Leviticus 26:1-17

New International Reader's Version

Rewards for Obeying the Lord

26 “ ‘Do not make statues of gods for yourselves. Do not set up a likeness of a god or a sacred stone for yourselves. Do not place a carved stone in your land and bow down in front of it. I am the Lord your God.

² “ ‘You must always keep my Sabbath days. Have respect for my sacred tent. I am the Lord.

³ “ ‘Follow my rules. Be careful to obey my commands. ⁴ Then I will send you rain at the right time. The ground will produce its crops. The trees will bear their fruit. ⁵ You will continue to harvest your grain until you gather your grapes. You will continue to gather your grapes until you plant your crops. You will have all you want to eat. And you will live in safety in your land.

⁶ “ ‘I will give you peace in the land. You will be able to sleep because no one will make you afraid. I will remove wild animals from the land. There will not be any war in your country. ⁷ You will hunt down your enemies. You will kill them with your swords. ⁸ Five of you will chase 100. And 100 of you will chase 10,000. You will kill your enemies with your swords.

⁹ “ ‘I will bless you. I will give you many children so that there will be many of you. And I will be faithful to the covenant I made with you. ¹⁰ You will still be eating last year’s crops when you will have to make room for new crops. ¹¹ I will live among you. I will not turn away from you. ¹² I will walk among you. I will be your God. And you will be my people. ¹³ I am the Lord your God. I brought you out of Egypt. I did not want you to be slaves in Egypt anymore. I threw off your heavy load. I helped you walk with your heads held high.

Punishment for Not Obeying the Lord

¹⁴ “ ‘On the other hand, suppose you do not listen to me. Suppose you do not carry out all my commands. ¹⁵ Suppose you say no to my rules and turn away from my laws. And suppose you break my covenant by failing to carry out all my commands. ¹⁶ Then here is what I will do to you. All at once I will bring terror on you. I will send sicknesses that will make you weak. I will send fever that will destroy your sight. It will slowly take your strength away. When you plant seeds, it will not do you any good. Instead, your enemies will eat what you have planted. ¹⁷ I will turn against you. Then your enemies will win the battle over you. Those who hate you will rule over you. You will run away even when no one is chasing you.