Deuteronomy 28 is the one chapter they don't tell you about in Sunday school. It's no wonder. Any child who hears the horrific curses for not following God's commandments contained in the latter portion of this chapter would most likely ditch religion altogether and sign up for Atheists of America. Put simply, these are possibly the most depressing fifty-five verses in the entirety of the Old Testament. And that's saying something when you consider other sections talk about being burned alive (Numbers 16:35) and having your corpse exhumed so your bones rot in the harsh heat of the sun (Jeremiah 8:2).
Each Sabbath morning at synagogue, people are called up to the Torah scroll to recite a blessing over the different sections that are read publicly. When it comes the time of year to read the text of curses out loud in synagogue, you can imagine that nobody's lining up to accept this honor. So, instead, we ask the prayer leader to take the punch for the rest of us. Don't take it personally, we tell him. And if things don't work out, can I keep your Tivo?
Little did I ever imagine it, but this morning at the service the person calling up members of the congregation to recite the blessings over the Torah scroll apparently had a mental hiccup and accidentally called me up for the curse section....this random guy who invites people up to the Torah at my congregation had called out my Hebrew name in front of everyone. Was he in cahoots with the Lord Almighty? At least I wasn't being struck by lightning. But somehow, on some spiritual level, this felt worse. It was as if here I was, in front of my entire community, being called out for heresy....A bolt of lightning wasn't looking too bad right about then....
Each passing verse the prayer leader reads is like a dagger in my back. I know I don't follow all of God's commandments. I barely follow half of them. I'm fully aware that I'm not in the running for poster Jew of the year....But really, did I need to be reminded so eloquently about all these curses - my wife having an affair, my unborn children being sold into slavery, robbers stealing everything I own including my beloved high definition flat screen?
....A week goes by and my growing guilt notwithstanding, I opt for spiritual suicide...If my God was going to curse me, if I was really going to incur His full and utter wrath (crazy curses and all), I might as well go out in a fiery ball of glory with guns blazing. After all, there's no sense in doing something halfheartedly. My rabbinic father taught me that.
- Benyamin Cohen (memoir about being son of a rabbi in Atlanta)
- Everett Fox Torah
Before:
Bless G-d, who is to be blessed!
Response: Blessed is G-d, the blessed for ever and ever!
Blessed is G-d, Sovereign of the universe, who chose us from all peoples to give us His Torah. Blessed are You, O G-d, giver of Torah.
