We’re now in the midst of a discussion about the curses of the Law.
I ended my last post by hopefully making it pretty darn clear that it’s of utmost importance you make a proper distinction between the “curses” (plural) versus “the curse” (singular) of the Law.
However, in order to see this distinction a lot more clearly, let’s take a look at a couple of Bible verses.
Our first verse comes from the Book of Isaiah.
“Look! ADONAI is stripping and destroying the land, turning it upside down and scattering its inhabitants-cohen and commoner, slave and master, maid and mistress, buyer and seller, lender and borrower, creditor and debtor. The land will be completely stripped, completely plundered, for ADONAI has spoken this word. The land fades and withers, the world wilts and withers, the exalted of the land languish. The land lies defiled under its inhabitants; because they have transgressed the teachings, changed the law and broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore a curse is devouring the land, and its inhabitants are punished for their guilt. It is why those living there waste away, and the people left are few.-Isaiah 24:1-6
Okay, so the first question probably popping up in your mind is why does the text say “a curse” in the singular instead of clearly spelling out that God is sending a number of “curses” in the plural onto the land?
Is God sending just one curse in particular out of many?
The answer is no.
Let’s take at the next set of verses from Jeremiah to find out why.
“then in that case listen to the word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “If you really set your mind to enter Egypt, and go in to reside there, then it will come about that the sword, which you are afraid of will overtake you there in the land of Egypt; and the famine, about which you are anxious, will follow closely after you there in Egypt; and you will die there. “So all the men who set their mind to go to Egypt to reside there will die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; and they will have no survivors or refugees from the calamity that I am going to bring on them.”‘” For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “As My anger and wrath have been poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so My wrath will be poured out on you when you enter Egypt. And you will become a curse, an object of horror, an imprecation, and a reproach; and you will see this place no more.”-Jeremiah 42:15-18
So we see here that one becomes a curse if they have been put under a curse.
So what does “a curse” mean in the context here in Jeremiah?
It means to be the object of God’s condemnation.
I should also let you know that the above verses are the NAS translation of the Bible.
The NAS translation is much more literal than the Complete Jewish Bible which employs what scholars call a “dynamic translation”.
A dynamic translation is all about rendering things into our contemporary way of saying things based on what the translator decides the Hebrew words really meant.
Therefore, instead of translating QELALAH into “curse”, the CJB renders it as “the object of God’s condemnation”…which again is NOT a mistake.
Because the one who has come under a curse as a result of rebelling against the Lord indeed becomes the object of the Lord’s condemnation.
Let’s take a look at yet another verse that will give us more nuance into the meaning of the word “curse”.
“ADONAI’s curse is in the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous.”-Proverbs 3:33
So once again we can see that there is a distinction between God’s curse (singular) versus the many curses (penalties or punishments) one receives for unintentionally breaking the Lord’s commands.
So if an Israelite stole something, he would be subject to one of the curses (again meaning “punishments”) spelled out in the Law.
Or if for example an Israelite injured a fellow Israelite, the result is that he has broken fellowship with not only the community but the Lord Himself.
In this case, in order to restore that relationship, restitution plus interest on top of the restitution must be made to the person he hurt and a sacrifice of atonement to God at the Temple Altar must also be performed.
Another important point to keep in mind is the thief is NOT “condemned” meaning he is not put under the death penalty.
That’s another important word whose meaning you should properly grasp as a good student of Scripture.
Outside of the few times the word is used poetically or as a metaphor, when the Bible says a person is “condemned” it means he will be executed per the death penalty.
And this ending of the criminal’s life can mean physical death, spiritual death or BOTH!
Finally, take a look at this set of verses from Deuteronomy Chapter 30 where we’ll arrive in a couple of weeks from now.
These verses demonstrate that just as a listing of curses is NOT the same thing as “the curse” (singular), so is the listing of blessings NOT the same thing as “the blessing” (singular).
“Look! I am presenting you today with, on the one hand, life and good; and on the other, death and evil– in that I am ordering you today to love ADONAI your God, to follow his ways, and to obey his mitzvot, regulations and rulings; for if you do, you will live and increase your numbers; and ADONAI your God will bless you in the land you are entering in order to take possession of it. But if your heart turns away, if you refuse to listen, if you are drawn away to prostrate yourselves before other gods and serve them; I am announcing to you today that you will certainly perish; you will not live long in the land you are crossing the Yarden to enter and possess.”-Deuteronomy 30:15-18
This passage nicely sums up what the Lord means by the terms “the blessing” and “the curse” of the Law.
The “blessing of the Law” equals life and goodness.
The “curse of the Law” is eternal death (or eternal separation) and evil.
Or to be even more succinct, what we’re talking about is…
…”Life & Good” versus “Death & Evil“.
You may have heard the common Jewish expression that…
...”Torah is life”.
What they mean when they say that is…
…to FOLLOW the Torah brings the good and blessed life that God wishes for ANYONE who wishes to surrender their life to Him and trust in Him.
On the other hand, to NOT follow Torah brings us the complete opposite which is death and curses in this life and the next.
Let’s not forget what the Psalmist said in his opening verses.
“Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.”
-Psalms 1:1-3
And more importantly, let’s not forget what the Messiah said (speaking ONLY to Israel)...
“So whoever disobeys the least of these mitzvot
and teaches others to do so will be called
the least in the Kingdom of Heaven.
But whoever obeys them and so teaches
will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.”
-Matthew 5:19
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