Deuteronomy 28:42 · Bible study
Deuteronomy 28:42 Commentary: Locusts and Divine Dispossession
Hebrew · 5 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Deuteronomy 28:42's locust curse uses the Hebrew verb 'yarash' (possess/dispossess) to show total covenant judgment; explore its context and meaning.
Research Summary
- Meaning: The locust swarm will take possession of every tree and all the fruit of the land, completing the agricultural ruin.
- Key words: locust (H6767, tslatsal, covering or noisy wing); tree (H6086, ets); fruit (H6529, peri); possess (H3423, yarash, to take possession as an inheritance).
- Main debate: Whether the locust is a literal insect or a symbol for an invading army; also whether the verb yarash implies legal transfer of ownership.
- Theological theme: Covenant judgment as the reversal of blessing, what Israel was to inherit is given to the locusts.
- Best use: A warning in sermons on covenant faithfulness; illustrating the complete consequences of persistent disobedience.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
Swarms of locusts will consume all your trees and the produce of your land.
WEB World English Bible 2000
Locusts will consume all of your trees and the fruit of your ground.
KJV King James Version 1769
All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust consume.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
All thy trees and the fruit of thy ground shall the locust possess.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
all thy trees and the fruit of thy ground doth the locust possess;
Darby Darby Bible 1890
All thy trees and the fruit of thy ground shall the locust possess.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
The blast shall consume all the trees and the fruits of thy ground.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Toda tu arboleda y el fruto de tu tierra consumirá la langosta.
Todo o teu arvoredo e o fruto de tua terra os gafanhotos consumirão.
Les insectes prendront possession de tous tes arbres et du fruit de ton sol.
Alle deine Bäume und Früchte deines Landes wird das Ungeziefer fressen.
Al uw geboomte, en de vrucht uws lands zal het boos gewormte erfelijk bezitten.
Tutti i tuoi alberi e il frutto del tuo suolo saran preda alla locusta.
Wszystkie drzewa twoje, i owoc ziemi, szarańcza pożre.
Все дерева твои и плоды земли твоей погубит ржавчина.
你所有的 樹木 和你地裡 的出產 必被蝗蟲 所吃。
All your trees and the fruit of your land will be the locust's.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Deuteronomy 28:42
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree this verse belongs to the escalating curse section that reverses the covenant blessings of Deuteronomy 28:3, 6 and 11. Gill observes that the locust ‘not only consumes grass…but all green trees,’ citing Exodus 10:15. The Hebrew verb יָרַשׁ (yarash, ‘possess’) carries the sense of taking over as an inheritance, the locusts become the ones who inherit the land’s produce instead of Israel. Cambridge Bible notes that this detailed set of curses expands on the summary blessing in verse 11, and that verses 38, 46 more nearly correspond to the blessing pattern of verses 8, 14. The verse thus marks a total reversal: the land that Israel was to possess is now possessed by a swarm. Lange's commentary ties the verse to the wider structure, noting the progression from seed (v.38) to vines (v.39) to olives (v.40) to children (v.41) and finally to trees (v.42), a comprehensive undoing of every source of provision. All sources see the locust as God's agent, not random disaster.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Literal locust plague: The immediate context (v.38) and Exodus 10:15 use locusts as actual insects; the description matches known agricultural disasters.
- Symbolic invasion: In Joel 2, locusts represent a military army; some see the same dual meaning here.
- Legal dispossession: The verb yarash normally denotes inheritance; the locusts take possession as a legal act, reversing Israel's inheritance.
- Expansion theory: Cambridge Bible suggests that verses 26–37 and 41 may be later additions; this verse lies in a section that more closely parallels the blessings, raising questions about original composition.
What is clear: The verse declares that disobedience to God's covenant results in total agricultural loss as a divine judgment.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Literal locust vs. symbolic invasion | The verse describes a devastating loss of agricultural produce sent by God. | Some readers understand locust as actual insects (based on Exodus 10:15 and local plagues); others see it as a figure for enemy armies (as in Joel 2). Both readings are found in commentaries. |
| The verb yarash (possess) | It indicates a complete takeover of the land's produce. | Traditional interpreters see it as simply ‘consume’; others note the legal connotation of ‘inheriting’ or ‘dispossessing,’ which inverts Israel's original inheritance promise. |
| Scope of 'all your trees' | The loss includes both cultivated fruit trees and any other trees on the land. | Some think the phrase is hyperbolic, emphasizing totality; others insist on literal total destruction, aligning with known locust behaviors. |
| Original composition of the curse section | The verse is part of the covenant curse liturgy in Deuteronomy. | Cambridge Bible notes that verses 26, 37 and 41 may be later additions, but verse 42 is in the section that more closely corresponds to the blessings. The extent of later editorial work is debated. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Deuteronomy 28 follows the pattern of ancient Near Eastern covenant treaties. After a list of blessings for obedience (vv.1, 14), the curses for disobedience begin at verse 15. The curse in verse 42 is part of a longer section (vv.38, 46) that systematically destroys every element of agricultural life: grain (v.38), vineyards (v.39), olive groves (v.40), and finally trees and fruit (v.42). The Hebrew word for locust here is צְלָצַל (tslatsal). Gill explains that the name may derive from the shade they cast, hiding the sun, or from the noise of their wings in flight. This description matches ancient accounts of locust plagues; a traveller cited by Ellicott’s Commentary describes how ‘the whole face of nature seemed to be concealed as by a living veil,’ and how vines, olive trees, and corn could be destroyed in half an hour. In the covenant context, such a plague was not merely natural disaster but a direct act of God enforcing treaty sanctions. The verb יָרַשׁ (yarash) normally describes Israel taking possession of the Promised Land. Here the word is used ironically: the locusts dispossess Israel, reversing the inheritance promise. The land that was to be a gift becomes a place of loss. This verse sits at a turning point in the curse sequence, where the failure of the land points toward the ultimate loss of children and exile (vv.41, 45, 46).