After:
Blessed are You, L-rd our G‑d, Sovereign of the universe, who has given us the Torah of truth, and through it planted eternal life within us. Blessed are You L-rd, who gives the Torah.
The entire sixth aliyah is presented below - underlined sections are markers for class discussion.
(ז) יִתֵּ֨ן ה' אֶת־אֹיְבֶ֙יךָ֙ הַקָּמִ֣ים עָלֶ֔יךָ נִגָּפִ֖ים לְפָנֶ֑יךָ בְּדֶ֤רֶךְ אֶחָד֙ יֵצְא֣וּ אֵלֶ֔יךָ וּבְשִׁבְעָ֥ה דְרָכִ֖ים יָנ֥וּסוּ לְפָנֶֽיךָ׃ (ח) יְצַ֨ו ה' אִתְּךָ֙ אֶת־הַבְּרָכָ֔ה בַּאֲסָמֶ֕יךָ וּבְכֹ֖ל מִשְׁלַ֣ח יָדֶ֑ךָ וּבֵ֣רַכְךָ֔ בָּאָ֕רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־ה' אֱלֹקֶ֖יךָ נֹתֵ֥ן לָֽךְ׃ (ט) יְקִֽימְךָ֨ ה' לוֹ֙ לְעַ֣ם קָד֔וֹשׁ כַּאֲשֶׁ֖ר נִֽשְׁבַּֽע־לָ֑ךְ כִּ֣י תִשְׁמֹ֗ר אֶת־מִצְוֺת֙ ה' אֱלֹקֶ֔יךָ וְהָלַכְתָּ֖ בִּדְרָכָֽיו׃ (י) וְרָאוּ֙ כָּל־עַמֵּ֣י הָאָ֔רֶץ כִּ֛י שֵׁ֥ם ה' נִקְרָ֣א עָלֶ֑יךָ וְיָֽרְא֖וּ מִמֶּֽךָּ׃ (יא) וְהוֹתִֽרְךָ֤ ה' לְטוֹבָ֔ה בִּפְרִ֧י בִטְנְךָ֛ וּבִפְרִ֥י בְהַמְתְּךָ֖ וּבִפְרִ֣י אַדְמָתֶ֑ךָ עַ֚ל הָאֲדָמָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר נִשְׁבַּ֧ע ה' לַאֲבֹתֶ֖יךָ לָ֥תֶת לָֽךְ׃ (יב) יִפְתַּ֣ח ה' ׀ לְ֠ךָ אֶת־אוֹצָר֨וֹ הַטּ֜וֹב אֶת־הַשָּׁמַ֗יִם לָתֵ֤ת מְטַֽר־אַרְצְךָ֙ בְּעִתּ֔וֹ וּלְבָרֵ֕ךְ אֵ֖ת כָּל־מַעֲשֵׂ֣ה יָדֶ֑ךָ וְהִלְוִ֙יתָ֙ גּוֹיִ֣ם רַבִּ֔ים וְאַתָּ֖ה לֹ֥א תִלְוֶֽה׃ (יג) וּנְתָֽנְךָ֨ ה' לְרֹאשׁ֙ וְלֹ֣א לְזָנָ֔ב וְהָיִ֙יתָ֙ רַ֣ק לְמַ֔עְלָה וְלֹ֥א תִהְיֶ֖ה לְמָ֑טָּה כִּֽי־תִשְׁמַ֞ע אֶל־מִצְוֺ֣ת ׀ ה' אֱלֹקֶ֗יךָ אֲשֶׁ֨ר אָנֹכִ֧י מְצַוְּךָ֛ הַיּ֖וֹם לִשְׁמֹ֥ר וְלַעֲשֽׂוֹת׃ (יד) וְלֹ֣א תָס֗וּר מִכָּל־הַדְּבָרִים֙ אֲשֶׁ֨ר אָנֹכִ֜י מְצַוֶּ֥ה אֶתְכֶ֛ם הַיּ֖וֹם יָמִ֣ין וּשְׂמֹ֑אול לָלֶ֗כֶת אַחֲרֵ֛י אֱלֹקִ֥ים אֲחֵרִ֖ים לְעָבְדָֽם׃ (ס) (טו) וְהָיָ֗ה אִם־לֹ֤א תִשְׁמַע֙ בְּקוֹל֙ ה' אֱלֹקֶ֔יךָ לִשְׁמֹ֤ר לַעֲשׂוֹת֙ אֶת־כָּל־מִצְוֺתָ֣יו וְחֻקֹּתָ֔יו אֲשֶׁ֛ר אָנֹכִ֥י מְצַוְּךָ֖ הַיּ֑וֹם וּבָ֧אוּ עָלֶ֛יךָ כָּל־הַקְּלָל֥וֹת הָאֵ֖לֶּה וְהִשִּׂיגֽוּךָ׃ (טז) אָר֥וּר אַתָּ֖ה בָּעִ֑יר וְאָר֥וּר אַתָּ֖ה בַּשָּׂדֶֽה׃ (יז) אָר֥וּר טַנְאֲךָ֖ וּמִשְׁאַרְתֶּֽךָ׃ (יח) אָר֥וּר פְּרִֽי־בִטְנְךָ֖ וּפְרִ֣י אַדְמָתֶ֑ךָ שְׁגַ֥ר אֲלָפֶ֖יךָ וְעַשְׁתְּר֥וֹת צֹאנֶֽךָ׃ (יט) אָר֥וּר אַתָּ֖ה בְּבֹאֶ֑ךָ וְאָר֥וּר אַתָּ֖ה בְּצֵאתֶֽךָ׃ (כ) יְשַׁלַּ֣ח ה' ׀ בְּ֠ךָ אֶת־הַמְּאֵרָ֤ה אֶת־הַמְּהוּמָה֙ וְאֶת־הַמִּגְעֶ֔רֶת בְּכָל־מִשְׁלַ֥ח יָדְךָ֖ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תַּעֲשֶׂ֑ה עַ֣ד הִשָּֽׁמֶדְךָ֤ וְעַד־אֲבָדְךָ֙ מַהֵ֔ר מִפְּנֵ֛י רֹ֥עַ מַֽעֲלָלֶ֖יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר עֲזַבְתָּֽנִי׃ (כא) יַדְבֵּ֧ק ה' בְּךָ֖ אֶת־הַדָּ֑בֶר עַ֚ד כַּלֹּת֣וֹ אֹֽתְךָ֔ מֵעַל֙ הָֽאֲדָמָ֔ה אֲשֶׁר־אַתָּ֥ה בָא־שָׁ֖מָּה לְרִשְׁתָּֽהּ׃ (כב) יַכְּכָ֣ה ה' בַּשַּׁחֶ֨פֶת וּבַקַּדַּ֜חַת וּבַדַּלֶּ֗קֶת וּבַֽחַרְחֻר֙ וּבַחֶ֔רֶב וּבַשִּׁדָּפ֖וֹן וּבַיֵּרָק֑וֹן וּרְדָפ֖וּךָ עַ֥ד אָבְדֶֽךָ׃ (כג) וְהָי֥וּ שָׁמֶ֛יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר עַל־רֹאשְׁךָ֖ נְחֹ֑שֶׁת