What does Leviticus 26 say will happen if Israel keeps rejecting God’s commands?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

God warns of further punishments if Israel still refuses to obey after each warning. These include failed crops, enemies, hunger, ruined cities and exile. Yet he also speaks of confession and prayer, remembering his covenant and the land, and not casting the people off altogether.

Chapter breakdown

Leviticus 26 gives God’s promises to those who keep his commands and his threatened punishments for those who break them. The Lord identifies himself as Israel’s God. They must not make an idol or a graven thing, erect pillars, or set up a remarkable stone in their land to worship it. He is the Lord their God. They must keep his sabbaths and reverence his sanctuary; he is the Lord.

If they walk in God’s precepts, keep his commands and do them, he promises rain in due seasons. The ground will yield its increase and the trees will be filled with fruit. Threshing will last until the vintage, and the vintage until sowing time. They will eat bread to the full and live in their land without fear. God will give peace within their borders. They will sleep with no one to frighten them. He will remove evil beasts, and the sword will not pass through their territory.

They will pursue their enemies, who will fall before them. Five of them will pursue a hundred, and a hundred will pursue ten thousand; their enemies will fall before them by the sword. God will look on them, make them increase and multiply, and establish his covenant with them. They will eat the oldest of the old store and cast away the old when the new comes.

God will set his tabernacle among them and will not cast them off. He will walk among them, be their God, and make them his people. He is the Lord their God, who brought them out of the Egyptians’ land so they would no longer serve them. He broke the chains from their necks so they could walk upright.

But if they do not hear God or do all his commands—if they despise his laws and judgments, refuse his appointed acts, and make his covenant void—he says he will quickly visit them with poverty and burning heat that will waste their eyes and consume their lives. They will sow seed in vain because enemies will eat it. God will set his face against them. They will fall before their enemies and become subject to those who hate them. They will flee when no one pursues.

If they still do not obey after this, God says he will punish them seven times more for their sins. He will break the pride of their stubbornness and make the heaven above like iron and the earth like brass. Their work will be spent in vain: the ground will yield no increase and the trees no fruit.

If they walk against God and will not listen to him, he will bring seven times more plagues for their sins. He will send the beasts of the field to destroy them and their cattle, reduce their numbers, and leave their highways deserted.

If even then they do not change but keep walking against him, God says he too will walk against them and strike them seven times for their sins. He will bring the sword to avenge his covenant. When they flee into cities, he will send pestilence among them and deliver them into their enemies’ hands. He will break the staff of their bread: ten women will bake bread in one oven and give it out by weight. They will eat but will not be filled.

If they still will not listen and keep walking against him, God will oppose them in fury and punish them with seven plagues for their sins. They will eat the flesh of their sons and daughters. He will destroy their high places and break their idols. They will fall among the idols’ ruins, and he will abhor them. He will turn their cities into a wilderness, leave their sanctuaries deserted, and no longer receive their sweet odours. He will destroy their land, and their enemies will be astonished at it when they inhabit it. He will scatter Israel among the Gentiles and draw the sword after them. Their land will be a desert and their cities destroyed.

Throughout its desolation the land will enjoy its sabbaths. While Israel is in the enemy’s land, the land will keep a sabbath and rest, because it did not rest during their sabbaths when they lived there.

God says he will send fear into the hearts of those who remain in their enemies’ countries. The sound of a flying leaf will frighten them. They will flee as if from the sword and fall when no one pursues. They will fall upon their brethren as if fleeing war, and none will dare resist their enemies. They will perish among the Gentiles, and an enemy’s land will consume them. If some still remain, they will waste away in their sins in that land and be afflicted for their fathers’ sins and their own.

This lasts until they confess their own sins and their ancestors’ sins by which they transgressed against God and walked against him. God says he too will walk against them and bring them into their enemies’ land until their uncircumcised mind is ashamed. Then they will pray for their sins. He will remember his covenant with Jacob, Isaac and Abraham, and also remember the land. Left deserted by them, it will enjoy its sabbaths. They will pray for their sins because they rejected his judgments and despised his laws.

Even with all this, God says that when they were in their enemies’ land he did not cast them off altogether or so despise them that they were completely consumed and his covenant with them made void. He is the Lord their God. He will remember his former covenant when he brought them out of Egypt in the sight of the Gentiles to be their God. He is the Lord. The closing statement identifies these as the judgments, precepts and laws the Lord gave between himself and the children of Israel on Mount Sinai through Moses.

The story inside

The land’s sabbath rest connects the opening commands with one consequence of exile. Israel is told to keep God’s sabbaths. Later, after the repeated refusals and threats, God says the land will rest while the people are in their enemies’ land, because it did not rest when they lived there. The land returns in the closing promise: God will remember it as well as his covenant with Jacob, Isaac and Abraham. This keeps the land’s stated rest and remembrance within the chapter’s account of judgment; it does not describe a particular historical exile or give a duration for it.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The further punishments have stated conditions. At each stage the text asks whether Israel still refuses to obey, tying the next warning to continued refusal rather than giving a timetable.
2
The land’s rest is explained in the text. It will keep the sabbaths it did not keep while Israel lived there, so the desolation clause answers an earlier failure of rest.
3
Judgment does not end the chapter’s covenant language. Confession and prayer are followed by remembrance of Jacob, Isaac, Abraham and the land, and God says he did not cast the people off altogether or make the covenant void.

