The most gentle and refined man among you will begrudge his brother, the wife he embraces, and the rest of his children who have survived,
Parallel translations
- WEB The man who is tender among you, and very delicate, his eye will be evil toward his brother, toward the wife whom he loves, and toward the remnant of his children whom he has remaining;
- KJV So that the man that is tender among you, and very delicate, his eye shall be evil toward his brother, and toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the remnant of his children which he shall leave:
- NKJV The sensitive and very refined man among you will be hostile toward his brother, toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the rest of his children whom he leaves behind,
- NASB The man who is refined and very delicate among you will be hostile toward his brother, toward the wife he cherishes, and toward the rest of his children who are left,
- NLT The most tenderhearted man among you will have no compassion for his own brother, his beloved wife, and his surviving children.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Even the gentlest, most refined man will become heartless, grudging food to his own brother and family. Famine exposes how desperation can corrode the kindest heart.
Overview
Moses heightens the horror by showing that the curse touches even the tenderhearted, turning their natural compassion into cruelty. The 'evil eye' here means a grudging, selfish refusal to share even with loved ones. The passage reveals the depth to which judgment can drive people, and how only a renewed heart, ultimately given through Christ, can keep love alive under pressure.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Deut 15:9Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought in your heart: “The seventh year, the year of release, is near,” so that you look upon your poor brother begrudgingly and give him nothing. He will cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin.
- Matt 20:15Do I not have the right to do as I please with what is mine? Or are you envious because I am generous?’
- Deut 13:6If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you embrace, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, “Let us go and worship other gods” (which neither you nor your fathers have known,
- Prov 28:22A stingy man hastens after wealth and does not know that poverty awaits him.
- 2 Sam 12:3but the poor man had nothing except one small ewe lamb that he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food and drank from his cup; it slept in his arms and was like a daughter to him.
- Luke 11:11–13What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?
- Prov 23:6Do not eat the bread of a stingy man, and do not crave his delicacies;
- Ps 103:13As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him.
- Mic 7:5Do not rely on a friend; do not trust in a companion. Seal the doors of your mouth from her who lies in your arms.
- Matt 7:9–11Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?
- Isa 49:15“Can a woman forget her nursing child, or lack compassion for the son of her womb? Even if she could forget, I will not forget you!
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Moses promised a Prophet like himself to whom Israel must listen (18:15); Jesus is that Prophet, the one who keeps the covenant we broke and becomes the curse for us by hanging on a tree (Gal 3:13).
How Deuteronomy 28:54 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.