וְהָאָ֥רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־תַּחְתֶּ֖יךָ בַּרְזֶֽל׃ (כד) יִתֵּ֧ן ה' אֶת־מְטַ֥ר אַרְצְךָ֖ אָבָ֣ק וְעָפָ֑ר מִן־הַשָּׁמַ֙יִם֙ יֵרֵ֣ד עָלֶ֔יךָ עַ֖ד הִשָּׁמְדָֽךְ׃ (כה) יִתֶּנְךָ֨ ה' ׀ נִגָּף֮ לִפְנֵ֣י אֹיְבֶיךָ֒ בְּדֶ֤רֶךְ אֶחָד֙ תֵּצֵ֣א אֵלָ֔יו וּבְשִׁבְעָ֥ה דְרָכִ֖ים תָּנ֣וּס לְפָנָ֑יו וְהָיִ֣יתָ לְזַעֲוָ֔ה לְכֹ֖ל מַמְלְכ֥וֹת הָאָֽרֶץ׃ (כו) וְהָיְתָ֤ה נִבְלָֽתְךָ֙ לְמַאֲכָ֔ל לְכָל־ע֥וֹף הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם וּלְבֶהֱמַ֣ת הָאָ֑רֶץ וְאֵ֖ין מַחֲרִֽיד׃ (כז) יַכְּכָ֨ה ה' בִּשְׁחִ֤ין מִצְרַ֙יִם֙ ובעפלים [וּבַטְּחֹרִ֔ים] וּבַגָּרָ֖ב וּבֶחָ֑רֶס אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹא־תוּכַ֖ל לְהֵרָפֵֽא׃ (כח) יַכְּכָ֣ה ה' בְּשִׁגָּע֖וֹן וּבְעִוָּר֑וֹן וּבְתִמְה֖וֹן לֵבָֽב׃ (כט) וְהָיִ֜יתָ מְמַשֵּׁ֣שׁ בַּֽצָּהֳרַ֗יִם כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר יְמַשֵּׁ֤שׁ הָעִוֵּר֙ בָּאֲפֵלָ֔ה וְלֹ֥א תַצְלִ֖יחַ אֶת־דְּרָכֶ֑יךָ וְהָיִ֜יתָ אַ֣ךְ עָשׁ֧וּק וְגָז֛וּל כָּל־הַיָּמִ֖ים וְאֵ֥ין מוֹשִֽׁיעַ׃ (ל) אִשָּׁ֣ה תְאָרֵ֗שׂ וְאִ֤ישׁ אַחֵר֙ ישגלנה [יִשְׁכָּבֶ֔נָּה] בַּ֥יִת תִּבְנֶ֖ה וְלֹא־תֵשֵׁ֣ב בּ֑וֹ כֶּ֥רֶם תִּטַּ֖ע וְלֹ֥א תְחַלְּלֶּֽנּוּ׃ (לא) שׁוֹרְךָ֞ טָב֣וּחַ לְעֵינֶ֗יךָ וְלֹ֣א תֹאכַל֮ מִמֶּנּוּ֒ חֲמֹֽרְךָ֙ גָּז֣וּל מִלְּפָנֶ֔יךָ וְלֹ֥א יָשׁ֖וּב לָ֑ךְ צֹֽאנְךָ֙ נְתֻנ֣וֹת לְאֹיְבֶ֔יךָ וְאֵ֥ין לְךָ֖ מוֹשִֽׁיעַ׃ (לב) בָּנֶ֨יךָ וּבְנֹתֶ֜יךָ נְתֻנִ֨ים לְעַ֤ם אַחֵר֙ וְעֵינֶ֣יךָ רֹא֔וֹת וְכָל֥וֹת אֲלֵיהֶ֖ם כָּל־הַיּ֑וֹם וְאֵ֥ין לְאֵ֖ל יָדֶֽךָ׃ (לג) פְּרִ֤י אַדְמָֽתְךָ֙ וְכָל־יְגִ֣יעֲךָ֔ יֹאכַ֥ל עַ֖ם אֲשֶׁ֣ר לֹא־יָדָ֑עְתָּ וְהָיִ֗יתָ רַ֛ק עָשׁ֥וּק וְרָצ֖וּץ כָּל־הַיָּמִֽים׃ (לד) וְהָיִ֖יתָ מְשֻׁגָּ֑ע מִמַּרְאֵ֥ה עֵינֶ֖יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר תִּרְאֶֽה׃ (לה) יַכְּכָ֨ה ה' בִּשְׁחִ֣ין רָ֗ע עַל־הַבִּרְכַּ֙יִם֙ וְעַל־הַשֹּׁקַ֔יִם אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹא־תוּכַ֖ל לְהֵרָפֵ֑א מִכַּ֥ף רַגְלְךָ֖ וְעַ֥ד קָדְקֳדֶֽךָ׃ (לו) יוֹלֵ֨ךְ ה' אֹֽתְךָ֗ וְאֶֽת־מַלְכְּךָ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תָּקִ֣ים עָלֶ֔יךָ אֶל־גּ֕וֹי אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹא־יָדַ֖עְתָּ אַתָּ֣ה וַאֲבֹתֶ֑יךָ וְעָבַ֥דְתָּ שָּׁ֛ם אֱלֹקִ֥ים אֲחֵרִ֖ים עֵ֥ץ וָאָֽבֶן׃ (לז) וְהָיִ֣יתָ לְשַׁמָּ֔ה לְמָשָׁ֖ל וְלִשְׁנִינָ֑ה בְּכֹל֙ הָֽעַמִּ֔ים אֲשֶׁר־יְנַהֶגְךָ֥ ה' שָֽׁמָּה׃ (לח) זֶ֥רַע רַ֖ב תּוֹצִ֣יא הַשָּׂדֶ֑ה וּמְעַ֣ט תֶּאֱסֹ֔ף כִּ֥י יַחְסְלֶ֖נּוּ הָאַרְבֶּֽה׃ (לט) כְּרָמִ֥ים תִּטַּ֖ע וְעָבָ֑דְתָּ וְיַ֤יִן לֹֽא־תִשְׁתֶּה֙ וְלֹ֣א תֶאֱגֹ֔ר כִּ֥י תֹאכְלֶ֖נּוּ הַתֹּלָֽעַת׃ (מ) זֵיתִ֛ים יִהְי֥וּ לְךָ֖ בְּכָל־גְּבוּלֶ֑ךָ וְשֶׁ֙מֶן֙ לֹ֣א תָס֔וּךְ כִּ֥י יִשַּׁ֖ל זֵיתֶֽךָ׃ (מא) בָּנִ֥ים וּבָנ֖וֹת תּוֹלִ֑יד וְלֹא־יִהְי֣וּ לָ֔ךְ כִּ֥י יֵלְכ֖וּ בַּשֶּֽׁבִי׃ (מב) כָּל־עֵצְךָ֖ וּפְרִ֣י אַדְמָתֶ֑ךָ יְיָרֵ֖שׁ הַצְּלָצַֽל׃ (מג) הַגֵּר֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר בְּקִרְבְּךָ֔ יַעֲלֶ֥ה עָלֶ֖יךָ מַ֣עְלָה מָּ֑עְלָה וְאַתָּ֥ה תֵרֵ֖ד