Deuteronomy 7:15 – No More Illness

In Deuteronomy 7:15 Moses makes the startling statement that God will remove all illness from the Jewish people. If so, then why are so many people sick today?

Let’s start by reading the full verse:

What is the basis for Moses making this claim?

Context of Deuteronomy 7:15

Moses introduced this section of his speech a few verses earlier.

The section begins with “it shall come to pass…” This is a promise of a reward if the Jewish people will listen to, observe, and perform God’s judgments.

The next verses enumerate some of the blessings they will receive. These blessings include a growing population, abundant harvests, and large herds of cattle and flocks.

Now let’s look more closely at the blessing mentioned in Deuteronomy 7:15.

Difference Between Illness and Disease

The English translation of the verse is trying to capture the fact that Moses uses two different Hebrew words about sickness.

The English “illness” is the translation of “choli” which means sickness, illness, or general suffering.

The word “disease” is the translation of “madvei” which means disease or plague. This word is from the 3-letter root dalet-vav-hey meaning “be faint.”

Many commentators do not treat Hebrew words with similar translations as mere synonyms. Rather, they strive to understand the subtle differences in meaning and how that changes the understanding of a verse.

Choli / Madvei – Two Aspects of Sickness

Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch suggests that these words indicate different aspects of being sick.

In particular, choli is the physiological process of illness, that is, the physical symptoms and damage caused by a sickness.

But madvei is primarily the feeling of illness or the suffering that a sick person goes through.

Rabbi Sorotzkin seems to accept this approach. He writes that choli is a sickness that may or may not bring death. Madvei is the pain of being sick that usually does not lead to death.

Choli / Madvei – Two Sicknesses

The second approach adopted by commentators is that choli and madvei are different categories of sickness.

Abarbanel writes that choli indicates a regular, normal sickness that many people survive. But madvei means unusual sicknesses that God may use to punish evil and may target specific people with them.

Malbim agrees and writes that some sickness may come on a person via natural means. This is the type of sickness that God will remove.

But other sicknesses come as a punishment, like the ones that the Jewish people saw in Egypt. Because God will not place them on the Jewish people, He will not need to remove them.

Remove From You

Moses says that God will “remove from you” illness. This phrase could indicate that they may still get sick, but God will then remove the illness. This is the approach of Malbim quoted above.

However, “remove” can also indicate protecting a person so that he doesn’t get sick at all.

Ibn Ezra writes that the Jewish people will be healthy and thus protected from all types of illness.

Is Deuteronomy 7:15 Still in Effect?

Ramban writes that the purpose of this verse is to warn the people. If they observe God’s ordinances, they will be saved from these diseases. But if they do not, these diseases will come on them in the same way they came on the Egyptians.

Unfortunately, there are clear indications in later parts of the Bible that the Jewish people as a whole are not protected from illness.

In Deuteronomy 28 Moses tells the Jewish people what will happen to them if they observe the Torah. And what will happen to them if they disobey.

Toward the end of his admonition he says:

Again we have the word “madvei.” It turns out this word appears only in Deuteronomy 7:15 and 28:60.

In Deuteronomy 7:15 God promises not to bring these diseases on the Jewish people. But He will bring them on their enemies.

Here He says He will bring them on the Jewish people.

Verse 7:15 is the positive promise of blessing when the Jewish people observe the Torah. In 28:60 it’s the negative promise of punishment and affliction that result from not obeying the Torah.

Sorotzkin on Deuteronomy 7:15

Rabbi Sorotzkin in his commentary points out that what Moses says hearkens back to God’s promise in Exodus.

A few chapters later we read:

Rabbi Sorotzkin concludes, in the merit of learning and observing the Torah (Exodus 15:26) and serving God (Exodus 23:25) God will remove sickness from among the Jewish people.

It seems to me, that even in our times, though the national blessing of Deuteronomy 7:15 may have been lost, it’s still possible for individuals and groups to reclaim it.

Antisemitism

One final thought about our verse.

The last phrase in Deuteronomy 7:15 is “on all your enemies.”

This could also be translated as “on all your haters.”

The haters and antisemites may be there. This we have no control over and little ability to stop.

There is, however, one thing the Jewish people do control.

We can strive to observe and fulfill God’s Torah so that we may once again merit to see God’s plagues fall on the haters.

Picture Credits
Washington in His Last Illness from Smithsonian Open Access