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Deuteronomy 28:28  (Darby English Version)
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<< Deuteronomy 28:27   Deuteronomy 28:29 >>


Deuteronomy 28:28-29

As part of God's warning to the Israelites against sin, He promises to hobble their ability to understand, reason, and think things through.

God promises madness, blindness, and confusion of heart for disobeying His voice and failing to observe His commandments and statutes carefully (Deuteronomy 28:15). This curse shows the other side of the principle, that understanding comes with following His commandments (Psalm 111:10). Conversely, breaking the commandments destroys understanding.

The physical curses in Deuteronomy 28 are painful enough, but the mental blindness in verse 28 creates a dreadful situation. Amid the other curses, a person can at least analyze what is happening and perhaps find a way to deal with it. But this blindness—an inability to discern rationally—makes the person's plight far worse! He cannot even understand what is occurring, let alone identify a real solution like repentance and returning to God.

The nations of Israel are suffering under quite a few curses right now, yet because they are blind to the cause-and-effect relationship, there is little—if any—thought that national immorality is the cause of their problems. Those God curses with “madness and blindness and confusion of heart” can only grope aimlessly for solutions, and those they choose cannot work because they exclude God.

God's willingness to take away understanding and wisdom makes many uncomfortable. They do not believe He would actually do such a thing. They do not believe He means what He says.

Some people have a similar and related disbelief regarding scattering, another curse of God (Leviticus 26:33; Deuteronomy 4:27; 28:64). God scattered the post-Flood people at the Tower of Babel because of their rebellion against Him (Genesis 11:8-9). He likewise scattered the children of Israel for the same reason, just as He had promised (Deuteronomy 30:3; I Kings 14:15; Psalm 44:11; 92:9; Jeremiah 9:16; etc.).

The modern church of God has also suffered scattering, yet many have concluded that Satan scattered it because of their discomfort with God acting this way. Assigning blame to Satan may provide a measure of comfort, for if Satan were the prime mover, members would all just be victims of Satan. However, an unstated implication of this notion is that Satan somehow outsmarted or outmaneuvered God.

Yet, it is God who promises and claims scattering. Because of His sovereignty, He is the only One who can bring about what happened to Babel, to Israel, and to His church. On the other hand, Satan can only do what He allows him to do (see, for instance, Job 1:6-12; 2:1-7).

Do we believe that God will respond today to immorality, presumption, and spiritual neglect as He did in the past? True, God's chastening of His saints is of a different quality than His punishment of Israel, but the principle of cause-and-effect has not disappeared. God's scattering of the church differs from Israel's in that it has been organizational rather than geographical and catastrophic. Yet, we are still scattered because God is faithful to His Word. Rather than being immune to God's chastening, the church is even more accountable because of its privileged position (see Luke 12:48; also the principle in Amos 3:2).

Scattering relates to blinding in that it illustrates why it is so critical to have a correct concept of God so that we can recognize the respective actions of God and Satan. God's actions do not always match our assumptions. He says that He will cause madness, blindness, and confusion of heart when His people walk contrary to His way. We might think Satan would be the source of these works, yet God claims responsibility for them!

David C. Grabbe
Spiritual Blindness (Part One): The God of This World



Deuteronomy 28:28-29

The history of Israel demonstrates God's faithfulness to this curse, for He provided records of national and individual madness, blindness, and confusion of heart. This curse is particularly devastating because it hobbles the ability even to understand the real problem so that finding a solution proves all but impossible.

The problems in our nations continue to mount, yet the citizens and leaders cannot identify the actual cause. In the divided United States, the Republicans blame the Democrats for all the problems and vice versa. Partisan media casts aspersions on the President, who retaliates in kind. The populace demonstrates its blindness by focusing on this circus, as though they can find the solution in the right policies, people, and party. But until the nation recognizes that the true problem is that it has left God out of the picture, we will continue not to prosper.

The few public figures who dare to suggest that sin lies at the root of our problems are scorned and vilified. The nation has degenerated even further from where it was in 2001, when leading evangelicals drew a line between the September 11 attacks and national immorality. They were shouted down so quickly and overwhelmingly that they regretted speaking the truth.

Yet, with the nation blind to the reason for its predicaments, it certainly cannot turn things around. Proverbs 14:34 states simply, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.” Part of the reproach that accompanies sin is blindness. It is easy to recognize this principle on the national level, but we must also accept that this holds true for the individual—and even for the converted.

David C. Grabbe
Spiritual Blindness (Part Three): Choosing a Curse




Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Deuteronomy 28:28:

Exodus 4:21
Psalm 111:10
Psalm 111:10
Romans 1:18-28
Revelation 3:16

 

<< Deuteronomy 28:27   Deuteronomy 28:29 >>



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