מַ֥טָּה מָּֽטָּה׃ (מד) ה֣וּא יַלְוְךָ֔ וְאַתָּ֖ה לֹ֣א תַלְוֶ֑נּוּ ה֚וּא יִהְיֶ֣ה לְרֹ֔אשׁ וְאַתָּ֖ה תִּֽהְיֶ֥ה לְזָנָֽב׃ (מה) וּבָ֨אוּ עָלֶ֜יךָ כָּל־הַקְּלָל֣וֹת הָאֵ֗לֶּה וּרְדָפ֙וּךָ֙ וְהִשִּׂיג֔וּךָ עַ֖ד הִשָּֽׁמְדָ֑ךְ כִּי־לֹ֣א שָׁמַ֗עְתָּ בְּקוֹל֙ ה' אֱלֹקֶ֔יךָ לִשְׁמֹ֛ר מִצְוֺתָ֥יו וְחֻקֹּתָ֖יו אֲשֶׁ֥ר צִוָּֽךְ׃ (מו) וְהָי֣וּ בְךָ֔ לְא֖וֹת וּלְמוֹפֵ֑ת וּֽבְזַרְעֲךָ֖ עַד־עוֹלָֽם׃ (מז) תַּ֗חַת אֲשֶׁ֤ר לֹא־עָבַ֙דְתָּ֙ אֶת־ה' אֱלֹקֶ֔יךָ בְּשִׂמְחָ֖ה וּבְט֣וּב לֵבָ֑ב מֵרֹ֖ב כֹּֽל׃ (מח) וְעָבַדְתָּ֣ אֶת־אֹיְבֶ֗יךָ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יְשַׁלְּחֶ֤נּוּ ה' בָּ֔ךְ בְּרָעָ֧ב וּבְצָמָ֛א וּבְעֵירֹ֖ם וּבְחֹ֣סֶר כֹּ֑ל וְנָתַ֞ן עֹ֤ל בַּרְזֶל֙ עַל־צַוָּארֶ֔ךָ עַ֥ד הִשְׁמִיד֖וֹ אֹתָֽךְ׃ (מט) יִשָּׂ֣א ה' עָלֶ֨יךָ גּ֤וֹי מֵרָחוֹק֙ מִקְצֵ֣ה הָאָ֔רֶץ כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר יִדְאֶ֖ה הַנָּ֑שֶׁר גּ֕וֹי אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹא־תִשְׁמַ֖ע לְשֹׁנֽוֹ׃ (נ) גּ֖וֹי עַ֣ז פָּנִ֑ים אֲשֶׁ֨ר לֹא־יִשָּׂ֤א פָנִים֙ לְזָקֵ֔ן וְנַ֖עַר לֹ֥א יָחֹֽן׃ (נא) וְ֠אָכַל פְּרִ֨י בְהֶמְתְּךָ֥ וּפְרִֽי־אַדְמָתְךָ֮ עַ֣ד הִשָּֽׁמְדָךְ֒ אֲשֶׁ֨ר לֹֽא־יַשְׁאִ֜יר לְךָ֗ דָּגָן֙ תִּיר֣וֹשׁ וְיִצְהָ֔ר שְׁגַ֥ר אֲלָפֶ֖יךָ וְעַשְׁתְּרֹ֣ת צֹאנֶ֑ךָ עַ֥ד הַאֲבִיד֖וֹ אֹתָֽךְ׃ (נב) וְהֵצַ֨ר לְךָ֜ בְּכָל־שְׁעָרֶ֗יךָ עַ֣ד רֶ֤דֶת חֹמֹתֶ֙יךָ֙ הַגְּבֹה֣וֹת וְהַבְּצֻר֔וֹת אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַתָּ֛ה בֹּטֵ֥חַ בָּהֵ֖ן בְּכָל־אַרְצֶ֑ךָ וְהֵצַ֤ר לְךָ֙ בְּכָל־שְׁעָרֶ֔יךָ בְּכָ֨ל־אַרְצְךָ֔ אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֛ן ה' אֱלֹקֶ֖יךָ לָֽךְ׃ (נג) וְאָכַלְתָּ֣ פְרִֽי־בִטְנְךָ֗ בְּשַׂ֤ר בָּנֶ֙יךָ֙ וּבְנֹתֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָֽתַן־לְךָ֖ ה' אֱלֹקֶ֑יךָ בְּמָצוֹר֙ וּבְמָצ֔וֹק אֲשֶׁר־יָצִ֥יק לְךָ֖ אֹיְבֶֽךָ׃ (נד) הָאִישׁ֙ הָרַ֣ךְ בְּךָ֔ וְהֶעָנֹ֖ג מְאֹ֑ד תֵּרַ֨ע עֵינ֤וֹ בְאָחִיו֙ וּבְאֵ֣שֶׁת חֵיק֔וֹ וּבְיֶ֥תֶר בָּנָ֖יו אֲשֶׁ֥ר יוֹתִֽיר׃ (נה) מִתֵּ֣ת ׀ לְאַחַ֣ד מֵהֶ֗ם מִבְּשַׂ֤ר בָּנָיו֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר יֹאכֵ֔ל מִבְּלִ֥י הִשְׁאִֽיר־ל֖וֹ כֹּ֑ל בְּמָצוֹר֙ וּבְמָצ֔וֹק אֲשֶׁ֨ר יָצִ֥יק לְךָ֛ אֹיִבְךָ֖ בְּכָל־שְׁעָרֶֽיךָ׃ (נו) הָרַכָּ֨ה בְךָ֜ וְהָעֲנֻגָּ֗ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר לֹא־נִסְּתָ֤ה כַף־רַגְלָהּ֙ הַצֵּ֣ג עַל־הָאָ֔רֶץ מֵהִתְעַנֵּ֖ג וּמֵרֹ֑ךְ תֵּרַ֤ע עֵינָהּ֙ בְּאִ֣ישׁ חֵיקָ֔הּ וּבִבְנָ֖הּ וּבְבִתָּֽהּ׃ (נז) וּֽבְשִׁלְיָתָ֞הּ הַיּוֹצֵ֣ת ׀ מִבֵּ֣ין רַגְלֶ֗יהָ וּבְבָנֶ֙יהָ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תֵּלֵ֔ד כִּֽי־תֹאכְלֵ֥ם בְּחֹֽסֶר־כֹּ֖ל בַּסָּ֑תֶר בְּמָצוֹר֙ וּבְמָצ֔וֹק אֲשֶׁ֨ר יָצִ֥יק לְךָ֛ אֹיִבְךָ֖ בִּשְׁעָרֶֽיךָ׃ (נח) אִם־לֹ֨א תִשְׁמֹ֜ר לַעֲשׂ֗וֹת אֶת־כָּל־דִּבְרֵי֙ הַתּוֹרָ֣ה הַזֹּ֔את הַכְּתוּבִ֖ים בַּסֵּ֣פֶר הַזֶּ֑ה לְ֠יִרְאָה אֶת־הַשֵּׁ֞ם הַנִּכְבָּ֤ד וְהַנּוֹרָא֙ הַזֶּ֔ה אֵ֖ת ה' אֱלֹקֶֽיךָ׃ (נט) וְהִפְלָ֤א ה' אֶת־מַכֹּ֣תְךָ֔ וְאֵ֖ת מַכּ֣וֹת זַרְעֶ֑ךָ מַכּ֤וֹת גְּדֹלוֹת֙ וְנֶ֣אֱמָנ֔וֹת וָחֳלָיִ֥ם רָעִ֖ים וְנֶאֱמָנִֽים׃ (ס) וְהֵשִׁ֣יב בְּךָ֗ אֵ֚ת כָּל־מַדְוֵ֣ה מִצְרַ֔יִם אֲשֶׁ֥ר יָגֹ֖רְתָּ מִפְּנֵיהֶ֑ם וְדָבְק֖וּ בָּֽךְ׃ (סא) גַּ֤ם כָּל־חֳלִי֙ וְכָל־מַכָּ֔ה אֲשֶׁר֙ לֹ֣א כָת֔וּב בְּסֵ֖פֶר הַתּוֹרָ֣ה הַזֹּ֑את יַעְלֵ֤ם ה' עָלֶ֔יךָ עַ֖ד הִשָּׁמְדָֽךְ׃ (סב) וְנִשְׁאַרְתֶּם֙ בִּמְתֵ֣י מְעָ֔ט תַּ֚חַת אֲשֶׁ֣ר הֱיִיתֶ֔ם כְּכוֹכְבֵ֥י הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם לָרֹ֑ב כִּי־לֹ֣א שָׁמַ֔עְתָּ בְּק֖וֹל ה' אֱלֹקֶֽיךָ׃ (סג) וְ֠הָיָה כַּאֲשֶׁר־שָׂ֨שׂ ה' עֲלֵיכֶ֗ם לְהֵיטִ֣יב אֶתְכֶם֮ וּלְהַרְבּ֣וֹת אֶתְכֶם֒ כֵּ֣ן יָשִׂ֤ישׂ ה' עֲלֵיכֶ֔ם לְהַאֲבִ֥יד אֶתְכֶ֖ם וּלְהַשְׁמִ֣יד אֶתְכֶ֑ם וְנִסַּחְתֶּם֙ מֵעַ֣ל הָֽאֲדָמָ֔ה אֲשֶׁר־אַתָּ֥ה בָא־שָׁ֖מָּה לְרִשְׁתָּֽהּ׃ (סד) וֶהֱפִֽיצְךָ֤ ה' בְּכָל־הָ֣עַמִּ֔ים מִקְצֵ֥ה הָאָ֖רֶץ וְעַד־קְצֵ֣ה הָאָ֑רֶץ וְעָבַ֨דְתָּ שָּׁ֜ם אֱלֹקִ֣ים אֲחֵרִ֗ים אֲשֶׁ֧ר לֹא־יָדַ֛עְתָּ אַתָּ֥ה וַאֲבֹתֶ֖יךָ עֵ֥ץ וָאָֽבֶן׃ (סה) וּבַגּוֹיִ֤ם הָהֵם֙ לֹ֣א תַרְגִּ֔יעַ וְלֹא־יִהְיֶ֥ה מָנ֖וֹחַ לְכַף־רַגְלֶ֑ךָ וְנָתַן֩ ה' לְךָ֥ שָׁם֙ לֵ֣ב רַגָּ֔ז וְכִלְי֥וֹן עֵינַ֖יִם וְדַֽאֲב֥וֹן נָֽפֶשׁ׃ (סו) וְהָי֣וּ חַיֶּ֔יךָ תְּלֻאִ֥ים לְךָ֖ מִנֶּ֑גֶד וּפָֽחַדְתָּ֙ לַ֣יְלָה וְיוֹמָ֔ם וְלֹ֥א תַאֲמִ֖ין בְּחַיֶּֽיךָ׃ (סז) בַּבֹּ֤קֶר תֹּאמַר֙ מִֽי־יִתֵּ֣ן עֶ֔רֶב וּבָעֶ֥רֶב תֹּאמַ֖ר מִֽי־יִתֵּ֣ן בֹּ֑קֶר מִפַּ֤חַד לְבָֽבְךָ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תִּפְחָ֔ד וּמִמַּרְאֵ֥ה עֵינֶ֖יךָ אֲשֶׁ֥ר תִּרְאֶֽה׃ (סח) וֶֽהֱשִֽׁיבְךָ֨ ה' ׀ מִצְרַיִם֮ בָּאֳנִיּוֹת֒ בַּדֶּ֙רֶךְ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר אָמַ֣רְתִּֽי לְךָ֔ לֹא־תֹסִ֥יף ע֖וֹד לִרְאֹתָ֑הּ וְהִתְמַכַּרְתֶּ֨ם שָׁ֧ם לְאֹיְבֶ֛יךָ לַעֲבָדִ֥ים וְלִשְׁפָח֖וֹת וְאֵ֥ין קֹנֶֽה׃ (ס) (סט) אֵלֶּה֩ דִבְרֵ֨י הַבְּרִ֜ית אֲֽשֶׁר־צִוָּ֧ה ה' אֶת־מֹשֶׁ֗ה לִכְרֹ֛ת אֶת־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל בְּאֶ֣רֶץ מוֹאָ֑ב מִלְּבַ֣ד הַבְּרִ֔ית אֲשֶׁר־כָּרַ֥ת אִתָּ֖ם בְּחֹרֵֽב׃ (פ)
(7) The LORD will put to rout before you the enemies who attack you; they will march out against you by a single road, but flee from you by many roads. (8) The LORD will ordain blessings for you upon your barns and upon all your undertakings: He will bless you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. (9) The LORD will establish you as His holy people, as He swore to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in His ways. (10) And all the peoples of the earth shall see that the LORD’s name is proclaimed over you, and they shall stand in fear of you. (11) The LORD will give you abounding prosperity in the issue of your womb, the offspring of your cattle, and the produce of your soil in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers to assign to you. (12) The LORD will open for you His bounteous store, the heavens, to provide rain for your land in season and to bless all your undertakings. You will be creditor to many nations, but debtor to none.
