The two Blessings and Curses accounts

Welcome back to the Free Thinkers guide to the bible. I created this series so that ‘anyone’ can explore and understand the bible. You don’t need to be a biblical scholar; all you need is a desire to see what is written. I will present to you several biblical examples and demonstrate the process of sifting the accounts to reveal the hidden. This process is very similar to archeology, where the layers are excavated and analyzed.

Just not the dirty part, though you will be digging up some dirt along the way.

The series provides you with numerous examples of two distinct groups of scribal authors/redactors.

The first group is the "A" authors/redactors who focus on priestly matters; laws, rules and observances, as well as the tabernacle/temple services and offerings. The "A" authors and writing styles range from literary artisans to unskilled writers whose works are easily identified.

The second group consists of the “B” and “D” author(s)/redactor(s).

The “D” author/redactor chronicles the first person Moses account of the wilderness travels.

The “B” author(s)/redactor(s) wrote the stories in Genesis; Israel’s time in Egypt and the wilderness travels in Exodus and Numbers.

The “B” wilderness accounts in Exodus and Numbers harmonize with the “D” author’s first person Moses accounts; and is the reason they are grouped together.

In the study we compare the accounts and explore the differences between them to determine why the "A" priestly authors/redactors intentionally created similar yet separate accounts of many of the “B” author(s)/redactors stories.

*** - Placed where alternate accounts occur or where likely redactor additions occur

And Moses – Text highlighted with this color show redactor additions and portions that are shared by the accounts.

Underlined portions contain clickable links to the associated Freethinkers studies

Preface

I read the Blessing and curses accounts many times and noted inconsistencies that made the account seem disjointed and untenable. I told myself that I would seek out and determine the cause; but each time my mind was too busy to delve into it.

I have taken the time to delve into the accounts and I present to you the conclusions of my studies…

The Priestly Curses and Blessings account overview

The priestly curses and blessings account begins in chapter eleven when Moses declared during his speech to the people that they would be blessed for obeying the commandments and cursed if they did not obey them.

Note: Directly after the association there is a redactor insertion that gives the reader a description of the area of Mount Ebal and Gerizim and that they are on the other side of the Jordan River.

In chapter twenty-seven there is a likely “A” writer’s priestly insertion that adds that an altar of un-hewn ‘whole’ stones was to be built and olah (ascension) and shalem (peace) offerings were to be performed upon it and the people were to eat and rejoice before the Lord.

Later in the chapter another likely “A” writer’s priestly insertion states that Moses and the Levite priests spoke to the people of Israel and told them which tribes would later stand on each mount to pronounce the blessings and curses; and a peculiar insertion detailing that the Levite priests would announce twelve curses (no blessings) that the Israelites would need to acknowledge.

In Joshua chapter eight the people passed over the Jordan River and were at Mount Ebal. Joshua built the ceremonial altar, performed the offerings and wrote the law on the stones in the presence of the people. The writer makes sure that the Levite priests and the Ark of the Covenant are mentioned as being present at the event. Joshua read all of the Law of Moses and the blessings and cursings in the presence of the congregation of Israel.

The Priestly “A” account

Deut 11:29 And it shall come to pass, when the LORD thy God hath brought thee in unto the land whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalt put the blessing upon mount Gerizim, and the curse upon mount Ebal. 30 Are they not on the other side Jordan, by the way where the sun goeth down, in the land of the Canaanites, which dwell in the champaign over against Gilgal, beside the plains of Moreh? ***

(Likely insertion) Deu 27:5 And there shalt thou build an altar unto the LORD thy God, an altar of stones: thou shalt not lift up any iron tool upon them. 6 Thou shalt build the altar of the LORD thy God of whole stones: and thou shalt offer burnt offerings thereon unto the LORD thy God: 7 And thou shalt offer peace offerings, and shalt eat there, and rejoice before the LORD thy God.

