Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Deuteronomy 28:49
The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, [as swift] as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand;
49. from far, etc.] Isa 5:26 of Assyrians, Jer 5:15 of Babylonians (though perhaps originally of Scythians).
as the vulture swoopeth ] See on Deu 14:12 f.; cp. Hos 8:1 of Assyrians; Hab 1:8, Jer 48:40; Jer 49:22 of Babylonians.
whose tongue thou shalt not understand ] Lit. hear; Jer 5:15 of Babylonians, cp. Isa 28:11 of Assyrians (and Deu 33:9).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 49. A nation – from far] Probably the Romans.
As the eagle flieth] The very animal on all the Roman standards. The Roman eagle is proverbial.
Whose tongue thou shalt not understand] The Latin language, than which none was more foreign to the structure and idiom of the Hebrew.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
As the eagle flieth, Heb. as the eagle flies, i.e. not only swiftly, as is expressed in our translation, for which the Babylonian is noted and compared to an eagle, Jer 4:13; Eze 17:3; Dan 7:4; but also fiercely and greedily, as the eagle to its prey; also strongly and irresistibly. Possibly this may be understood of the Romans, who did come
from far, from the end of the earth, more truly and literally than the Chaldeans, whose country was not far from Judea, and this may allude to the eagle, which was in their ensigns.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
49. The Lord shall bring a nationagainst thee from farthe invasion of the Romans”theycame from far.” The soldiers of the invading army were takenfrom France, Spain, and Britainthen considered “the end ofthe earth.” Julius Severus, the commander, afterwards Vespasianand Hadrian, left Britain for the scene of contest. Moreover, theensign on the standards of the Roman army was “an eagle”;and the dialects spoken by the soldiers of the different nations thatcomposed that army were altogether unintelligible to the Jews.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
The Lord shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth,…. Now though Babylon is represented as a country distant from Judea, and said to be a nation “from far”, Jer 5:15; yet not “from the end of the earth”; as here; and though the Roman nation, strictly speaking, was not at so great a distance from Jerusalem, yet the Roman emperors, and great part of their armies brought against it, were fetched from our island of Great Britain, which in former times was reckoned the end of the earth, and the uttermost parts of the world s; and so Manasseh Ben Israel t interprets this nation of Rome, and observes, that Vespasian brought for his assistance many nations (or soldiers) out of England, France, Spain, and other parts of the world: and not only Vespasian was sent for from Britain to make war with the Jews, but when they rebelled, in the times of Adrian, Julius Severus, a very eminent general, was sent for from thence to quell them. And it appears to be a very ancient opinion of the Jews, that this passage is to be understood of the Romans, from what is related in one of their Talmuds u: they say, that
“Trajan, being sent for by his wife to subdue the Jews, determined to come in ten days, and came in five; he came and found them (the Jews) busy in the law on that verse, “the Lord shall bring a nation against thee from far”, c. he said unto them, what are ye busy in? they answered him, so and so he replied to them, this is the man (meaning himself) who thought to come in ten days, and came in five; and he surrounded them with his legions, and slew them:”
[as swift] as the eagle flieth; which may respect not so much the swiftness of this creature, the words which convey the idea being a supplement of the text, as the force with which it flies when in sight of its prey, and hastes unto it and falls upon it, which is irresistible; and this is the sense of the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin versions, and is what is ascribed to the eagle by other writers w. Now though this figure is used of the Chaldeans and Babylonians, Jer 4:13; it agrees full as well or better with the Romans, because of their swiftness in coming from distant parts, and because of the force and impetus with which they invaded Judea, besieged Jerusalem, and attacked the Jews everywhere; and besides, the eagle was borne on the standard in the Roman army x:
a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand; which, though it is also said of the language of the Chaldean nation, Jer 5:15; yet as the Chaldee and Hebrew languages were only dialects of one and the same language, common to the eastern nations, the Chaldee language, though on account of termination of words, pronunciation, and other things, might be difficult, and hard to be understood by the Jews, yet must be much more easy to understand than the Roman language, so widely different from theirs.