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for Deuteronomy 28:42. The Hebrew text is stable across manuscripts and versions. The main textual discussion concerns the broader structure of the curse section (whether verses 26, 37 and 41 represent expansions), but the wording of this verse itself is not in dispute.
Reception History
In Jewish tradition, Deuteronomy 28 is part of the Tokhacha (Admonition) read during the Days of Awe and on fast days, calling the community to repentance. The Geneva Bible (1599) glossed the verse simply as ‘grashopper,’ assuming a literal plague. Matthew Henry’s commentary treated it as one of the curses that ‘complete the ruin’ of the disobedient, urging that such warnings are ‘written for our learning.’ Anglican commentators in the Cambridge Bible focused on its literary position in the covenant structure. Across centuries, the verse has been used in preaching to emphasize the thoroughness of divine judgment and the urgent need for faithfulness to God’s commands.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- Complete loss: The curse moves from annual crops (v.38) to perennial trees (v.42), nothing is left untouched.
- The locust as God’s agent: The swarm does not act on its own; Yahweh sends it as a covenant lawsuit.
- From inheritance to dispossession: The verb ‘yarash’ (possess) inverts the promise, Israel becomes the dispossessed.
Five-point outline
- The target is long-term wealth: Trees take years to grow; their loss is more devastating than losing a season’s grain.
- ‘All’ leaves no escape: Both cultivated and wild trees are included.
- The locust is named specifically: The word tslatsal evokes both noise and darkness, an overwhelming presence.
- The curse escalates: From field to vineyard to orchard to family, each verse tops the last.
- God’s warning is a mercy: The curse is given so that the people might turn back before it lands.
Illustration hooks
- A farmer plants an orchard for decades; a single pest outbreak kills every tree in weeks. Years of work become nothing.
- A family loses their home through foreclosure, the bank ‘possesses’ what they built. The legal term mirrors yarash.
- During a drought the annual crops fail, then the old olive trees die one by one, total economic collapse.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why does God use insects to judge? Doesn’t that make him small?
- Does this verse apply to Christians under the new covenant, or is it only for ancient Israel?
- How do we square the God who sends locusts with the God of love we find in the Gospels?
Leading a Discussion
This verse is one of the covenant curses that show the seriousness of breaking God's commands. The Hebrew verb yarash, ‘possess’, is the same word used for Israel inheriting the Promised Land. Here the locusts take that role. Discuss what this says about God’s sovereignty and the nature of judgment.
Discussion questions
- What does this verse say about the scope of the curse? What kinds of things are affected?
- Why might trees and fruit be included separately from the earlier grain and vine curses?
- The Hebrew word for locust (tslatsal) may mean ‘shadow-maker’ or ‘noise-maker.’ How does the language paint a picture of the plague?
- The verb yarash is usually positive for Israel. What is the effect of using it here for the locusts?
- How does this curse connect to the blessings in Deuteronomy 28:1, 14? What specifically is reversed?
- In what ways can this passage warn us today about the consequences of ignoring God’s direction?
- How does the cross of Christ address the curse this passage describes?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Deuteronomy 28:38 | You will carry much seed out into the field, and will gather little in, for the locust will consume it. |
| Deuteronomy 28:39 | You will plant vineyards and dress them, but you will neither drink of the wine, nor harvest, because worms will eat them. |
| Amos 7:1 | Thus the Lord Yahweh showed me: behold, he formed locusts in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and behold, it was the latter growth after the king’s harvest. |
| Amos 7:2 | When they finished eating the grass of the land, then I said, “Lord Yahweh, forgive, I beg you! How could Jacob stand? For he is small.” |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
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What the Commentators Say
4 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The Cambridge Bible commentary observes that the curses here do not simply reverse the earlier blessings but expand into far greater detail, covering diseases, crop failure and exile. Some verses appear to be later additions that elaborate beyond the original contrast pattern, and the section may originally have ended earlier.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note underscores this as a direct curse: locusts will devour every tree and all the fruit of the land, leaving nothing untouched. It presents total agricultural loss as the specific punishment for disobedience.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill points out that the locust gets its Hebrew name either from the thick shade it casts, darkening the land even at midday, or from the loud noise its wings make in flight. He notes that locusts consume not only crops but also all green trees, as seen in Exodus.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange sees the exhaustive listing of every blessing and curse as deliberate—it proves that nothing in life is accident or human achievement, but God directly rules every particular. For him religion here is not knowledge or worship but daily experience, one day teaching another. This moral framing strips earthly prosperity of its attraction and gives suffering its purpose toward repentance.