(13) The LORD will make you the head, not the tail; you will always be at the top and never at the bottom—if only you obey and faithfully observe the commandments of the LORD your God that I enjoin upon you this day, (14) and do not deviate to the right or to the left from any of the commandments that I enjoin upon you this day and turn to the worship of other gods.
(15) But if you do not obey the LORD your God to observe faithfully all His commandments and laws which I enjoin upon you this day, all these curses shall come upon you and take effect:
(16) Cursed shall you be in the city and cursed shall you be in the country.
(17) Cursed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl.
(18) Cursed shall be the issue of your womb and the produce of your soil, the calving of your herd and the lambing of your flock.
(19) Cursed shall you be in your comings and cursed shall you be in your goings.
(20) The LORD will let loose against you calamity, panic, and frustration in all the enterprises you undertake, so that you shall soon be utterly wiped out because of your evildoing in forsaking Me.
(21) The LORD will make pestilence cling to you, until He has put an end to you in the land that you are entering to possess.
(22) The LORD will strike you with consumption, fever, and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, with blight and mildew; they shall hound you until you perish.
(23) The skies above your head shall be copper and the earth under you iron.
(24) The LORD will make the rain of your land dust, and sand shall drop on you from the sky, until you are wiped out.
(25) The LORD will put you to rout before your enemies; you shall march out against them by a single road, but flee from them by many roads; and you shall become a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.
(26) Your carcasses shall become food for all the birds of the sky and all the beasts of the earth, with none to frighten them off.
(27) The LORD will strike you with the Egyptian inflammation, with hemorrhoids, boil-scars, and itch, from which you shall never recover.
(28) The LORD will strike you with madness, blindness, and dismay.
(29) You shall grope at noon as a blind man gropes in the dark; you shall not prosper in your ventures, but shall be constantly abused and robbed, with none to give help.
(30) If you pay the bride-price for a wife, another man shall enjoy her. If you build a house, you shall not live in it. If you plant a vineyard, you shall not harvest it.
(31) Your ox shall be slaughtered before your eyes, but you shall not eat of it; your ass shall be seized in front of you, and it shall not be returned to you; your flock shall be delivered to your enemies, with none to help you.
(32) Your sons and daughters shall be delivered to another people, while you look on; and your eyes shall strain for them constantly, but you shall be helpless.
(33) A people you do not know shall eat up the produce of your soil and all your gains; you shall be abused and downtrodden continually, (34) until you are driven mad by what your eyes behold.
(35) The LORD will afflict you at the knees and thighs with a severe inflammation, from which you shall never recover—from the sole of your foot to the crown of your head.
(36) The LORD will drive you, and the king you have set over you, to a nation unknown to you or your fathers, where you shall serve other gods, of wood and stone.
(37) You shall be a consternation, a proverb, and a byword among all the peoples to which the LORD will drive you.
(38) Though you take much seed out to the field, you shall gather in little, for the locust shall consume it.
(39) Though you plant vineyards and till them, you shall have no wine to drink or store, for the worm shall devour them.
(40) Though you have olive trees throughout your territory, you shall have no oil for anointment, for your olives shall drop off.
(41) Though you beget sons and daughters, they shall not remain with you, for they shall go into captivity.
(42) The cricket shall take over all the trees and produce of your land.
(43) The stranger in your midst shall rise above you higher and higher, while you sink lower and lower: (44) he shall be your creditor, but you shall not be his; he shall be the head and you the tail.
(45) All these curses shall befall you; they shall pursue you and overtake you, until you are wiped out, because you did not heed the LORD your God and keep the commandments and laws that He enjoined upon you.
(46) They shall serve as signs and proofs against you and your offspring for all time.
(47) Because you would not serve the LORD your God in joy and gladness over the abundance of everything, (48) you shall have to serve—in hunger and thirst, naked and lacking everything—the enemies whom the LORD will let loose against you. He will put an iron yoke upon your neck until (he) He has wiped you out.
(49) The LORD will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, which will swoop down like the eagle—a nation whose language you do not understand, (50) a ruthless nation, that will show the old no regard and the young no mercy. (51) It shall devour the offspring of your cattle and the produce of your soil, until you have been wiped out, leaving you nothing of new grain, wine, or oil, of the calving of your herds and the lambing of your flocks, until it has brought you to ruin. (52) It shall shut you up in all your towns throughout your land until every mighty, towering wall in which you trust has come down. And when you are shut up in all your towns throughout your land that the LORD your God has assigned to you, (53) you shall eat your own issue, the flesh of your sons and daughters that the LORD your God has assigned to you, because of the desperate straits to which your enemy shall reduce you.
