49 (A)The Lord will bring a nation against you from far away, from the end of the earth, (B)as the eagle swoops down; a nation whose language you will not understand, 50 a nation [a]with a defiant attitude, who will (C)have no respect for the old, nor show favor to the young. 51 Furthermore, it will eat the [b]offspring of your herd and the produce of your ground until you are destroyed; a nation that will leave you no grain, new wine, or oil, nor the newborn of your cattle or the young of your flock, until they have eliminated you. 52 (D)And it will besiege you in all your [c]towns until your high and fortified walls in which you trusted come down throughout your land, and it will besiege you in all your [d]towns throughout your land which the Lord your God has given you. 53 (E)Then you will eat the [e]offspring of your own body, the flesh of your sons and of your daughters whom the Lord your God has given you, during the siege and the hardship by which your enemy will [f]oppress you. 54 The man who is [g]refined and very delicate among you [h]will be hostile toward his brother, toward the wife [i]he cherishes, and toward the rest of his children who are left, 55 so that he will not give even one of them any of the flesh of his children which he will eat, since he has nothing else left, during the siege and the hardship by which your enemy will [j]oppress you in all your [k]towns. 56 (F)The [l]refined and delicate woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground because of her delicateness and tenderness, [m]will be hostile toward the husband [n]she cherishes and toward her son and daughter, 57 and toward her afterbirth that comes from between her [o]legs, and toward her children to whom she gives birth, because (G)she will eat them secretly for lack of anything else, during the siege and the hardship with which your enemy will [p]oppress you in your [q]towns.

58 “If you are not careful to [r]follow all the words of this Law that are written in this book, to [s](H)fear this honored and awesome (I)name, [t]the Lord your God, 59 then the Lord will bring extraordinary plagues on you and [u]your descendants, [v]severe and lasting plagues, and miserable and chronic sicknesses. 60 (J)And He will bring back on you every disease of Egypt of which you were afraid, and they will cling to you. 61 Also every sickness and every plague, which are not written in the book of this Law, the Lord will bring on you (K)until you are destroyed. 62 Then you will be left few in [w]number, (L)whereas you were as numerous as the stars of heaven, because you did not [x]obey the Lord your God. 63 And it will come about that, just as the Lord (M)rejoiced over you to be good to you, and make you numerous, so will the Lord (N)rejoice over you to wipe you out and destroy you; and you will be (O)torn away from the land which you are entering to possess. 64 Furthermore, the Lord will (P)scatter you among all the peoples, from one end of the earth to [y]the other; and there you will (Q)serve other gods, made of wood and stone, which you and your fathers have not known. 65 (R)Among those nations you will find no peace, and there will be no resting place for the sole of your foot; but there (S)the Lord will give you a trembling heart, failing of eyes, and despair of soul. 66 So your lives will be [z]hanging in doubt before you; and you will be terrified night and day, and have no assurance of your life. 67 (T)In the morning you will say, ‘If only it were evening!’ And at evening you will say, ‘If only it were morning!’ because of the terror of your heart which you fear, and the sight of your eyes which you will see. 68 And the Lord will bring you back to Egypt in ships, by the way about which I said to you, ‘You will never see it again!’ And there you will offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but there will be no buyer.”

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Footnotes

  1. Deuteronomy 28:50 Lit defiant-faced
  2. Deuteronomy 28:51 Lit fruit
  3. Deuteronomy 28:52 Lit gates
  4. Deuteronomy 28:52 Lit gates
  5. Deuteronomy 28:53 Lit fruit of your womb
  6. Deuteronomy 28:53 Or torment
  7. Deuteronomy 28:54 Or spoiled and pampered
  8. Deuteronomy 28:54 Lit his eye will be evil toward
  9. Deuteronomy 28:54 Lit of his breast
  10. Deuteronomy 28:55 Or torment
  11. Deuteronomy 28:55 Lit gates
  12. Deuteronomy 28:56 Or spoiled and pampered
  13. Deuteronomy 28:56 Lit her eye shall be evil toward
  14. Deuteronomy 28:56 Lit of her breast
  15. Deuteronomy 28:57 Lit feet
  16. Deuteronomy 28:57 Or torment
  17. Deuteronomy 28:57 Lit gates
  18. Deuteronomy 28:58 Lit perform
  19. Deuteronomy 28:58 Or revere
  20. Deuteronomy 28:58 Heb YHWH
  21. Deuteronomy 28:59 Lit plagues on your seed
  22. Deuteronomy 28:59 Lit great
  23. Deuteronomy 28:62 Lit people
  24. Deuteronomy 28:62 Lit listen to the voice of
  25. Deuteronomy 28:64 Lit the end of the earth
  26. Deuteronomy 28:66 Lit be hung for you in front

49 The Lord will bring a nation against you(A) from far away, from the ends of the earth,(B) like an eagle(C) swooping down, a nation whose language you will not understand,(D) 50 a fierce-looking nation without respect for the old(E) or pity for the young. 51 They will devour the young of your livestock and the crops of your land until you are destroyed. They will leave you no grain, new wine(F) or olive oil,(G) nor any calves of your herds or lambs of your flocks until you are ruined.(H) 52 They will lay siege(I) to all the cities throughout your land until the high fortified walls in which you trust fall down. They will besiege all the cities throughout the land the Lord your God is giving you.(J)

53 Because of the suffering your enemy will inflict on you during the siege, you will eat the fruit of the womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters the Lord your God has given you.(K) 54 Even the most gentle and sensitive man among you will have no compassion on his own brother or the wife he loves or his surviving children, 55 and he will not give to one of them any of the flesh of his children that he is eating. It will be all he has left because of the suffering your enemy will inflict on you during the siege of all your cities.(L) 56 The most gentle and sensitive(M) woman among you—so sensitive and gentle that she would not venture to touch the ground with the sole of her foot—will begrudge the husband she loves and her own son or daughter(N) 57 the afterbirth from her womb and the children she bears. For in her dire need she intends to eat them(O) secretly because of the suffering your enemy will inflict on you during the siege of your cities.

58 If you do not carefully follow all the words of this law,(P) which are written in this book, and do not revere(Q) this glorious and awesome name(R)—the Lord your God— 59 the Lord will send fearful plagues on you and your descendants, harsh and prolonged disasters, and severe and lingering illnesses. 60 He will bring on you all the diseases of Egypt(S) that you dreaded, and they will cling to you. 61 The Lord will also bring on you every kind of sickness and disaster not recorded in this Book of the Law,(T) until you are destroyed.(U) 62 You who were as numerous as the stars in the sky(V) will be left but few(W) in number, because you did not obey the Lord your God. 63 Just as it pleased(X) the Lord to make you prosper and increase in number, so it will please(Y) him to ruin and destroy you.(Z) You will be uprooted(AA) from the land you are entering to possess.

64 Then the Lord will scatter(AB) you among all nations,(AC) from one end of the earth to the other.(AD) There you will worship other gods—gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your ancestors have known.(AE) 65 Among those nations you will find no repose, no resting place(AF) for the sole of your foot. There the Lord will give you an anxious mind, eyes(AG) weary with longing, and a despairing heart.(AH) 66 You will live in constant suspense, filled with dread both night and day, never sure of your life. 67 In the morning you will say, “If only it were evening!” and in the evening, “If only it were morning!”—because of the terror that will fill your hearts and the sights that your eyes will see.(AI) 68 The Lord will send you back in ships to Egypt on a journey I said you should never make again.(AJ) There you will offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you.

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