Deuteronomy 28 has two sections: The first is a review of the blessings Israel would receive if she were obedient to God. The blessings are many, but the section is small. The second section deals with punishments for disobedience. It is a long section. The lengths of the sections have to do with the emphasis God places on these words. The consequences of disobedience are dire.
A recurring word in chapter 28 is “destroy.” God threatens Israel with destruction if she is disobedient. But He doesn’t mean Israel will cease to exist. The sinful will be destroyed. Those who have ignored the sinfulness of their brethren will be destroyed. There will be innocent casualties of the destruction. But Israel, as a people, will remain. The destruction and punishment will remain as long as the people are characterized by sin.
When, however, Israel finally returns from her sins (chapter 30), God will bless her once more – and even more so than ever before.
The obedience God asks of His people is neither unreasonable nor more than they can accomplish, and their future is dependent upon faithfulness to God’s calling. In fact, their children’s future is dependent on the parents’ faithfulness.
Why?
Because as goes the parent, so goes the child. Children will not value what their parents do not value. As Christian parents consider their children’s future, the best thing theyu can do to ensure success is to set before them a model of faithfulness by the way they conduct their lives.