Test your recall

Why will the land keep its sabbaths while the people are in their enemies’ land?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 13601–13610
Leviticus Chapter 26 God’s promises to them that keep his commandments. And the many punishments with which he threatens transgressors. 26:1. I am the Lord your God. You shall not make to yourselves any idol or graven thing: neither shall you erect pillars, nor set up a remarkable stone in your land, to adore it. For I am the Lord your God. 26:2. Keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary. I am the Lord.
Lines 13612–13624
26:3. If you walk in my precepts, and keep my commandments, and do them, I will give you rain in due seasons. 26:4. And the ground shall bring forth its increase: and the trees shall be filled with fruit. 26:5. The threshing of your harvest shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and you shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land without fear. 26:6. I will give peace in your coasts: you shall sleep, and there shall be none to make you afraid. I will take away evil beasts: and the sword shall not pass through your quarters.
Lines 13626–13635
26:7. You shall pursue your enemies: and they shall fall before you. 26:8. Five of yours shall pursue a hundred others: and a hundred of you ten thousand. Your enemies shall fall before you by the sword. 26:9. I will look on you, and make you increase: you shall be multiplied, and I will establish my covenant with you. 26:10. You shall eat the oldest of the old store: and, new coming on, you shall cast away the old.
Lines 13637–13645
26:11. I will set my tabernacle in the midst of you: and my soul shall not cast you off. 26:12. I will walk among you, and will be your God: and you shall be my people. 26:13. I am the Lord your God: who have brought you out of the land of the Egyptians, that you should not serve them: and who have broken the chains of your necks, that you might go upright.
Lines 13647–13659
26:14. But if you will not hear me, nor do all my commandments: 26:15. If you despise my laws, and contemn my judgments so as not to do those things which are appointed by me, and to make void my covenant: 26:16. I also will do these things to you. I will quickly visit you with poverty, and burning heat, which shall waste your eyes, and consume your lives. You shall sow your seed in vain, which shall be devoured by your enemies. 26:17. I will set my face against you, and you shall fall down before your enemies: and shall be made subject to them that hate you. You shall flee when no man pursueth you.
Lines 13661–13668
26:18. But if you will not yet for all this obey me: I will chastise you seven times more for your sins. 26:19. And I will break the pride of your stubbornness: and I will make to you the heaven above as iron, and the earth as brass. 26:20. Your labour shall be spent in vain: the ground shall not bring forth her increase: nor the trees yield their fruit.
Lines 13670–13675
26:21. If you walk contrary to me, and will not hearken to me, I will bring seven times more plagues upon you for your sins. 26:22. And I will send in upon you the beasts of the field, to destroy you and your cattle, and make you few in number: and that your highways may be desolate.
Lines 13677–13689
26:23. And if even so you will not amend, but will walk contrary to me: 26:24. I also will walk contrary to you, and will strike you seven times for your sins. 26:25. And I will bring in upon you the sword that shall avenge my covenant. And when you shall flee into the cities, I will send the pestilence in the midst of you. And you shall be delivered into the hands of your enemies, 26:26. After I shall have broken the staff of your bread: so that ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and give it out by weight: and you shall eat, and shall not be filled,
Lines 13691–13712
26:27. But if you will not for all this hearken to me, but will walk against me, 26:28. I will also go against you with opposite fury: and I will chastise you with seven plagues for your sins, 26:29. So that you shall eat the flesh of your sons and of your daughters. 26:30. I will destroy your high places, and break your idols. You shall fall among the ruins of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you. 26:31. Insomuch that I will bring your cities to be a wilderness: and I will make your sanctuaries desolate: and will receive no more your sweet odours. 26:32. And I will destroy your land: and your enemies shall be astonished at it, when they shall be the inhabitants thereof. 26:33. And I will scatter you among the Gentiles: and I will draw out the sword after you. And your land shall be desert, and your cities destroyed.
Lines 13714–13719
26:34. Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths all the days of her desolation. When you shall be 26:35. In the enemy’s land, she shall keep a sabbath, and rest in the sabbaths of her desolation: because she did not rest in your sabbaths, when you dwelt therein.
Lines 13721–13734
26:36. And as to them that shall remain of you I will send fear in their hearts in the countries of their enemies. The sound of a flying leaf shall terrify them: and they shall flee as it were from the sword. They shall fall, when no man pursueth them. 26:37. And they shall every one fall upon their brethren as fleeing from wars: none of you shall dare to resist your enemies. 26:38. You shall perish among the Gentiles: and an enemy’s land shall consume you. 26:39. And if of them also some remain, they shall pine away in their iniquities, in the land of their enemies: and they shall be afflicted for the sins of their fathers, and their own.
Lines 13736–13749
26:40. Until they confess their iniquities, and the iniquities of their ancestors, whereby they have transgressed against me, and walked contrary unto me. 26:41. Therefore I also will walk against them, and bring them into their enemies’ land until their uncircumcised mind be ashamed. Then shall they pray for their sins. 26:42. And I will remember my covenant, that I made with Jacob, and Isaac, and Abraham. I will remember also the land: 26:43. Which when she shall be left by them, shall enjoy her sabbaths, being desolate for them. But they shall pray for their sins, because they rejected my judgments, and despised my laws.
Lines 13751–13762
26:44. And yet for all that when they were in the land of their enemies, I did not cast them off altogether. Neither did I so despise them that they should be quite consumed: and I should make void my covenant with them. For I am the Lord their God. 26:45. And I will remember my former covenant, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, in the sight of the Gentiles, to be their God. I am the Lord. These are the judgments, and precepts, and laws, which the Lord gave between him and the children of Israel, in mount Sinai, by the hand of Moses.