Cursed be he that smiteth his neighbour secretly. And all the people shall say, Amen.
God gave special care to forgetful Israel just after they passed over Jordan, telling them exactly what to do, to plaster the rock and write the commandments of God upon it, and appointing the blessings and the curses to be repeated from two prominent positions, one the mount of blessing and the other the mount of cursing, so the people would hear the advantages of blessing and the disadvantages of cursing, including the curse upon secretly striking a neighbor. The blessings were to be pronounced from Mount Gerizim upon the obedient and the curses, including this curse, from Mount Ebal upon the disobedient, as a solemn repetition of the advantages of obedience and the consequences and disadvantages of disobedience. God commanded this public declaration after the crossing of Jordan to make His law familiar and to impress the people with its great importance.
After each blessing and curse the whole congregation was to give assent to the specifications with Amen, thereby solemnly affirming the covenant and by accepting its conditions placing themselves under solemn responsibility to fulfill them. That assenting ceremony was meant to deter from transgression and to encourage obedience. It belongs with the directions in Deuteronomy 26 to 28 that plainly state the blessings of obedience, commanding those who have avouched the Lord to be their God and to walk in His ways to keep and do His statutes and judgments with all the heart and with all the soul.
It expresses a principle of the law of the kingdom of God, made specific so that minds are not left in ignorance and uncertainty. It was spoken not with the voice of man but with the own voice of Christ from the pillar of cloud, enfolding and enshrouding Him, as a precaution and practical reminder that obedience to the commandments of God is for present and future good, bringing prosperity, while disobedience results in a curse. It lays a never-ceasing obligation on all whom God has blessed with life and health and temporal and spiritual advantages, and its claim has not grown weak with age but is just as binding now and just as fresh in importance as when given, as fresh and continual as God's gifts.
When the Lord specially favors His people He expects public acknowledgement, so that the name of God will be glorified as a testimony that His Word is verity and truth. The ceremony of blessing and cursing shows that God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked but takes the greatest pleasure in those who turn from sin.
God gave special care to forgetful Israel just after they passed over Jordan, telling them exactly what to do, to plaster the rock and write the commandments of God upon it, and appointing the blessings and the curses to be repeated from two prominent positions, one the mount of blessing and the other the mount of cursing, so the people would hear the advantages of blessing and the disadvantages of cursing, including the curse upon secretly striking a neighbor. The blessings were to be pronounced from Mount Gerizim upon the obedient and the curses, including this curse, from Mount Ebal upon the disobedient, as a solemn repetition of the advantages of obedience and the consequences and disadvantages of disobedience. God commanded this public declaration after the crossing of Jordan to make His law familiar and to impress the people with its great importance.
After each blessing and curse the whole congregation was to give assent to the specifications with Amen, thereby solemnly affirming the covenant and by accepting its conditions placing themselves under solemn responsibility to fulfill them. That assenting ceremony was meant to deter from transgression and to encourage obedience. It belongs with the directions in Deuteronomy 26 to 28 that plainly state the blessings of obedience, commanding those who have avouched the Lord to be their God and to walk in His ways to keep and do His statutes and judgments with all the heart and with all the soul.
It expresses a principle of the law of the kingdom of God, made specific so that minds are not left in ignorance and uncertainty. It was spoken not with the voice of man but with the own voice of Christ from the pillar of cloud, enfolding and enshrouding Him, as a precaution and practical reminder that obedience to the commandments of God is for present and future good, bringing prosperity, while disobedience results in a curse. It lays a never-ceasing obligation on all whom God has blessed with life and health and temporal and spiritual advantages, and its claim has not grown weak with age but is just as binding now and just as fresh in importance as when given, as fresh and continual as God's gifts.
When the Lord specially favors His people He expects public acknowledgement, so that the name of God will be glorified as a testimony that His Word is verity and truth. The ceremony of blessing and cursing shows that God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked but takes the greatest pleasure in those who turn from sin.