How does 2 Kings 15:28 connect with Deuteronomy 28 about blessings and curses? The Setting in 2 Kings 15:28 “He did evil in the sight of the LORD and did not turn away from the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit.” Deuteronomy 28: Covenant Expectations • Verses 1-14: blessings promised for obedience • Verses 15-68: curses warned for disobedience Direct Connections • Persistent sin (“did not turn away”) places Israel squarely under the disobedience category of Deuteronomy 28:15: “If you do not obey the LORD your God … all these curses will come upon you.” • Pekah’s reign records no repentance, echoing Jeroboam’s idolatry; Deuteronomy 28 singles out idolatry as provoking judgment (vv. 36-37). • Within the same chapter (2 Kings 15:29) Assyria invades, fulfilling curses of foreign aggression and deportation (Deuteronomy 28:25, 49-52). Historical Outworking of the Curses • Military defeat – “The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies” (Deuteronomy 28:25) → Tiglath-Pileser III captures cities and takes captives (2 Kings 15:29). • Exile – “You will be uprooted from the land” (Deuteronomy 28:63-64) → inhabitants carried to Assyria. • Loss of leadership stability – frequent assassinations in 2 Kings mirror the curse of national instability (Deuteronomy 28:20). Reinforcement from Other Scriptures • 2 Kings 17:7-18 — explains the fall of Israel as direct consequence of violating the covenant. • Leviticus 26:14-39 — parallel covenant curses, also fulfilled in Israel’s history. • Psalm 106:34-42 — poetic summary of covenant breach and ensuing oppression. Takeaway Lessons for Today • God’s covenant word stands; centuries after Deuteronomy, its promises and warnings remain in force. • Disobedience invites tangible, historical judgment, not merely spiritual loss. • Faithful obedience brings blessing; see contrasting example in King Hezekiah (2 Kings 18:3-7) where the Lord was “with him.” The moral arc from Deuteronomy 28 to 2 Kings 15:28 proves the reliability of God’s spoken covenant: blessing follows obedience, and curse follows persistent, unrepentant sin. |
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