s “—-In ultimos orbis Britannos”, Horat. Carmin. l. 1. Ode 35. t De Termino Vitae, l. 3. sect. 3. p. 129. u T. Hieros. Succah, fol. 55. 2. w Vid. Homer. Iliad. 21. l. 252. x Vid. Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 10. c. 4.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
49. The Lord shall bring a nation against them from far. He enforces the same threatenings in different words, viz., that unknown and barbarous enemies should come, who shall attack them with great impetuosity and violence. And still further to aggravate their cruelty, He says that their language shall be a strange one; for, when there can be no oral communication, there is no room for entreaties, which sometimes awaken the most savage to mercy. But Jeremiah shews that this was fulfilled in the case of the Chaldeans;
“
Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far, O house of Israel; it is a mighty nation, a nation whose language thou howest not, neither understandest what they say.” (Jer 5:15.)
On the other hand, when Isaiah promises them deliverance, he mentions this among the chief of their blessings, that the Jews should “not see a fierce people,” that they should not hear
“
a people of deeper speech than they could perceive, of a stammering tongue (248) that they could not understand.” (Isa 33:19.)
For, as I have elsewhere said, the Prophets were careful to take their form of expression from Moses, lest the Jews should, according to their custom, proudly despise the threats which God had interwoven with His Law.
Lest the distance of their countries should lull them into security, He says that they should be like eagles in swiftness, so as suddenly to overwhelm them, just as God often compares the ministers of His wrath to the whirlwind and the storm. Jeremiah has also imitated this similitude, where he declares that the slaughter which the Jews in their false imagination had supposed to be far away from them, should come suddenly upon them. (Jer 4:13.)
Moses adds, that this nation shall be “strong of face, (249) which shall not regard the person of the old, nor shew favor to the young,” whereby he signifies their extreme ferocity. I have already expounded what follows respecting their rapine and plunder.
(248) “Cui lingua stridet absque intelligentia.” — Lat. “Lesquels grondent sans intelligence.” — Fr.
(249) See margin, A. V.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
Deu. 28:49-57. CONQUEST OF ISRAEL BY A STRANGE NATION. MISERIES OF THE SIEGE.
(49) The Lord shall bring a nation against thee.Comp. Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far, O house of Israel, saith the Lord: it is a mighty nation, an ancient nation, a nation whose language thou knowest not, neither understandest what they say (Jer. 5:15). In this instance the Chaldseans were intended, that bitter and hasty nation (Hab. 1:6).
As swift as the eagle flieth.The eagles of Rome may be alluded to here. And of the Chaldans it is said, They shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat (Hab. 1:8).
Whose tongue thou shalt not understand.I am told by a learned Jewish friend that (excellent linguists as the Jews often are) hundreds of the people never attain the least acquaintance with the tongue of the countries where they are dispersed, and seem to lose the power of doing so. I have myself been surprised by more than one example, even in London, of their being wholly unable to take up the commonest matter of business when presented to them in an English way. It is not from lack of ability, but from a kind of paralysis of the understanding, except within a certain range of thought.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
49. The Lord shall bring a nation against thee from far The Assyrians, the Babylonians, and the Romans were God’s ministers to fulfil this prophecy. The language seems most applicable to the Roman power. Compare this denunciation with the history of the siege and destruction of Jerusalem as given by Josephus in his Jewish War.
Details of the Sixth Sixfold Curse ( Deu 28:49-58 ).
The curses now go deeper while repeating some of what has gone before. They had been engaged in much siege warfare in their defeat of Sihon and Og, and the capture of their great cities. They would remember the conditions when they had had to starve people out, and the treatment that they had dispensed. Now they learn that these thing would come back on them if they failed in obedience to the covenant.
Deu 28:49-50
‘ Yahweh will bring a nation against you from far, from the end of the earth, as the eagle flies, a nation whose tongue you will not understand, a nation of fierce countenance, who will not regard the person of the old, nor show favour to the young,’
Literally the last part is, ‘a nation of fierce face who does not lift up the faces of the old —.’ Unlike Yahweh they are merciless, not compassionate.
