And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of Jehovah thy God, to take heed to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that Jehovah thy God will set thee supreme above all nations of the earth;
Moses speaks to Israel on the edge of the promised land. The longest chapter of blessing and curse in the book opens with one word — "if" — and Israel's rank among the nations, its harvests and its safety all hang on it.
The verse opens with a condition: listening. One commentator says the whole book turns on it, and so does Israel's safety and happiness.
"If you faithfully obey the voice of the LORD your God" — the grand old motto of Deuteronomy, the keynote of the book — "being careful to do all His commandments that I command you today"… This is the only safeguard. It is the true secret of happiness, security, victory and strength.
How does this chapter relate to the one before it? Commentators differ. One says the two chapters stand on completely different ground:
To put it as briefly as possible: chapter 27 is moral and personal. Chapter 28 is national, and belongs to a particular period of God's dealings. Chapter 27 deals with the root question of man's moral condition — a sinner completely ruined, and unable to meet God on the ground of law. Chapter 28 takes up Israel as a nation, under the government of God.
Another writer sees a closer link:
Chapter 28 does not say that these blessings were spoken from Mount Gerizim, but chapter 27:12 shows this. The blessings, though, come after the conditions of verse 1. They would take effect only if Israel carefully obeyed the voice of the Lord and kept all His commandments.
So what does this promise actually give? One commentator answers by naming what it cannot give:
It is merely national. It has nothing to do with the soul in the sight of God… This is not what a poor soul wants. It in no way meets a sense of guilt or a dread of judgment. The sinner needs something which will stand for ever. He wants what will be in heaven, and not merely in the field or in the city. He wants acceptance for himself with God, not just a full basket and a full store. There is nothing of that sort here.
The promise also had an audience. One writer points out what the surrounding nations would have read from Israel's prosperity:
You see, it is one nation set in contrast with all other nations, and lifted above them… Plentiful and continual prosperity in earthly things was what all nations could understand. Israel was to have shown it, had Israel been obedient. By it the nations were to have seen that Israel was called by the Lord's name.
The "if" of verse 1 raises a question for every reader. What happens if you stand on your own obedience?
Chapter 28 has both blessing and cursing… They are the blessing and cursing of God's government over their daily walk. We may come under discipline in our own daily walk. It is useless to mix two things: you as the one who keeps the law, and God as the One who keeps His promise. If your soul rests upon what God is in Christ and nothing else, you get the blessing. If you choose to stand on what you do yourself, how can you escape the curse?
Does any of this reach believers now? One commentator draws a lesson for daily life:
If God's children ignore His word and live for themselves, God will often step in and deal with them in their circumstances. Think how many have set their hearts on getting on in the world. They have worked hard and long to reach their goal. Then, just as it came in sight, all the fruit of their work disappeared!
Israel never met the condition. So is the promise dead?
Israel has completely failed in obedience, as we know, and has therefore forfeited all those blessings. But Scripture says again and again that they are to be brought back. Grace will restore to them every blessing they lost. The righteous rule of the Lord Jesus Christ will keep them in the enjoyment of these blessings.
Can Christians claim this promise as their own? One commentator answers with a warning:
Some interpreters use a system that turns the covenant blessings of Israel into spiritual pictures and hands them over to the church of God. This is a most fatal mistake… God will not and cannot approve such tampering with His truth. Nor will He allow anyone to transfer away the blessings and privileges of His people Israel.
- The voice — the whole chapter hangs on one condition: listening to the voice of the LORD your God.
- The scope — being set high above the nations is national and earthly. It says nothing about a soul's acceptance with God.
- The limit — this is God's government over daily life, not the ground on which God receives a sinner.
- The failure — Israel did not obey, and so forfeited every blessing listed here.
- The grace — what obedience never secured, grace will yet restore under the righteous rule of the Lord Jesus Christ.
and all these blessings shall come on thee and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of Jehovah thy God.
Moses is speaking to Israel just before they enter the land. Everything ahead of them hangs on one thing — blessing will chase them down and catch them, if they listen to God's voice.
What did this condition finally cost Israel?
"If" is a small word, but tremendous issues hang upon it. All Israel's blessings depended on the faithfulness of both king and people. Their evil ways forfeited everything, in spite of the earnest warnings and pleas of their God.
The blessing is tied to God's own voice, a demand that runs through the whole book of Deuteronomy.
"If you faithfully obey the voice of the LORD your God" — the grand old motto of Deuteronomy, the keynote of the book — "being careful to do all His commandments that I command you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth." Obedience to that voice was the only safeguard, the true secret of happiness, security, victory and strength.
What would that obedience have produced in them?
Moses knew that an obedient people must also be an unbeatable and countless people. No weapon formed against them could prosper, so long as the word of God governed them.
The blessings promised here fall on the city and the field. But what do they leave untouched?
This promise is only national. It has nothing to do with the soul in the sight of God… This is not what a poor soul wants. It in no way meets a sense of guilt or a dread of judgment. The sinner needs something which will stand for ever. He wants what will be in heaven, and not merely in the field or in the city. He wants acceptance for himself with God.
The horizon of these promises stops at the edge of this life.
Earthly blessing was the promise that marked out God's people of old. So death was the end of all their hopes. To die was to leave the very sphere where their special promises were to come true. Read Deuteronomy 28:1-13, and you will see at once that the blessings promised on the condition of obedience reached no further than the earth.
Some readers hand these promises over to the church.
Some interpreters follow a system that turns Israel's covenant blessings into spiritual ones and hands them to the church of God. This is a fatal mistake… God will not and cannot approve such tampering with His truth, or such a wrongful seizing of the blessings and privileges of His people Israel.
So where does the Christian's blessing lie?
The Jew's proper blessing is upon the earth under Christ. The Christian's proper blessing is in the heavens along with Christ. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us" — not them — "in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places" (Eph. 1:3).
Israel did not meet the condition. That is not the end of the story.
In Deuteronomy 28 we have the blessings promised to Israel if they obeyed. They failed completely to obey, as we know, and so they forfeited all those blessings. But Scripture shows again and again that God will bring them back. Grace will restore to them every blessing they lost. The righteous rule of the Lord Jesus Christ will keep them in the enjoyment of these blessings.
One principle in this verse outlasts the covenant.
"Listen" and "do," so that you may "live" and "possess." This is a universal and abiding principle. It was true for Israel, and it is true for us. The pathway of life and the true secret of possession is simple obedience to God's holy commandments… God has given us His word, not to speculate about it or discuss it, but so that we may obey it.
- If — one small word carries the whole chapter. Every blessing hangs on a condition, and Israel broke it.
- Voice — God asks them to listen to His voice. That is the keynote of Deuteronomy and their one safeguard of happiness, security and strength.
- Earth — the blessings that "overtake" are city and field. They never address guilt, never reach heaven, and end at death.
- Boundary — these blessings belong to Israel, not to the church. The Christian's blessing is spiritual, in the heavenly places.
- Grace — Israel forfeited it all, yet grace will restore them under the rule of Christ. The principle still stands: listen and do, that you may live.