(54) He who is most tender and fastidious among you shall be too mean to his brother and the wife of his bosom and the children he has spared (55) to share with any of them the flesh of the children that he eats, because he has nothing else left as a result of the desperate straits to which your enemy shall reduce you in all your towns.
(56) And she who is most tender and delicate among you, so tender and delicate that she would never venture to set a foot on the ground, shall begrudge the husband of her bosom, and her son and her daughter, (57) the afterbirth that issues from between her legs and the babies she bears; she shall eat them secretly, because of utter want, in the desperate straits to which your enemy shall reduce you in your towns.
(58) If you fail to observe faithfully all the terms of this Teaching that are written in this book, to reverence this honored and awesome Name, the LORD your God, (59) the LORD will inflict extraordinary plagues upon you and your offspring, strange and lasting plagues, malignant and chronic diseases.
(60) He will bring back upon you all the sicknesses of Egypt that you dreaded so, and they shall cling to you. (61) Moreover, the LORD will bring upon you all the other diseases and plagues that are not mentioned in this book of Torah, until you are wiped out.
(62) You shall be left a scant few, after having been as numerous as the stars in the skies, because you did not heed the command of the LORD your God. (63) And as the LORD once delighted in making you prosperous and many, so will the LORD now delight in causing you to perish and in wiping you out; you shall be torn from the land that you are about to enter and possess.
(64) The LORD will scatter you among all the peoples from one end of the earth to the other, and there you shall serve other gods, wood and stone, whom neither you nor your ancestors have experienced. (65) Yet even among those nations you shall find no peace, nor shall your foot find a place to rest. The LORD will give you there an anguished heart and eyes that pine and a despondent spirit. (66) The life you face shall be precarious; you shall be in terror, night and day, with no assurance of survival.
(67) In the morning you shall say, “If only it were evening!” and in the evening you shall say, “If only it were morning!”—because of what your heart shall dread and your eyes shall see.
(68) The LORD will send you back to Egypt in galleys, by a route which I told you you should not see again. There you shall offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but none will buy.
(69) These are the terms of the covenant which the LORD commanded Moses to conclude with the Israelites in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant which He had made with them at Horeb.
Famously, four times more space is devoted to the curses than to the blessings. Historically, the implementation of the curses seemed much more imminent in the seventh century BCE than the fulfillment of the blessings. In any case, the chief function of the entire verbal enactment of this stupendous ceremony of blessings and curses is admonition, so it is not surprising that a long catalogue of bloodcurdling catastrophes far outweighs the list of happier events.
-Robert Alter Translation
INTRODUCTION TO TRADITIONS
TRADITION: FROM THE TALMUD: ONLY ONE READER
בַּתַּעֲנִיּוֹת, בְּרָכוֹת וּקְלָלוֹת (ויקרא כו). אֵין מַפְסִיקִין בַּקְּלָלוֹת, אֶלָּא אֶחָד קוֹרֵא אֶת כֻּלָּן.
On fast days, they read the portion of blessings and curses (Leviticus, chapter 26). One should not interrupt the reading of the curses by having two different people read them. Rather, one person reads all of them.
TRADITION: READ IT QUIETLY AND FAST
As is typical of this kind of literature, the curses seem to outweigh the blessings not only in verse count, but in color of description as well. While later generations of Jews, horrified by the warnings of disaster, stipulated that this chapter be read in an undertone when it is a weekly public synagogue reading, it is fairly standard stuff in the context of ancient Near Eastern treaties.
- Everett Fox Torah
Likewise the Tokhehah passages in the Leviticus and in Deuteronomy and the list of curses in Ki-Tavo are generally read in an undertone, i.e., not as loud as one reads the rest of the parashah, but in any event loud enough to be heard. Pri Hadash sect. 7, and Mahatzit ha-Shekel, par. 8.
Ovadiah Hadaya:
Those who read the Tokhehah without cantillation offend the higher realms and are not doing right: “Will the words not be ones of rebuke without the cantillation? Rebuke remains rebuke, so what have they availed by their emendation?"
Some cantors have the practice of reading the passage of curses in a low voice; but in my view, according to my Kitzur, one ought to put an end to this practice since the person who is called up for the passage of curses is very punctilious and any little change made during his aliyah causes him sorrow such that after having been called up to the Torah and having recited the first benediction he then refuses [to remain] and wants to recite the concluding benediction in the middle of the reading.
The Ari used to read to go up to the reader’s desk to read the passage of curses in Be-Hukotai, and would read them out loud, as is the practice in Sephardic communities. Some Yemenites also deliberately read the Tokhehah in full voice....
TRADITION: READ IT NORMALLY BUT DON'T TRANSLATE IT INTO A LANGUAGE ANYONE UNDERSTANDS
“The curses in the Torah are read with translation.” Hence, “they should not do any clever tricks,…so that the public not lose its mind. In other words, they should not do so even if their intention is to keep the public from going crazy, becoming panic-stricken by so many curses."
TRADITION: PTFU PTFU PTFU: READ IT, BUT THEN DO SOMETHING TO COUNTERACT IT
May He who blessed our forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, bless so-and-so son of so-and-so for coming up for the aliyah of “whosoever wishes,”and for himself fulfilling the verse, “Do not reject the discipline of the Lord, my son; do not abhor His rebuke.” And it is said, “For the commandment is a lamp, the Teaching is a light, and the way to life is the rebuke that disciplines.”
May the Holy One, blessed be He, reward him for this by fulfilling the verse, “He whose ear heeds the discipline of life lodges among the wise,” and may He turn the curse to a blessing, and safeguard him from all hardship and distress, from all illness and disease, and grant him blessing and success in all his endeavors, and may he be blessed along with all his fellow Jews, and let us say: Amen.