These words could have been spoken to the people of Bashan, for that was what had happened to them when Israel arrived. Now it is to be the case of the biter bit. As they had seemed to come on Bashan from nowhere, from ‘the end of the earth’, speaking in a strange tongue and appearing fierce and wild (deliberately so), so would Yahweh bring a similar situation on themselves. This would be a nation ‘from the ends of the earth’ who would come from afar like the eagle flies (compare Hos 8:1 of Assyria; Jer 48:40; Jer 49:22; Hab 1:8, of Babylon; Dan 7:4).
But this picture was not of Assyria, or of Babylon, both of which would be known to Moses, for while they were nations who came ‘from far’, they were not ‘from the end of the earth’. Moses is speaking of unknown nations from distant countries from the end of the earth. The whole point of the curse is the mysteriousness of these invaders. But any attacking nation which was not local would seem to be talking in a strange language, and to be fierce and wild. It was part of the training of an army to appear fierce and wild.
“As the eagle flies.” Fiercely, swiftly, voraciously ever seeking its prey.
“A nation whose tongue you will not understand.” Compare Isa 5:26; Isa 28:11; Isa 33:19). The aim is to give an impression of mysteriousness and strangeness.
“Who will not regard the person of the old, nor show favour to the young,” Such invaders would show no mercy to either old or young. They would see them all as the enemy. They would treat all with the same disdain.
Deu 28:51
‘ And they will eat the fruit of your cattle, and the fruit of your ground, until you are destroyed; who also will not leave you grain, new wine, or oil, the increase of your cattle, or the young of your flock, until they have caused you to perish.’
These armies would take possession of all that they had. Like a swarm of human locusts they would devour everything leaving them with nothing. For that was usually the reason for the invasion. Compare the picture in Jdg 6:1-6, a vivid illustration of this.
Deu 28:52
‘ And they will besiege you in all your gates, until your high and fortified walls come down, in which you trust, throughout all your land, and they will besiege you in all your gates throughout all your land, which Yahweh your God has given you.’
Their recent memory of their own activities in Gilead and Bashan would come back to mind as they heard these words. As they had besieged, so would they be besieged, until their walls came down, the walls in which they trusted instead of in Yahweh, and their gates would be attacked until they fell. And this in the land which Yahweh their God had given them, because they had despised the gift by their behaviour.
Deu 28:53
‘ And you will eat the fruit of your own body, the flesh of your sons and of your daughters, whom Yahweh your God has given you, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemies will distress you.’
And as a result of starvation, as the effects of the siege began to bite, they would even eat their own children, again what Yahweh their God had given them, (even in the midst of the curses they were constantly being made to recognise what gratitude they should show to Yahweh), because of the distress in which they would find themselves.
Deu 28:54-55
‘ The man who is gentle among you, and very caring, his eye will be evil towards his brother, and towards the wife of his bosom, and towards the remnant of his children whom he has remaining, so that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his children whom he shall eat, because he has nothing left him, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemy will distress you in all your gates.’
But the situation would be so desperate, that even the most gentlemanlike and the most loving would lose all restraint and become the very opposite. In eating their children they would keep it from their wives and other children because they did not want to have to share what they ate, because of the dire need, so dreadful would conditions be. Such behaviour during sieges was not unknown.
Deu 28:56-57
‘ The tender and delicate woman among you, who would not adventure to set the sole of her foot on the ground for delicacy and tenderness, her eye will be evil towards the husband of her bosom, and towards her son, and towards her daughter, and towards her young one who comes out from between her feet, and towards her children whom she will bear, for she will eat them for want of all things, secretly, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemy will distress you in your gates.’
And even the woman who was so ladylike and delicate that she would not want her feet to touch the ground but would clad them to protect them, not wanting any dust or dirt to defile them, or would arrange to travel in litters for the same purpose, would think nothing of eating her husband and all her children, including the baby that she had just given birth to, even without washing it, because of the desperate state that she was in because of the distress of the siege.
