Therefore thus says the LORD: "Behold, against this family I am devising disaster, from which you cannot remove your necks; nor shall you walk haughtily, for this is an evil time. In that day one shall take up a proverb against you, and lament with a bitter lamentation, saying: ‘We are utterly destroyed! He has changed the heritage of my people; how He has removed it from me! To a turncoat He has divided our fields.’" Therefore you will have no one to determine boundaries by lot in the assembly of the LORD. (vs3-5)
If we don't do what God says do, then we'll be chastened or destroyed, and it is our fault. He says, “All this for the transgression of Jacob and for the sins of the house of Israel”, and, “Therefore you will have no one to determine boundaries by lot in the assembly of the Lord”. Your land will no longer be in your control, and the promises will be gone.
This curse doesn't come without cause, and God only punishes because it is right. He says, “Like a fluttering sparrow, like a flying swallow, so a curse without cause shall not come” (Prov 26:2). We can be obedient like Job and trouble happens, but this doesn't change the fact that God deals with us as a Father, according to our deeds (1 Pet 1:17; Ps 99:8). He doesn't punish the elect twice, having paid for our sins in His own blood, but He does chastens us to make us repent, and He will punish all who won't hear. This eye for an eye action is the basis of God's judgment, and this JUST recompense is His dealings with us in chastening love. Do not think, “I can do what I want, and God won't care. I'm saved by grace”, or, “God is LOVE, so it really doesn't matter if I sin”. The curse might not come immediately, and you may die a sinner with smiles on your face, but He WILL return and pay you back, and it will be all your fault, if you're punished for sin.
Sin is the cause of all evil and pain. Satan sinned, was cast down, and he is now reserved in chains of darkness until he is punished (Jude 1:6). Adam sinned and the whole human race was plunged into death, so that babies die, and in the all the world, there is none good, no not one. He says, “God looks down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek God. Every one of them has turned aside; they have together become corrupt; there is none who does good, no, not one” (Ps 53:2-3). This curse isn't because God is the sinner who made us sin; it is because WE sought out wickedness, and MISERY is the result. Jesus Christ endured the cross and all the difficulties of obedience that we brought into this world, and He conquered, but the struggle is the result of the curse and God's displeasure with us because of sin.
If we confess and forsake our sins, then we're assured of mercy. He says, “He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy” (Prov 28:13). Just as Job repented, and it was well with him, just as sinners from every nation are brought to bow to Christ, it shall be well with you, if you believe on Him to forgive and cleanse you from unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Many want to feel sad, but they won't repent. They don't mind misery, but they refuse to change. We read, “And the king Herod was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded John the Baptist's head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in prison” (Mark 6:26-27). They talk about being new creations, but they refuse to behave as such. Yet, God actually turns His people by the power of Christ, and our fruit is different. He says, “For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: what diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter” (2 Cor 7:11).
God relieves the pain of sin by removing the sin that caused it. He reconciles us by fixing our conduct, as well as our standing. He says, “Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Cor 5:18). Our behavior is the most important thing in the world to us. We are never chastened for being poor; it is only for being wicked.
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