On the Sabbath of Be-Hukotai, whoever so wishes is called up for the Tokhehah. And whosoever wishes to take that aliyah must also be called up on the first day of Shavuot. Likewise, whosoever wishes to be called up for Parashat Ki Tavo must also be called up on the first day of Rosh Hashana.
TRADITION: THEY AREN'T REALLY CURSES, THEY ARE BLESSINGS IN DISGUISE
Admor Rabbi Samuel of Sokhatshov (early 1900s):
Regarding the blessings and curses in our books, it follows from the holy Zohar and the New Zohar that underneath they are all blessings; indeed there are more blessings hidden in curses than blessings outwardly revealed… As with the creation of the world, which outwardly is a material world but contains an inner essence, it appears, … the inner essence of the world is entirely good, and only in the outward manifestations of the worlds is real bad,
… It is well-known that everything that is secret and concealed has superior quality, therefore the blessings that are enveloped in the garb of curses are even more elevated… For it is well-known that reading the passage rouses the matter, and the curses as well are roused; and on the Sabbath, Israel absorbs the inner essence that the admonishments contain, which are instructive blessings, and the outer parts, which are curses, become annulled.
AND A FOLKTALE:
Elijah appeared and said: Arise, Rabbi Simeon, awaken from your slumber. How fortunate you are that the Holy One, blessed be He, is mindful of your honor. All the promises and consolation of Israel are written in these curses. Consider, when a king loves his son, although he might curse him and beat him nevertheless he loves him from the bottom of his heart. Thus, even though the Holy One, blessed be He, uttered curses, His words were said lovingly. Outwardly they appear as curses, but they are a great beneficence, since these curses were said lovingly.
...there are certain places where they compete one with another for the purchase of this aliyah, and the one who wins makes a great feast for the entire congregation at the synagogue. There are other places where a certain person might traditionally have the claim to this aliyah and no one else may take it from him. It is clear that whoever considers them blessings has the reward of all the hidden blessings in them being fulfilled for him. And conversely, whoever (Heaven forfend) considers them curses, brings on himself these curses just as one might tempt fate and in this regard it is said: what business have you prying into the secrets of the Merciful One?…and pleasantness will come to those who hear them, and they will be blessed with good.
JOY OR MISERY?
(47) Because you would not serve The Eternal your God in joy and good-heartedness in the abundance of everything, (48) then you shall serve your enemies, who The Eternal will send upon you—in hunger and thirst, naked and lacking everything, who will put an iron yoke upon your neck until you are annihilated.
Some of us may struggle with the notion of a vengeful God Who would repay us for breaking faith in these ways. (That's certainly not my God-concept.) But what happens if we read the verse not prescriptively but descriptively? In other words: this isn't about what God will "do to us" if we turn away from the mitzvot. This is about the natural consequences of choosing to turn away from a path of holiness.
Does the idea of serving make us uncomfortable? Maybe we want to say, I'm nobody's servant -- I live for my own self! But in Torah's frame, that's an impossibility. Once we were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt and God brought us out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm: not so that we could be self-sufficient and serve our own needs, but so that we could enter into covenant with God and serve the Holy One.
Everyone serves something. That's a fact of human life. The question is what we will choose to serve, and how.
In Torah's understanding, either we can dedicate our lives to serving the Holy One of Blessing -- through the practice of mitzvot both ritual and ethical; through feeding the hungry and protecting the vulnerable; through cultivating gratitude for life's abundance; through working to rebuild and repair the world; through the work of teshuvah, turning ourselves around -- or we can turn our backs on all of that.
And if we turn our backs on all of that, says Torah, we will find ourselves serving a master who is cruel and uncaring. Maybe that master will be overwork. Maybe that master will be a political system that mistreats the immigrant and the refugee. Maybe that master will be whatever we use to numb ourselves to the brokenness around and within us.
In Torah's stark framing, either we can serve God or we can serve something else, and the inevitable fruits of serving something else will be disconnection and lack and facing down a slew of internal enemies.
Now, joylessness may not be the best way to live, but it is surely not even a sin, let alone one that warrants a litany of curses. What does the Torah mean when it attributes national disaster to a lack of joy? Why does joy seem to matter in Judaism more than happiness?
.... Simcha in the Torah is never about individuals. It is always about something we share. A newly married man does not serve in the army for a year, says the Torah, so that he can stay at home “and bring joy to the wife he has married” (Deut. 24:5). You shall bring all your offerings to the central sanctuary, says Moses, so that “There, in the presence of the Lord your God, you and your families shall eat and rejoice in all you have put your hand to, because the Lord your God has blessed you.” (Deut. 12:7). The festivals as described in Deuteronomy are days of joy, precisely because they are occasions of collective celebration: “you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, the Levites in your towns, and the strangers, the fatherless and the widows living among you” (16:11). Simcha is joy shared. It is not something we experience in solitude.
It has to do with a sense of connection to other people or to God. It comes from a different realm than happiness. It is a social emotion. It is the exhilaration we feel when we merge with others. It is the redemption of solitude.
- Rabbi Johnathan Sacks, Ki Tavo essay 5775
It is taught: Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar said: Ezra enacted for the Jewish people that they should read the portion of the curses that are recorded in Leviticus before Shavuot and the portion of the curses that are recorded in Deuteronomy before Rosh HaShana. The Gemara asks: What is the reason for this? Abaye said, and some say that it was Reish Lakish who said: In order that the year may conclude together with its curses, and the new year may begin.
https://www1.biu.ac.il/indexE.php?id=15022&pt=1&pid=14423&level=0&cPath=43,14206,14374,14423,15022#_ftn19
Multiple articles by Rabbi Dr. Hayyim Talbi on the traditions surrounding this portion.
History and traditions about dividing up aliyot
THE LAST ORAL TORAH?
THE DIVISION OF THE TORAH INTO ‘ALIYOT*
EPHRAIM STULBERG
The Stopping Points in the Public Torah Reading