The picture is a dreadful and horrific one, deliberately so, for the purpose was that it might be remembered (compare Lev 26:29).
Deu 28:58
‘ If you will not observe to do all the words of this law which are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and fearful name, YAHWEH YOUR GOD,’
In the midst of the gloom, the way of escape is offered. If they live in accordance with the covenant and observe to do all the words of His instruction ‘written in this book’, and fear the glorious and fearful name of Yahweh their God, this will not happen to them. But if they do not then they can only expect the worst.
So ends the sixfold pattern of sixfold curses, thirty six curses in all, a further reminder that they were being applied to the six tribes on Mount Ebal who were ‘for the curse’. And yet he had not yet finished. One final series of curses had to be given in order to make them sevenfold, the ultimate in divine curses.
Ver. 49. The Lord shall bring a nation against thee from farswift as the eaglewhose tongue thou shalt not understand “The Chaldeans might be said to come from far, in comparison with the Moabites, Philistines, and other neighbours, who used to infest Judea. Much the same description is given of the Chaldeans by Jer 5:15 who, in like manner, compares them to eagles. Lam 4:19. But this description cannot be applied to any nation with such propriety, as to the Romans. They were truly brought from far, from the end of the earth: Vespasian and Adrian, the two great conquerors and destroyers of the Jews, both came from commanding here in Britain. The Romans too, for the rapidity of their conquests, might very well be compared to eagles: and perhaps not without an allusion to the standard of the Roman armies, which was an eagle; and their language was more unknown to the Jews than the Chaldee.” See Bishop Newton, as above.
Deu 28:49 The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, [as swift] as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand;
Ver. 49. As the eagle fleeth. ] Swiftly, strongly, greedily, the Vulturine eagle especially.
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Deu 28:49-57
49The LORD will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as the eagle swoops down, a nation whose language you shall not understand, 50a nation of fierce countenance who will have no respect for the old, nor show favor to the young. 51Moreover, it shall eat the offspring of your herd and the produce of your ground until you are destroyed, who also leaves you no grain, new wine, or oil, nor the increase of your herd or the young of your flock until they have caused you to perish. 52It shall besiege you in all your towns until your high and fortified walls in which you trusted come down throughout your land, and it shall besiege you in all your towns throughout your land which the LORD your God has given you. 53Then you shall eat the offspring of your own body, the flesh of your sons and of your daughters whom the LORD your God has given you, during the siege and the distress by which your enemy will oppress you. 54The man who is refined and very delicate among you shall be hostile toward his brother and toward the wife he cherishes and toward the rest of his children who remain, 55so that he will not give even one of them any of the flesh of his children which he will eat, since he has nothing else left, during the siege and the distress by which your enemy will oppress you in all your towns. 56The refined and delicate woman among you, who would not venture to set the sole of her foot on the ground for delicateness and refinement, shall be hostile toward the husband she cherishes and toward her son and daughter, 57and toward her afterbirth which issues from between her legs and toward her children whom she bears; for she will eat them secretly for lack of anything else, during the siege and the distress by which your enemy will oppress you in your towns.
Deu 28:49-57 The consequences of disobedience are continued. This paragraph lists the problems related to siege warfare in the ancient Near East:
1. The invaded described:
a. invader brought by YHWH, Deu 28:49
b. a nation from afar, Deu 28:49
c. a nation with a strong and swift army, Deu 28:49
d. a nation with an unknown language, Deu 28:49
e. a nation with no respect for those whom they invade, Deu 28:50
f. a nation that will consume all the produce and livestock of Israel for food, Deu 28:51
g. a nation who will besiege every fortified city in Israel, Deu 28:52
2. The consequences for Israel:
a. they will perish for lack of food, Deu 28:51
b. Israel shall eat her own young, Deu 28:53 (cf. Lev 26:29) and not share even this food (cf. Deu 28:57)
c. gentle (BDB 940) men and women will lose their natural and family affections and turn hostile, Deu 28:54; Deu 28:56
d. they will not share their children as food, Deu 28:57
Deu 28:49 The LORD will bring a nation against you This refers to Assyria (cf. Hos 8:1) and/or Babylon (cf. Jer 5:15).
