Deuteronomy 28:65

 Deuteronomy 28:65

And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind:

a. ASV: And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, and there shall be no rest for the sole of thy foot: but Jehovah will give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and pining of soul;  [Thomas Nelson & Sons first published the American Standard Version in 1901. This translation of the Bible is in the public domain.]

b. YLT: 'And among those nations thou dost not rest, yea, there is no resting-place for the sole of thy foot, and Jehovah hath given to thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and grief of soul;  [The Young's Literal Translation was translated by Robert Young, who believed in a strictly literal translation of God's word. This version of the Bible is in the public domain.]

c. Classic Amplified:  And among these nations you shall find no ease and there shall be no rest for the sole of your foot; but the Lord will give you there a trembling heart, failing of eyes [from disappointment of hope], fainting of mind, and languishing of spirit.  [Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC) Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation]

d. Stone Edition THE CHUMASH, Rabbinic Commentary: And among those nations you will not be tranquil, there will be not rest for the sole of your foot; there HASHEM will give you a trembling heart, longing of eyes and suffering of soul.  [The Artscroll Series/Stone Edition, THE CHUMASH Copyright 1998, 2000 by MESORAH PUBLICATIONS, Ldt.]

e. NLT: There among those nations you will find no peace or place to rest. And the LORD will cause your heart to tremble, your eyesight to fail, and your soul to despair. [Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.]

1. “And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest…”

a. [and among] these [Strong: 1992 hêm, haym; or (prolonged) הֵמָּה hêmmâh; masculine plural from H1931; they (only used when emphatic):—it, like, × (how, so) many (soever, more as) they (be), (the) same, × so, × such, their, them, these, they, those, which, who, whom, withal, ye.]

b. nations [Strong: 1471 gôwy, go'-ee; rarely (shortened) גֹּי gôy; apparently from the same root as H1465 (in the sense of massing); a foreign nation; hence, a Gentile; also (figuratively) a troop of animals, or a flight of locusts:—Gentile, heathen, nation, people.]

c. [shalt thou find] no [Strong: 3808 lôʼ, lo; or לוֹא lôwʼ; or לֹה lôh; (Deuteronomy 3:11), a primitive particle; + not (the simple or abstract negation); by implication, no; often used with other particles:—× before, + or else, ere, + except, ig(-norant), much, less, nay, neither, never, no((-ne), -r, (-thing)), (× as though...,(can-), for) not (out of), of nought, otherwise, out of, + surely, + as truly as, + of a truth, + verily, for want, + whether, without.]

d. ease [Strong: 7280 râgaʻ, raw-gah'; a primitive root; properly, to toss violently and suddenly (the sea with waves, the skin with boils); figuratively (in a favorable manner) to settle, i.e. quiet; specifically, to wink (from the motion of the eye-lids):—break, divide, find ease, be a moment, (cause, give, make to) rest, make suddenly.]

e. neither [shall] [Strong: 3808 lôʼ, lo; or לוֹא lôwʼ; or לֹה lôh; (Deuteronomy 3:11), a primitive particle; + not (the simple or abstract negation); by implication, no; often used with other particles:—× before, + or else, ere, + except, ig(-norant), much, less, nay, neither, never, no((-ne), -r, (-thing)), (× as though...,(can-), for) not (out of), of nought, otherwise, out of, + surely, + as truly as, + of a truth, + verily, for want, + whether, without.]

f. [the] sole [Strong: kaph, kaf; from H3721; the hollow hand or palm (so of the paw of an animal, of the sole, and even of the bowl of a dish or sling, the handle of a bolt, the leaves of a palm-tree); figuratively, power:—branch, foot, hand((-ful), -dle, (-led)), hollow, middle, palm, paw, power, sole, spoon.]

g. [of your] foot [Strong: 7272 regel, reh'-gel; from H7270; a foot (as used in walking); by implication, a step; by euphemistically the pudenda:—× be able to endure, × according as, × after, × coming, × follow, (broken-)foot(-ed, -stool), × great toe, × haunt, × journey, leg, piss, possession, time.]

h. have [Strong: 1961 hâyâh, haw-yaw; a primitive root (compare H1933); to exist, i.e. be or become, come to pass (always emphatic, and not a mere copula or auxiliary):—beacon, × altogether, be(-come), accomplished, committed, like), break, cause, come (to pass), do, faint, fall, follow, happen, × have, last, pertain, quit (one-) self, require, × use.]

i. rest [Strong: 4494 mânôwach, maw-no'-akh; from H5117; quiet, i.e. (concretely) a settled spot, or (figuratively) a home:—(place of) rest.]

2. “...but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind:”

a. [but the] LORD [Strong: 3068 Yᵉhôvâh, yeh-ho-vaw'; from H1961; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jeho-vah, Jewish national name of God:—Jehovah, the Lord.]

b. [shall] give [Strong: 5414 nâthan, naw-than'; a primitive root; to give, used with greatest latitude of application (put, make, etc.):—add, apply, appoint, ascribe, assign, × avenge, × be (healed), bestow, bring (forth, hither), cast, cause, charge, come, commit, consider, count, cry, deliver (up), direct, distribute, do, × doubtless, × without fail, fasten, frame, × get, give (forth, over, up), grant, hang (up), × have, × indeed, lay (unto charge, up), (give) leave, lend, let (out), lie, lift up, make, O that, occupy, offer, ordain, pay, perform, place, pour, print, × pull, put (forth), recompense, render, requite, restore, send (out), set (forth), shew, shoot forth (up), sing, slander, strike, (sub-) mit, suffer, × surely, × take, thrust, trade, turn, utter, weep, willingly, withdraw, would (to) God, yield.]