(Likely insertion) Deut 27:9 And Moses and the priests the Levites spake unto all Israel, saying, ***

12 These shall stand upon mount Gerizim to bless the people, when ye are come over Jordan; Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and Benjamin:

13 And these shall stand upon mount Ebal to curse; Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.

14 And the Levites shall speak, and say unto all the men of Israel with a loud voice,

15 Cursed be the man that maketh any graven or molten image, an abomination unto the LORD, the work of the hands of the craftsman, and putteth it in a secret place. And all the people shall answer and say, Amen.

16 Cursed be he that setteth light by his father or his mother. And all the people shall say, Amen.

17 Cursed be he that removeth his neighbour's landmark. And all the people shall say, Amen.

18 Cursed be he that maketh the blind to wander out of the way. And all the people shall say, Amen.

19 Cursed be he that perverteth the judgment of the stranger, fatherless, and widow. And all the people shall say, Amen.

20 Cursed be he that lieth with his father's wife; because he uncovereth his father's skirt. And all the people shall say, Amen.

21 Cursed be he that lieth with any manner of beast. And all the people shall say, Amen.

22 Cursed be he that lieth with his sister, the daughter of his father, or the daughter of his mother. And all the people shall say, Amen.

23 Cursed be he that lieth with his mother in law. And all the people shall say, Amen.

24 Cursed be he that smiteth his neighbour secretly. And all the people shall say, Amen.

25 Cursed be he that taketh reward to slay an innocent person. And all the people shall say, Amen.

26 Cursed be he that confirmeth not all the words of this law to do them. And all the people shall say, Amen.

Joshua 8:30 Then Joshua built an altar unto the LORD God of Israel in mount Ebal, 31 As Moses the servant of the LORD commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of whole stones, over which no man hath lift up any iron: and they offered thereon burnt offerings unto the LORD, and sacrificed peace offerings.

32 And he wrote there upon the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote in the presence of the children of Israel. 33 And all Israel, and their elders, and officers, and their judges, stood on this side the ark and on that side before the priests the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, as well the stranger, as he that was born among them; half of them over against mount Gerizim, and half of them over against mount Ebal; as Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded before, that they should bless the people of Israel.

34 And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessings and cursings, according to all that is written in the book of the law. 35 There was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua read not before all the congregation of Israel, with the women, and the little ones, and the strangers that were conversant among them.

Synopsis “A” account

Moses stated that the blessing would be on Mount Gerizim and the curse would be on Mount Ebal.

Moses told the people that they would construct an altar of un-hewn stones and offer burnt offering and peace offerings upon it and eat and rejoice before the Lord.

Moses and the Levite priests told the people that half of the tribes would stand on Mount Gerizim to bless and the other tribes would stand on Mount Ebal to curse.

The Levite priests were to declare twelve curses for committing twelve actions that were ‘unlawful’. (There is no mention of the Levite priests speaking the curses to the people).

Joshua built the altar of un-hewn stones and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings on it.

All of the people stood before the Ark of the Covenant. Half of the people on Mount Gerizim and half on Mount Ebal.

Joshua read the ‘words of the law’ before the people.

The Deuteronomy Curses and Blessings account overview

The Deuteronomy curses and blessings account also begins in chapter eleven. Moses declared to the people that they would be blessed for obeying the commandments and cursed if they did not obey them. The “D” first person blessings and curses account uses the phrase “which I command you this day” eleven times and begins with “I set before you this day”.

The account continues in chapter twenty-seven with Moses and the elders of Israel speaking to the people. Moses instructed that large plastered stones were to be set up on Mount Ebal and that ‘the law’ was to be written upon them ‘very plainly’.

In chapter eight we read that Moses spoke the blessings and curses to the people.

Note: There are eight distinct blessings and curses which I have paired together for you review. I will not place the entire list of blessings and cursings in this study as it would be extraneous information and make the study cumbersome to read.

The Deuteronomy “D” account

Deu 11:26 Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; 27 A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you this day: 28 And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known.

