Tanakh, Bible & Qu'ran: The Pillars of Three Faiths. Various Authors

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 flowing with milk and honey, as the Lord, the God of thy fathers, hath promised thee. ⁴And it shall be when ye are passed over the Jordan, that ye shall set up these stones, which I command you this day, in mount Ebal, and thou shalt plaster them with plaster. ⁵And there shalt thou build an altar unto the Lord thy God, an altar of stones; thou shalt lift up no iron tool upon them. ⁶Thou shalt build the altar of the Lord thy God of unhewn stones; and thou shalt offer burnt-offerings thereon unto the Lord thy God. ⁷And thou shalt sacrifice peace-offerings, and shalt eat there; and thou shalt rejoice before the Lord thy God. ⁸And thou shalt write upon the stones all the words of this law very plainly.'

      ⁹And Moses and the priests the Levites spoke unto all Israel, saying: 'Keep silence, and hear, O Israel; this day thou art become a people unto the Lord thy God. ¹⁰Thou shalt therefore hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and do His commandments and His statutes, which I command thee this day.' ¹¹And Moses charged the people the same day, saying: ¹²'These shall stand upon mount Gerizim to bless the people, when ye are passed over the Jordan: Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and Benjamin; ¹³and these shall stand upon mount Ebal for the curse: Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali. ¹⁴And the Levites shall speak, and say unto all the men of Israel with a loud voice:

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

      ¹⁶Cursed be he that dishonoureth his father or his mother. And all the people shall say: Amen.

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

      ¹⁸Cursed be he that maketh the blind to go astray in the way. And all the people shall say: Amen.

      ¹⁹Cursed be he that perverteth the justice due to the stranger, fatherless, and widow. And all the people shall say: Amen.

      ²⁰Cursed be he that lieth with his father's wife; because he hath uncovered his father's skirt. And all the people shall say: Amen. ²¹Cursed be he that lieth with any manner of beast. And all the people shall say: Amen.

      ²²Cursed 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.

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

      ²⁴Cursed be he that smiteth his neighbour in secret. And all the people shall say: Amen.

      ²⁵Cursed be he that taketh a bribe to slay an innocent person. And all the people shall say: Amen.

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

      28And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all His commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all the nations of the earth. ²And all these blessings shall come upon thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God. ³Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. ⁴Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the young of thy flock. ⁵Blessed shall be thy basket and thy kneading-trough. ⁶Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out. ⁷The Lord will cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thee; they shall come out against thee one way, and shall flee before thee seven ways. ⁸The Lord will command the blessing with thee in thy barns, and in all that thou puttest thy hand unto; and He will bless thee in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. ⁹The Lord will establish thee for a holy people unto Himself, as He hath sworn unto thee; if thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, and walk in His ways. ¹⁰And all the peoples of the earth shall see that the name of the Lord is called upon thee; and they shall be afraid of thee. ¹¹And the Lord will make thee overabundant for good, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy land, in the land which the Lord swore unto thy fathers to give thee. ¹²The Lord will open unto thee His good treasure the heaven to give the rain of thy land in its season, and to bless all the work of thy hand; and thou shalt lend unto many nations, but thou shalt not borrow. ¹³And the Lord will make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if thou shalt hearken unto the commandments of the Lord thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them; ¹⁴and shalt not turn aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them. ¹⁵But 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. ¹⁶Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field. ¹⁷Cursed shall be thy basket and thy kneading-trough. ¹⁸Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the young of thy flock. ¹⁹Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out. ²⁰The Lord will send upon thee cursing, discomfiture, and rebuke, in all that thou puttest thy hand unto to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the evil of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken Me. ²¹The Lord will make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until He have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest in to possess it. ²²The Lord will smite thee with consumption, and with fever, and with inflammation, and with fiery heat, and with drought, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish. ²³And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron. ²⁴The Lord will make the rain of thy land powder and dust; from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed. ²⁵The Lord will cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies; thou shalt go out one way against them, and shalt flee seven ways before them; and thou shalt be a horror unto all the kingdoms of the earth. ²⁶And thy carcasses shall be food unto all fowls of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and there shall be none to frighten them away.

      ²⁷The Lord will smite thee with the boil of Egypt, and with the emerods, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed. ²⁸The Lord will smite thee with madness, and with blindness, and with astonishment of heart. ²⁹And thou shalt grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness, and thou shalt not make thy ways prosperous; and thou shalt be only oppressed and robbed alway, and there shall be none to save thee. ³⁰Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her; thou shalt build a house, and thou shalt not dwell therein; thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not use the fruit thereof. ³¹Thine ox shall be slain before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof; thine ass shall be violently taken away from before thy face, and shall not be restored to thee; thy sheep shall be given unto thine enemies; and thou shalt have none to save thee. ³²Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and fail with longing for them all the day; and there shall be nought in the power of thy hand. ³³The fruit of thy land, and all thy labours, shall a nation which thou knowest not eat up; and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed away: ³⁴so that thou shalt be mad for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see. ³⁵The Lord will smite thee in the knees, and in the legs, with a sore boil, whereof thou canst not be healed, from the sole of thy foot unto the crown of thy head. ³⁶The Lord will bring thee, and thy king whom thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation that thou hast not known, thou nor thy fathers; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone. ³⁷And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all the peoples whither the Lord shall lead thee away.

      ³⁸Thou