Deuteronomy 28:1-14
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 28
Blessings for Those Who Obey. 1 If you heed the voice of the Lord, your God, and you carefully observe all of the commandments that I have given you today, then the Lord, your God, will lift you up above all the other nations upon the earth. 2 All of these blessings shall come upon you and accompany you if you obey the voice of the Lord, your God. 3 You shall be blessed in the city, and you shall be blessed in the countryside. 4 Your offspring shall be blessed, along with your crops, and the young of your livestock, the calves of your herds, and the lambs of your flocks. 5 Your basket and your kneading trough shall be blessed. 6 You shall be blessed when you enter and when you leave. 7 The Lord will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated by you. They shall come at you from one direction, but they shall flee away from you in seven different directions.[a] 8 The Lord will send a blessing upon your barns and everything that you undertake. The Lord, your God, will bless you in the land that he has given you.
9 The Lord will establish you as his own holy people, as he solemnly promised you, if you observe the commandments of the Lord, your God, and walk in his ways. 10 Then all of the people upon the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord, and they shall fear you. 11 The Lord will grant you great prosperity,[b] including your offspring, the young of your livestock, and the crops that come from the ground, in the land that the Lord promised your ancestors to give to you. 12 The Lord will open up the storehouse of his bounty in the heavens for you, giving rain to the land in its proper season and blessing all of your undertakings. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall borrow from none. 13 The Lord will make you the head, not the tail, on top and not on the bottom, if you heed the commandments of the Lord, your God, that I give you today and you observe them. 14 Do not turn aside from any of the things that I command you today, neither to the right nor to the left, seeking after other gods to serve them.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Deuteronomy 28:7 One direction . . . seven different directions: the Lord assures the Israelites that even when the enemy pursues them as a united force, they will be overcome and flee in many groups.
- Deuteronomy 28:11 Grant you great prosperity: along with the promise of plenty from the Lord, comes the responsibility to share with those who are in need.