c. [thee] there [Strong: 8033 shâm, shawm; a primitive particle (rather from the relative pronoun, H834); there (transferring to time) then; often thither, or thence:—in it, thence, there (-in, of, out), thither, whither.]

d. [a] trembling [Strong: 7268 raggâz, rag-gawz'; intensive from H7264; timid:—trembling.]

e. heart [Strong: 3820 lêb, labe; a form of H3824; the heart; also used (figuratively) very widely for the feelings, the will and even the intellect; likewise for the centre of anything:—care for, comfortably, consent, × considered, courag(-eous), friend(-ly), ((broken-), (hard-), (merry-), (stiff-), (stout-), double) heart(-ed), × heed, × I, kindly, midst, mind(-ed), × regard(-ed), × themselves, × unawares, understanding, × well, willingly, wisdom.]

f. [and] failing [Strong: 3631 killâyôwn, kil-law-yone'; from H3615; pining, destruction:—consumption, failing.]

g. [of] eyes [Strong: 5869 ʻayin, ah'-yin; probably a primitive word; an eye (literally or figuratively); by analogy, a fountain (as the eye of the landscape):—affliction, outward appearance, before, think best, colour, conceit, be content, countenance, displease, eye((-brow), (-d), -sight), face, favour, fountain, furrow (from the margin), × him, humble, knowledge, look, (+ well), × me, open(-ly), + (not) please, presence, regard, resemblance, sight, × thee, × them, + think, × us, well, × you(-rselves).]

h. [and] sorrow [Strong: 1671 dᵉʼâbôwn, deh-aw-bone'; from H1669; pining:—sorrow.]

i. [of] mind [Strong: 5315 nephesh, neh'-fesh; from H5314; properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental):—any, appetite, beast, body, breath, creature, × dead(-ly), desire, × (dis-) contented, × fish, ghost, greedy, he, heart(-y), (hath, × jeopardy of) life (× in jeopardy), lust, man, me, mind, mortally, one, own, person, pleasure, (her-, him-, my-, thy-) self, them (your) -selves, slay, soul, tablet, they, thing, (× she) will, × would have it.

1). Troy Edwards, The Permissive Sense: Most people have read this list (Deuteronomy 28:16-68) with the erroneous idea that God will use His divine creative power to bring about these curses. Nevertheless, when we use the principle of interpreting the Bible with the Bible, we learn that these curses will come because God is  forsaking His people and withdrawing His protection. 

a). Deuteronomy 31:16-18 And the Lord said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers; and this people will rise up, and go a whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I have made with them.

31:17 Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them; so that they will say in that day, Are not these evils come upon us, because our God is not among us?

31:18 And I will surely hide my face in that day for all the evils which they shall have wrought, in that they are turned unto other gods.

2). Edward Williams, Predestination and Election Considered: explaining to his listeners how the Hebrew idiom of permission will keep us away from an erroneous interpretation of Scripture that would otherwise cast aspersions on God’s character. After all, it may be objected, that the Scriptures ascribe to God the causation of moral evil; as hardening the heart of Pharaoh, hardening whom he will, making the wicked for the day of evil, appointing to destruction, determining the death of Christ, delivering him by determinate counsel, doing all evil in a city, making, making vessels to dishonor, fitting them for destruction, &c. In reply to this objection it must be considered, that whatever the import of such representations may be, no interpretation which is unworthy of God can be the true meaning, at the idioms of the sacred languages ascribing cause or operation to God must be understood according to the nature of the subject, and, what is particularly to our purpose, that active verbs which denote making, bring, causing, and the like, often denote a declaration of the thing done, or that shall take place; or a permission of it. (Taken from Troy J. Edwards, The Hebrew Idiom of Permission.)

3). Thomas Jackson: “It is then so common in Holy Scripture to speak of God as actually doing that which He simply permits, and does not absolutely hinder man from doing, that this may be justly regarded as an idiom of eastern speech.” (The Hebrew Idiom of Permission.]

4). Robert Balmer, Academical Lectures: But does not the Scripture, it may be said, go much farther than this, when it declares that God hardens the hearts of men? Thus ascribing to him a direct and positive agency in the production of sinful actions. To this it may be replied, that to interpret such expressions in the literal and unqualified sense, as importing that God infuses moral depravity into the human heart, is not only to contradict other declarations of scripture, but to subvert entirely the foundations of religion, by divesting the Almighty of moral perfections without which it would be impossible for his intelligent creatures to regard him with sentiments of veneration, confidence and love. It would be to ascribe to him attributes which would transform him into a legitimate object of suspicion and terror, and hatred. It may be remarked next, that according to the idiom of scripture language, God is often said to do those things which he permits, and which he is determined to render conductive to his own holy and benevolent purposes. Lastly, it is evidently fair and reasonable to interpret those expressions of scripture, as of other writings, which are dubious or dark, by those which are clear and unequivocal. Now, 

“times almost without number,” and in terms the most explicit and unambiguous, the scripture guards us against the ascription of any thing evil to God, and teaches us to ascribe to him whatever is good, or excellent, or holy. “I will ascribe righteousness to my Maker. Far be it from Go, that he should do wickedness; and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.  Troy Edwards