Deuteronomy 28:3 kjv
Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.
Deuteronomy 28:3 nkjv
"Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country.
Deuteronomy 28:3 niv
You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.
Deuteronomy 28:3 esv
Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field.
Deuteronomy 28:3 nlt
Your towns and your fields
will be blessed.
Deuteronomy 28 3 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Deut 28:1-2 | "If you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God... all these blessings shall come upon you..." | Foundation of blessings based on obedience. |
| Lev 26:3-5 | "If you walk in my statutes... I will give you your rains in their season... the land shall yield its produce." | Parallel covenant blessings in Leviticus for obedience. |
| Ps 1:1-3 | "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked... He is like a tree planted by streams of water..." | Blessings for the righteous, leading to prosperity. |
| Ps 128:1-3 | "Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD... You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands..." | Blessings on family, labor, and well-being in the LORD. |
| Prov 3:9-10 | "Honor the LORD with your wealth... then your barns will be filled..." | Connection between honoring God and material blessings. |
| Zech 8:12 | "For the seed shall be prosperous, the vine shall yield its fruit... and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these." | Future blessings of prosperity and possession on the land. |
| Deut 28:5 | "Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl." | Specific domestic blessings illustrating daily provision. |
| Deut 28:6 | "Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out." | All-encompassing blessing on all activities and movements. |
| Gen 12:2-3 | "I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great..." | Initial Abrahamic covenant promise of foundational blessing. |
| Eph 1:3 | "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places." | New Covenant spiritual blessings, encompassing all divine favor. |
| Gal 3:9 | "So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith." | Believers sharing in the spiritual aspect of Abraham's blessing through faith. |
| Rom 4:6-8 | "David also speaks of the blessing of the human being to whom God counts righteousness apart from works..." | The blessing of justification by faith in the New Testament. |
| Isa 30:23-24 | "Then he will give the rain for your seed... and the produce of the ground will be rich and plenteous." | Prophecy of God's blessing leading to agricultural abundance. |
| Job 42:12 | "And the LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning..." | Example of comprehensive restoration and increased blessings from God. |
| Ps 29:11 | "May the LORD give strength to his people! May the LORD bless his people with peace!" | God's blessing extending to strength and peace for His people. |
| Ps 67:6-7 | "The earth has yielded its produce; God, our God, shall bless us." | Acknowledging God as the source of fruitfulness and national blessing. |
| Jer 32:27 | "Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me?" | Affirmation of God's omnipotence to fulfill all promises, including blessings. |
| Num 6:24-26 | "The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you..." | The Aaronic priestly blessing, comprehensive in its scope of divine favor. |
| Deut 7:13-14 | "He will love you, bless you, and multiply you. He will also bless the fruit of your womb..." | Specific covenant blessings tied to obedience and love for God. |
| 1 Chr 26:5 | "...for God had blessed him." | General acknowledgment of God's blessing in a specific life. |
| Phil 4:19 | "And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." | New Testament promise of God's comprehensive provision for His people. |
| 2 Cor 9:8 | "And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work." | God's abounding grace providing sufficiency for all aspects of life. |
| Joel 2:24 | "The threshing floors shall be full of grain; the vats shall overflow with wine and oil." | Prophetic promise of immense agricultural blessing and abundance. |
| Acts 3:25-26 | "God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness." | The ultimate spiritual blessing through repentance and salvation in Christ. |
Deuteronomy 28 verses
Deuteronomy 28 3 Meaning
Deuteronomy 28:3 promises a comprehensive and all-encompassing divine favor for the Israelites should they obey God's commandments. This blessing signifies that prosperity, well-being, and success will extend to every area of their lives and labor, whether they dwell in urban centers or work in the agricultural fields. It portrays God's pervasive hand of blessing over both collective communal life in the city and individual industriousness in the rural landscape.
Deuteronomy 28 3 Context
Deuteronomy 28 is a pivotal chapter within Moses' farewell discourses to the Israelites on the plains of Moab, just prior to their entry into the Promised Land. This chapter details the comprehensive list of blessings that would accrue from faithful obedience to God's covenant and the dire curses that would result from disobedience. Verse 3 is an early articulation of these promised blessings, setting a positive tone for the potential outcomes of living under the Mosaic covenant. The historical context positions Israel on the threshold of inheriting a land promised to their ancestors, and Moses is reinforcing the absolute necessity of loyalty to Yahweh, who is both their sovereign Lord and the source of all prosperity. Culturally, blessings meant tangible, observable benefits such as abundant harvests, numerous descendants, military victories, and thriving communal life, encompassing all aspects of their existence, urban and rural.
