How does Deuteronomy 28:46 connect with warnings in the New Testament? Setting the Stage • Deuteronomy 28:46: “These curses will be a sign and a wonder upon you and your descendants forever.” • Moses has just listed devastating judgments that will fall on Israel if they abandon the LORD. Verse 46 underscores that those judgments are not random events; they are unmistakable covenant markers meant to grab attention “forever.” From Signposts to Sermons—How Jesus Echoes Deuteronomy • Matthew 23:38 – “Look, your house is left to you desolate.” • Matthew 24:2 – “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” • Luke 19:44 – “They will dash you to the ground… because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.” Connection points – Jesus warns first-century Israel that national ruin is coming for rejecting Him, just as Deuteronomy warned of ruin for rejecting the LORD. – His language (desolation, stones torn down) mirrors Deuteronomy 28:49–52. The curse would again become a “sign and a wonder” to that generation. Paul: Israel’s History as a Continuing Warning • 1 Corinthians 10:6, 11: “These things happened as examples… They were written for our admonition.” • Galatians 3:10 quotes Deuteronomy 27:26 to show that relying on law-keeping places everyone under the stated curse. Key ideas – Israel’s past judgments stand as ongoing covenant signs that God still deals with sin the same way. – The cross redeems from the curse (Galatians 3:13), but only those “in Christ” escape it. Outside of Him, the warning of Deuteronomy 28:46 still speaks. Romans 11: Kindness and Severity Side by Side • Romans 11:21-22: “Consider therefore the kindness and severity of God… but to you, kindness, if you continue in His kindness.” Takeaways – The “severity” Paul cites is the very covenant severity displayed in Deuteronomy 28. – Gentile believers are urged to remember that the same God who cut off unbelieving Israel will not wink at persistent unbelief in them. Hebrews: A Louder Alarm Bell • Hebrews 2:2-3 – “If the message spoken by angels was binding… how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” • Hebrews 10:31 – “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Observations – The writer argues from lesser to greater: if old-covenant violations brought Deuteronomy-style curses, even more certain judgment awaits those who spurn the Son. – Deuteronomy 28:46 is thus lifted straight into the new-covenant era as a perpetual “sign.” Revelation: Globalizing the Pattern • Revelation 16:1 – “Go, pour out the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth.” • Revelation 6:16-17 – “Hide us… For the great day of their wrath has come.” Parallel themes – The plagues in Revelation replay the “signs and wonders” motif, moving from Israel’s soil to the whole world. – The covenant God who judged Israel pledges a final, worldwide reckoning for unrepentant humanity. What It Means for Us Today • God’s covenant faithfulness cuts both ways: He keeps promises of blessing and promises of judgment with equal precision. • Deuteronomy 28:46 functions like a flashing warning light across the pages of Scripture; every New-Testament warning about judgment picks up its glow. • In Christ the curse is broken (Galatians 3:13), yet the passage still calls believers to steadfast obedience, lest we forget that “our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29). |
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