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The curses in the Torah reading כִּי־תָבוֹא Ki Tavo (“when you come in,” Deut. 26:1–29:8) because of disobedience to HaShem1 are particularly difficult to read. They’re very blunt and “gross.”
In the Hebrew mindset, these curses are literal. We read in Jewish history in the TaNaK2 that these curses were real historical events but jus as the curses were literal and not just spiritual, the blessings are literal and not merely spiritual as well.
The TaNaK tells us that the anointed king, priest and prophet are all representatives of HaShem. They have different duties toward HaShem, but they all represent Him in the way that HaShem has appointed them.
The common Israelite is also a representative of HaShem in his or her own way when they are met by a gentile who knows absolutely nothing about HaShem and have questions about Him. All of Israel have an office but we aren’t to covet or usurp the office of others in relation to HaShem’s kingdom.
We are called to review and recall the blessings that HaShem has given us on a regular basis. We are to enjoy those blessings. This strengthens our faith. We need to remember where we came from, where we are going and how our lives have changed over time.
We are also called upon at pre-determined times to share what God has given us, not only in tithes, but also to share the stories of God’s work in our lives. When we share what God has given us, He will give us more to share with others, but if we don’t share what God has given us, God has no reason to give us more blessing.
Mount of blessing, mount of cursing
Why did HaShem want his altar on Mt. Ebal, which was a desolate mountain, rather than Mt. Gerazim, which was beautiful with lots of trees and natural beauty?
One reason may be that Mt. Gerazim had a history among the Canaanites as a high place for the worship of demons and false deities. But, in my opinion, the reason that the desolation of Mt. Ebal is exactly the reason He chose to put His altar there, where one’s attention would not be distracted by the natural beauty of the flora and fauna that made Mt. Gerazim such an attractive place. From the valley floor, one can easily see Mt. Ebal’s entire edifice, while Mt. Gerazim’s edifice is obscured by trees, bushes and wildlife.
Just as with Mt. Ebal, the desolate places are where God does His best work with us. When we are desolate is when we cry out for blessings. But when we live in a period of abundance and blessing, we find it easy to forget God. God is not a big priority when we have good jobs that pay well with plenty of money, and our children are happy, and we have too much food.
When we are comfortable, we stop looking at how we can improve our character and our relationship with God and our neighbors. When we are blessed excessively, we tend to forget God. What we should ask is that God blesses us enough to where we do not curse Him, but not so much that we forget Him.
The curses are listed in a particular way that if you aren’t spiritually aware, they will appear to be natural events. Most of the sins that bring about the curses on the nation are very secret private sins that rarely become public.
The blessings are very open, when we publicly and privately live the way God wants us to live, the blessings He gives us will also be public.
The pattern of the blessings and curses are also listed in a particular way for a reason. The first blessing correlates with the last curse. The first things Gd gives are the last things He takes away.
This was all recovered so we can watch what is going on in our lives as well as in our nation and diagnose the problem and solve it.
We want to be the head, not the tail. We want to be in a household that is lead by the adults, not lead by children. We want to lead and be led in wisdom, not led by rebellion and ignorance. There are times when we may bring up the rear but we don’t want to stay there. We need to learn from our mistakes, not repeat them.
If we ignore all the warnings, God gives us there will come to a point where the people on an individual level or a national level will if we abandon God long enough, He will leave us and or nation to our own devises.
Summary: Tammy