Leviticus 26:19-29

26:19 I will break your strong pride and make your sky like iron and your land like bronze. 26:20 Your strength will be used up in vain, your land will not give its yield, and the trees of the land ¹  will not produce their fruit.

26:21 “‘If you walk in hostility against me ²  and are not willing to obey me, I will increase your affliction ³  seven times according to your sins. 26:22 I will send the wild animals ⁴  against you and they will bereave you of your children, ⁵  annihilate your cattle, and diminish your population ⁶  so that your roads will become deserted.

26:23 “‘If in spite of these things ⁷  you do not allow yourselves to be disciplined and you walk in hostility against me, ⁸  26:24 I myself will also walk in hostility against you and strike you ⁹  seven times on account of your sins. 26:25 I will bring on you an avenging sword, a covenant vengeance. ¹⁰  Although ¹¹  you will gather together into your cities, I will send pestilence among you and you will be given into enemy hands. ¹²  26:26 When I break off your supply of bread, ¹³  ten women will bake your bread in one oven; they will ration your bread by weight, ¹⁴  and you will eat and not be satisfied.

26:27 “‘If in spite of this ¹⁵  you do not obey me but walk in hostility against me, ¹⁶  26:28 I will walk in hostile rage against you ¹⁷  and I myself will also discipline you seven times on account of your sins. 26:29 You will eat the flesh of your sons and the flesh of your daughters. ¹⁸ 

[26:20]  ¹ tn Heb “the tree of the land will not give its fruit.” The collective singular has been translated as a plural. Tg. Onq., some medieval Hebrew mss, Smr, LXX, and Tg. Ps.-J. have “the field” as in v. 4, rather than “the land.”

[26:21]  ¹ tn Heb “hostile with me,” but see the added preposition בְּ (bet) on the phrase “in hostility” in v. 24 and 27.

[26:21]  ² tn Heb “your blow, stroke”; cf. TEV “punishment”; NLT “I will inflict you with seven more disasters.”

[26:22]  ¹ tn Heb “the animal of the field.” This collective singular has been translated as a plural. The expression “animal of the field” refers to a wild (i.e., nondomesticated) animal.

[26:22]  ² tn The words “of your children” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied.

[26:22]  ³ tn Heb “and diminish you.”

[26:23]  ¹ tn Heb “And if in these.”

[26:23]  ² tn Heb “with me,” but see the added preposition בְּ (bet) on the phrase “in hostility” in vv. 24 and 27.

[26:24]  ¹ tn Heb “and I myself will also strike you.”

[26:25]  ¹ tn Heb “vengeance of covenant”; cf. NAB “the avenger of my covenant.”

[26:25]  ² tn Heb “and.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) has a concessive force in this context.

[26:25]  ³ tn Heb “in hand of enemy,” but Tg. Ps.-J. and Tg. Neof. have “in the hands of your enemies” (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 454).

[26:26]  ¹ tn Heb “When I break to you staff of bread” (KJV, ASV, and NASB all similar).

[26:26]  ² tn Heb “they will return your bread in weight.”

[26:27]  ¹ tn Heb “And if in this.”

[26:27]  ² tn Heb “with me.”

[26:28]  ¹ tn Heb “in rage of hostility with you”; NASB “with wrathful hostility”; NRSV “I will continue hostile to you in fury”; CEV “I’ll get really furious.”

[26:29]  ¹ tn Heb “and the flesh of your daughters you will eat.” The phrase “you will eat” has not been repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.