Deu 28:50 no respect for the old; nor show favor to the young The Assyrians especially, but also the Babylonians, would kill the elderly (opposite of Lev 19:32) and the children as a way of demoralizing the population before they were deported to a distant region and resettled in someone else’s houses.
Deu 28:51 In this verse the invading nations are described in terms of a total devastation of resources similar to the locust plagues of Joel, Amos, and Micah.
Deu 28:52 high and fortified walls in which you trusted Israel would be trusting (BDB 105, KB 120, Qal ACTIVE PARTICIPLE) in their military preparations (cf. 2Ch 32:7-8)!
Deu 28:53-57 you shall eat the offspring of your own body This shows the desperate nature of a siege (i.e., cannibalism, cf. Lev 26:29; 2Ki 6:24-30; Jer 19:9; Lam 2:20; Lam 4:10; Eze 5:10).
thee. The judgments that follow are for “the Jew first”, but also for the Gentile. Compare Isa 13:9. Rom 2:7-10.
as = according as.
bring a nation: Though the Chaldeans are frequently described under the figure of an eagle, yet these verses especially predict the desolations brought on the Jews by the Romans; who came from a country far more distant than Chaldea; whose conquests were as rapid as the eagle’s flight, and whose standard bore this very figure; who spake a language to which the Jews were then entire strangers, being wholly unlike the Hebrew, of which the Chaldee was merely a dialect; whose appearance and victories were terrible; and whose yoke was a yoke of iron; and the havoc which they made tremendous. Num 24:24, Isa 5:26-30, Jer 5:15-17, Dan 6:22, Dan 6:23, Dan 9:26, Hab 1:6, Hab 1:7, Luk 19:43, Luk 19:44
as the eagle: Jer 4:13, Jer 48:40, Jer 49:22, Lam 4:19, Eze 17:3, Eze 17:12, Hos 8:1, Mat 24:28
a nation whose: Jer 5:15, Eze 3:6, 1Co 14:21
understand: Heb. hear
Reciprocal: Gen 11:7 – may 2Sa 1:23 – swifter 2Ki 20:14 – a far country 2Ki 24:2 – the Lord 2Ch 36:17 – he brought Psa 81:5 – where Isa 5:5 – I will take Isa 8:7 – the Lord bringeth Isa 10:3 – in the desolation Isa 28:11 – with Isa 30:16 – therefore Isa 33:19 – shalt not Isa 39:3 – They are Isa 42:24 – General Jer 1:15 – and against Jer 4:16 – from Eze 1:10 – the face of an eagle Eze 11:9 – and deliver Eze 28:7 – the terrible Eze 32:12 – the terrible Dan 1:2 – the Lord Dan 7:4 – like Mic 5:1 – gather Hab 1:8 – horses Hab 3:16 – he will Zec 5:9 – for Zec 7:14 – whom Zec 11:11 – knew Zec 13:8 – two Mat 22:7 – his Rev 4:7 – a flying
Deu 28:49. The Lord shall bring a nation against thee from far The Chaldeans might be said to come from far, in comparison of the Moabites, Philistines, and other neighbouring nations, which used to infest Judea. See Jer 5:15; Jer 6:22. And they are represented as pursuing them with the swiftness of eagles, Lam 4:19. But the Romans, no doubt, were chiefly intended. They were truly brought from far, from the end of the earth; Vespasian and Adrian, the two great conquerors and destroyers of the Jews, both coming from commanding here in Britain. The Romans too, from the rapidity of their conquests, might very well be compared to eagles, and perhaps not without an allusion to the standard of the Roman armies, which was an eagle, and their language was more unknown to the Jews than the Chaldee. Bishop Newton.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments