“If
you heed these ordinances, by diligently observing them,1
the Lord
your
God will maintain with you the covenant loyalty that he swore to your
ancestors;2
he will love you, bless you, and multiply you;3
he will bless the fruit of your womb4
and the fruit of your ground, your grain and your wine and your oil,
the increase of your cattle and the issue of your flock, in the land
that he swore to your ancestors to give you.5
You shall be the most blessed of peoples, with neither sterility nor
barrenness among you or your livestock.6
The Lord
will turn away from you every illness;7
all the dread diseases of Egypt that you experienced, he will not
inflict on you, but he will lay them on all who hate you.8
You shall devour all the peoples that the Lord
your God is giving over to you,9
showing them no pity; you shall not serve their gods, for that would
be a snare to you.”10
“If you say to yourself, ‘These nations are more numerous than I; how can I dispossess them?’ do not be afraid of them. Just remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt, the great trials that your eyes saw, the signs and wonders, the mighty hand and the outstretched arm by which the Lord your God brought you out.11 The Lord your God will do the same to all the peoples of whom you are afraid. Moreover, the Lord your God will send the pestilence against them, until even the survivors and the fugitives are destroyed. Have no dread of them, for the Lord your God, who is present with you, is a great and awesome God.12 The Lord your God will clear away these nations before you little by little; you will not be able to make a quick end of them, otherwise the wild animals would become too numerous for you.13 But the Lord your God will give them over to you, and throw them into great panic, until they are destroyed.14 He will hand their kings over to you15 and you shall blot out their name from under heaven; no one will be able to stand against you, until you have destroyed them. The images of their gods you shall burn with fire.16 Do not covet the silver or the gold that is on them and take it for yourself, because you could be ensnared by it;17 for it is abhorrent to the Lord your God. Do not bring an abhorrent thing into your house, or you will be set apart for destruction like it.18 You must utterly detest and abhor it, for it is set apart for destruction.”19
1 Focus continues to stay on obeying God's commands
“If you say to yourself, ‘These nations are more numerous than I; how can I dispossess them?’ do not be afraid of them. Just remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt, the great trials that your eyes saw, the signs and wonders, the mighty hand and the outstretched arm by which the Lord your God brought you out.11 The Lord your God will do the same to all the peoples of whom you are afraid. Moreover, the Lord your God will send the pestilence against them, until even the survivors and the fugitives are destroyed. Have no dread of them, for the Lord your God, who is present with you, is a great and awesome God.12 The Lord your God will clear away these nations before you little by little; you will not be able to make a quick end of them, otherwise the wild animals would become too numerous for you.13 But the Lord your God will give them over to you, and throw them into great panic, until they are destroyed.14 He will hand their kings over to you15 and you shall blot out their name from under heaven; no one will be able to stand against you, until you have destroyed them. The images of their gods you shall burn with fire.16 Do not covet the silver or the gold that is on them and take it for yourself, because you could be ensnared by it;17 for it is abhorrent to the Lord your God. Do not bring an abhorrent thing into your house, or you will be set apart for destruction like it.18 You must utterly detest and abhor it, for it is set apart for destruction.”19
1 Focus continues to stay on obeying God's commands
2
Here it seems that maintaining covenant loyalty is dependent on
Israel following the ordinances
3
Love, bless, and multiply you. God will care ofr your life, make it
better, and increase your descendents.
4
Bless your children/fertility
5
And bless your land
6
Again the agricultural focus is clear, with blessings of fertility
and fertile land drawing the greatest concern.
7
God will protect you from disease
8
To our ears, the tone here is different, as God promises to curse
others.
9
Again otehrs are cursed through India's blessing.
10
The reason for opposing other people's is stated again.
11
Another repetition – God will fight for you.
12
Trust in God, not the power of man!
13
This is a weird and illogical claim. If God cleared away the
people, the wild animals would suddenly multiply to undefeatable
numbers in months? And God wouldn't control those animals like he
controlled the people? This sounds more like an explanation for
Israel's slow and continuous battles against the Holy Land people
than a real reason for doing it slowly.
14
Despite the slowness, be clear – God will defeat them.
15
Your military victories are God's doing.
16
Again, the reason to destory them is because they follow foreign
gods, which may destroy you.
17
The lust for silver/gold could destroy them as well.
18
God could destroy you as easily as he destroys them.
19
Vividly negative description
Take-home: Obedience to God brings blessings of fertility and land, and protection from enemies and disease. But any move towards other gods will lead God to give you curses rather than blessings, for only YHWH is powerful over all.
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