because when such a person hears the words of this oath, he invokes a blessing on himself, saying, ‘I will have peace, even though I walk in the stubbornness of my own heart.’ This will bring disaster on the watered land as well as the dry.
Parallel translations
- WEB and it happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, “I shall have peace, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart, to destroy the moist with the dry.”
- KJV And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst:
- NKJV and so it may not happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he blesses himself in his heart, saying, ‘I shall have peace, even though I follow the dictates of my heart’—as though the drunkard could be included with the sober.
- NASB And it shall be when he hears the words of this curse, that he will consider himself fortunate in his heart, saying, ‘I will do well though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart in order to destroy the watered land along with the dry.’
- NLT “Those who hear the warnings of this curse should not congratulate themselves, thinking, ‘I am safe, even though I am following the desires of my own stubborn heart.’ This would lead to utter ruin!
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
It warns against the self-deceived who presume peace while persisting in stubborn sin. Presumption upon God's mercy is a deadly delusion.
Overview
Some, hearing the curses, might bless themselves with false assurance, thinking they can sin yet escape. This self-flattering presumption, 'I shall have peace,' is exposed as ruinous deception. The verse warns against cheap confidence that ignores God's holiness, contrasting with the true peace found only through repentance and faith in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 24
- Jer 7:24Yet they did not listen or incline their ear, but they followed the stubborn inclinations of their own evil hearts. They went backward and not forward.
- Num 15:39These will serve as tassels for you to look at, so that you may remember all the commandments of the LORD, that you may obey them and not prostitute yourselves by following your own heart and your own eyes.
- Num 15:30But the person who sins defiantly, whether a native or foreigner, blasphemes the LORD. That person shall be cut off from among his people.
- Rom 1:21For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts.
- Jer 7:3–11Thus says the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel: Correct your ways and deeds, and I will let you live in this place.
- Jer 44:16–17“As for the word you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD, we will not listen to you!
- Deut 29:12so that you may enter into the covenant of the LORD your God, which He is making with you today, and into His oath,
- Deut 17:2If a man or woman among you in one of the towns that the LORD your God gives you is found doing evil in the sight of the LORD your God by transgressing His covenant
- 2 Cor 10:5We tear down arguments and every presumption set up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
- Eph 4:17So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.
- Ps 49:18Though in his lifetime he blesses his soul—and men praise you when you prosper—
- Prov 29:1A man who remains stiff-necked after much reproof will suddenly be shattered beyond recovery.
- Eccl 11:9Rejoice, O young man, while you are young, and let your heart be glad in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment.
- Ezek 13:16those prophets of Israel who prophesied to Jerusalem and saw a vision of peace for her when there was no peace, declares the Lord GOD.’
- Ezek 13:22Because you have disheartened the righteous with your lies, even though I have caused them no grief, and because you have encouraged the wicked not to turn from their evil ways to save their lives,
- Ps 10:4–6In his pride the wicked man does not seek Him; in all his schemes there is no God.
- Eph 5:6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience.
- Jer 44:27I am watching over them for harm and not for good, and every man of Judah who is in the land of Egypt will meet his end by sword or famine, until they are finished off.
- Jer 5:12–13They have lied about the LORD and said: “He will not do anything; harm will not come to us; we will not see sword or famine.
- Ps 10:11He says to himself, “God has forgotten; He hides His face and never sees.”
- Gen 2:17but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die.”
- Jer 28:15–17Then the prophet Jeremiah said to the prophet Hananiah, “Listen, Hananiah! The LORD did not send you, but you have persuaded this people to trust in a lie.
- Ps 94:6–7They kill the widow and the foreigner; they murder the fatherless.
- Jer 3:17At that time Jerusalem will be called The Throne of the LORD, and all the nations will be gathered in Jerusalem to honor the name of the LORD. They will no longer follow the stubbornness of their evil hearts.
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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 29:19 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
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