Deuteronomy 28:58-66

Contemporary English Version

Disobedience Brings Destruction

Moses said to Israel:

⁵⁸ You must obey everything in The Book of God's Law. Because if you don't respect the Lord, ⁵⁹ he will punish you and your descendants with incurable diseases, ⁶⁰ like those you were so afraid of in Egypt. ⁶¹ Remember! If the Lord decides to destroy your nation, he can use any disease or disaster, not just the ones written in The Book of God's Law.

⁶² There are as many of you now as the stars in the sky, but if you disobey the Lord your God, only a few of you will be left. ⁶³ The Lord is happy to make you successful and to help your nation grow while you conquer the land. But if you disobey him, he will be just as happy to pull you up by your roots.

⁶⁴ Those of you that survive will be scattered to every nation on earth, and you will have to worship stone and wood idols^[a] that never helped you or your ancestors. ⁶⁵ You will be restless—always longing for home, but never able to return. ⁶⁶ You will live in constant fear of death.