(2nd person) Deu 27:1 And Moses with the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying,

(1st person) Keep all the commandments which I command you this day. 2 And it shall be on the day when ye shall pass over Jordan unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, that thou shalt set thee up great stones, and plaister them with plaister: 3 And thou shalt write upon them all the words of this law, when thou art passed over, that thou mayest go in unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, a land that floweth with milk and honey; as the LORD God of thy fathers hath promised thee. 4 Therefore it shall be when ye be gone over Jordan, that ye shall set up these stones, which I command you this day, in mount Ebal, and thou shalt plaister them with plaister. *** 8 And thou shalt write upon the stones all the words of this law very plainly.

(2nd person) Deu 27:9 And Moses *** spake unto all Israel, saying,

(1st person) Take heed, and hearken, O Israel; this day thou art become the people of the LORD thy God. 10 Thou shalt therefore obey the voice of the LORD thy God, and do his commandments and his statutes, which I command thee this day.

The Blessings and Curses placed together

Deu 28:1 And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: 2 And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.

15 But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee:

3 Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.

16 Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.

4 Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

18 Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

5 Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.

17 Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store.

6 Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.

19 Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out.

7 The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.

25 The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth. 26 And thy carcase shall be meat unto all fowls of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and no man shall fray them away.

8 The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

20 The LORD shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me.

11 And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee. (Blessing duplication, see verse four)

18 Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

12 The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.

23 And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron. 24 The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.

13 And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them: 14 And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.

43 The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high; and thou shalt come down very low. 44 He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail.

Synopsis

Moses spoke to the people declaring that they would be blessed if they kept the commands of the Lord and would receive the curse if they did not obey the commandments.

Moses and the elders urged the people to keep the commandments. Moses tasked the people with taking large stones, plastering them and writing the words of the torah on them plainly and well and setting them up on Mount Ebal.

Moses spoke the blessings and curses to the people (that day)

Comparison

In the “A” account the blessings and curses occur on Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim.

In the “D” account the blessings and curses occur at the plains of Moab.

In the “A” account Joshua speaks the blessings and curses at Mount Ebal. Moses and the Levite priests spoke twelve curses in the plains of Moab that were to be recited at Mount Ebal.

(there is no mention of this being carried out in the Joshua account).

In the “D” account Moses spoke the blessings and curses at the plains of Moab.

Conclusion

There are two possibilities for the existence of the two (very different, yet similar) accounts…

There were two readings of the Blessings and curses. (A highly unlikely conclusion with the evidence presented)

Or…

The priestly writers sought to associate the priesthood with the giving of the curses and blessings to the people and created insertions and an alternate event.

I leave this for you to ponder.

All of the material on this site is the product of my twenty-five years of research and study in the fields of Middle Eastern history, archeology (focusing on the Levant), biblical theology, (the study of the Christian, Judaic and Islamic religions), linguistics (I have studied the Hebrew and Greek languages in order to gain the original writers perspectives). I have personal experience with the following faiths: Southern Baptist, WWCG, CGI, Messianic Judaism and Judaism I lived in a torah based monotheist community based on humanist teachings and values for several years. I have been writing studies/articles and parables since the early 2000s. I published many of my works on the www.YHWHisEl.com site at that time; with a focus on monotheism and the non deity of Jesus (Yehoshua).

After identifying many peculiarities in the TaNaKh while teaching, I tasked myself with determining the source of the inconsistencies. I began my search in the first five books of the bible. I read through them many times; locating inconsistencies and attempting to find the golden key that would unlock them. I read many articles, publications and books in which the authors attempted to explain the irregularities (most based on a version of the JDEP theory) and I tested each against the inconsistencies and all of them failed to provide a viable answer. I then used critical thinking and tested potential theories until I finally found the solution that solved every problematic area. The Free thinkers guide to the Bible is the culmination of this process.

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Author: Hoyt Allen Spiker - 2024 - 2026 - Shemoth20@Gmail.com