Deuteronomy 28 3 Word analysis
- Blessed: Hebrew baruch (בָּרוּךְ). This is a passive participle, conveying the state of being endowed with divine favor and prosperity. It's more than mere good fortune; it's a declaration and conferral of good by God Himself. The root of the word, brk, can imply kneeling, perhaps suggesting both receiving a blessing by humbling oneself or God bending down to bestow good. Here, it denotes an active bestowing of favor by the Divine.
- shall you be: This phrase highlights the certainty and promise of the blessing, contingent upon Israel's prior obedience (Deut 28:1). It underscores the declarative nature of God's commitment.
- in the city: Hebrew ba'ir (בָּעִיר). The preposition ba means "in" or "at." Ir (עִיר) denotes a fortified town or city, representing concentrated populations, organized communities, commerce, social life, public gatherings, and governance. This covers all aspects of urban dwelling and communal activity.
- and blessed shall you be: The immediate repetition of this phrase acts as an anaphora, a rhetorical device emphasizing the pervasiveness and completeness of the blessing. It signals that the blessing is not limited but will extend to every single domain.
- in the field: Hebrew bassadeh (בַּשָּׂדֶה). Similar to ba'ir, ba means "in" or "at." Sadeh (שָׂדֶה) refers to open country, cultivated land, fields for crops, pastures, and unfortified rural areas. This signifies agricultural labor, animal husbandry, direct reliance on nature, and more isolated pursuits.
Words-group analysis
- "Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field.": This entire phrase, through its parallel structure and complementary terms ("city" and "field"), portrays the totality and extensiveness of God's blessings. It encompasses every physical location and every type of human endeavor—from bustling urban life with its commerce and social complexities to the agricultural and pastoral work of the rural landscape. No area of life or geography would be untouched by God's favor if Israel remained faithful. It conveys a holistic prosperity, touching upon both communal and individual spheres of existence.
Deuteronomy 28 3 Bonus section
- Anti-Pagan Polemic: In the ancient Near East, many deities were localized or associated with specific domains (e.g., a city's patron god, a storm god for rain, or a fertility goddess for crops). Deuteronomy 28:3 serves as a clear counter-narrative, presenting Yahweh as the one supreme God whose power to bless transcends all boundaries, embracing every aspect of human life and habitation, both urban and rural. His blessing is universal in scope, not limited by territory or specific natural phenomena.
- Covenantal Imperative: While the verse promises blessing, it is deeply embedded within a conditional covenant. The preceding verses (Deut 28:1-2) clarify that these blessings are contingent upon "diligently obeying the voice of the LORD." Thus, it's not a blanket promise of prosperity but an assurance tied directly to a posture of obedience and faithfulness.
- Typological Significance: From a Christian perspective, this comprehensive blessing, rooted in obedience, foreshadows the spiritual blessings found in Christ (Eph 1:3). While the physical blessings in Deuteronomy were tangible and temporal for ancient Israel, they pointed to the all-encompassing spiritual prosperity, peace, and fruitfulness available to believers in the New Covenant through faith and obedience to God. The blessing "in the city and in the field" expands to encompass spiritual prosperity in every dimension of the believer's walk, life, and labor.
Deuteronomy 28 3 Commentary
Deuteronomy 28:3 is a foundational declaration of comprehensive blessing for an obedient Israel. It affirms that God's favor will not be confined to a single aspect or location but will permeate every sphere of life, symbolized by the "city" (urban, social, commercial) and the "field" (rural, agricultural, personal provision). This promise ensures that all labor and dwelling, whether collective or individual, public or private, would be fruitful and secure. This demonstrates God's sovereign power over all creation and His detailed concern for the well-being of His covenant people. It is a powerful affirmation that holistic thriving is a divine gift rooted in faithful relationship with the Giver.
- Examples for practical usage:
- A student experiencing academic success, whether learning in a classroom (city) or studying alone at home (field).
- A parent finding grace and success in raising children, whether dealing with public challenges (city) or nurturing family privately (field).
- A church finding spiritual growth and outreach success within its local community (city) and through broader, perhaps remote, ministries (field).