“The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven.”
My Notes
What Does Deuteronomy 29:20 Mean?
Moses warns about a specific type of person: one who hears the covenant curses and blesses himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart. The self-blessing is delusional — claiming peace while pursuing rebellion.
The LORD will not spare him — the self-deception does not change the reality. The person who blesses themselves while cursing God receives no divine mercy for the pretense.
"The anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man" — the anger is specific and personal. Against that man — not generalized wrath but targeted judgment. And all the curses written in the book shall lie upon him.
The warning is against spiritual presumption: hearing God's warnings and dismissing them with self-assurance. I will be fine. It will not happen to me. The imagination of my heart will protect me. Moses says: it will not.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Where are you saying 'I shall have peace' while walking in the imagination of your own heart?
- 2.How is self-blessing while disobeying different from genuine faith?
- 3.Why does presumption increase rather than decrease the consequences?
- 4.What warning from God have you been hearing but dismissing as not applying to you?
Devotional
I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart. The most dangerous lie is the one you tell yourself: I will be fine. Despite the warnings. Despite the clear consequences. Despite everything God has said. I shall have peace.
The LORD will not spare him. The self-blessing does not change the divine response. You can pronounce peace over yourself all day long. If you are walking in the imagination of your heart — following your own desires instead of God's commands — the peace you declared is a fiction.
The anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man. The judgment is not abstract. It is personal — against that man. The one who heard the curses and said they do not apply to me.
All the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him. Every curse. Not some. All. The self-blessing does not reduce the consequences. It increases them — because the presumption adds insult to the rebellion.
This is the danger of spiritual self-assurance without actual obedience. Hearing the warnings and assuming they apply to everyone else. Knowing the consequences and believing you are the exception.
You are not the exception. The curses written in the book apply to everyone who walks in the imagination of their heart while claiming peace. The self-blessing is the most dangerous delusion — because it feels like faith while it operates as rebellion.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And the Lord shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel,.... Unto the evil of punishment, devote and…
It appears by the length of the sentences here, and by the copiousness and pungency of the expressions, that Moses, now…
the Lord will not consent to pardon him There are two vbs as in Deu 1:26 q.v.
his jealousy See on Deu 4:24; with this…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture