 26:19. Be iron, hard, and chapt, and barren.

Either, 1. Thy rain shall be as unprofitable to thy ground and seed as if it were only so much dust. Or, 2. Instead of rain shall come nothing but dust from heaven, which being raised and carried up by the wind in great abundance, doth return and fall upon the earth as it were in clouds or showers.

Removed. Heb. for a removing; to be tossed like a football from place to place, and from people to people.

Blindness, to wit, of mind, so that they shall not know what to do; see Job 5:13–14; so as they shall commonly choose and follow the worst counsels and courses, to their own ruin.

At noon-day, i.e. in the most clear and evident matters thou shalt grossly mistake and miss thy way. Thou shalt not prosper in thy ways; thy counsels and enterprises shall be frustrated, and turn to thy destruction.

Another man shall lie with her before thou canst consummate thy marriage, and enjoy her as thy wife. And so in the following branches.

Shall be given unto another people, by those who have conquered them, and taken them captives, who shall give or sell them to other persons, as the manner was.

Which thou knowest not; which shall come from a far country, which thou didst not at all expect or fear and therefore will be the more dreadful when they come; a nation whose language thou understandest not, and therefore canst not plead with them for mercy, nor expect any favour from them.

Thee and thy king: the calamity shall be both universal, which even thy king shall not be able to avoid, much less the subjects, who have far less advantage and opportunity for escape; and irrecoverable, because he who should protect or rescue them is lost with them. See Lam. 4:20.

All other nations shall wonder to see such calamities befall such a people; and when they would express any dreadful affliction in a proverbial way, they shall make use of thy example: they shall also sport themselves in thy miseries, and say, These are the people of the Lord, the only saints upon…

Within thee, i.e. within thy gates; who formerly honoured and served thee, and were some of them glad of the crumbs which fell from thy table.

They shall be, i.e. these curses now mentioned. For a wonder, i.e. signal and wonderful to all that hear of them.

Or, in the abundance of all things; for this is opposed to in hunger, in thirst, &c., Deut. 28:48. And the Hebrew men oft signifies in, as Ex. 25:18, Job 19:26, Ps. 72:16.

A yoke of iron, which thou canst neither well bear, nor break. See Jer. 28:13–14.

As the eagle flieth, Heb. as the eagle flies, i.e. not only swiftly, as is expressed in our translation, for which the Babylonian is noted and compared to an eagle, Jer. 4:13, Ezek. 17:3, Dan. 7:4; but also fiercely and greedily, as the eagle to its prey; also strongly and irresistibly.

Of fierce countenance, Heb. strong of face or countenance, i.e. bold and impudent, hardy and undaunted, cruel and uncompassionate and inflexible, sparing no age nor sex, &c.

Evil, i.e. unkind, envious, covetous, to monopolize these dainty bits to themselves, and grudging that their dearest relations should have any part of them.

Evil, i.e. unmerciful: she will desire or design their destruction for her food.

Her young one, Heb. after-birth; that which was loathsome to behold, will now be pleasant to eat; and together with it she shall eat the child which was wrapt up in it, and may be included in this expression. Which she shall bear, or, which she shall have born, i.e. her more grown children.

Name, i. e. thing or person, to wit, this glorious God. Names are oft put for things, as 1 Kings 5:3, Ps. 20:1, Ps. 95:1, Acts 4:12, Eph. 1:21; and for persons, as Acts 1:15, Rev. 3:4.

Rejoice over you to destroy you; his just indignation against you will be so great, that it will be a pleasure to him to take vengeance on you. For though he doth not delight in the death of a sinner in itself, yet he doth doubtless delight in the glorifying of his justice upon incorrigible…

Neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest; ye shall have no settlement in the land whither you are banished, but there you shall be tossed about from place to place, and sold from person to person, or, Cain-like, wander about like a vagabond.

Either because thou art in the hands of thy enemies, that have power, and want not will, to destroy thee; or because of the terrors of thy own mind, and the guilt of thy conscience, making thee to fear, even where no great cause to fear is.

Into Egypt again, whence he hath now so gloriously delivered thee, as repenting of all his kindness to thee, and resolved to undo what he hath done for thee. And the remembrance of what they endured in Egypt could not but make the thoughts of returning thither again very terrible to them.