Deuteronomy 28 · Verse 53

Deuteronomy 28:53

And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the Lord thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee:
Deuteronomy 28:53, King James Version

Deuteronomy 28:53 in other translations

BSBThen you will eat the fruit of your womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters whom the LORD your God has given you, in the siege and distress that your enemy will inflict on you.
WEBYou will eat the fruit of your own body, the flesh of your sons and of your daughters, whom the LORD your God has given you, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemies will distress you.
ASVAnd thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, whom Jehovah thy God hath given thee, in the siege and in the distress wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee.
YLTand thou hast eaten the fruit of thy body, flesh of thy sons and thy daughters (whom Jehovah thy God hath given to thee), in the siege, and in the straitness with which thine enemies do straiten thee.
DARBYAnd in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee, thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters whom Jehovah thy God hath given thee.
BBEAnd your food will be the fruit of your body, the flesh of the sons and daughters which the Lord your God has given you; because of your bitter need and the cruel grip of your haters.
WebsterAnd thou shalt eat the fruit of thy own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters which the LORD thy God hath given thee, in the siege and in the straitness with which thy enemies shall distress thee:

What does Deuteronomy 28:53 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Deuteronomy 28:53-57
53-57. And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body--(See 2Ki 6:29; La 4:10). Such were the dreadful extremities to which the inhabitants during the siege were reduced that many women sustained a wretched existence by eating the flesh of their own children. Parental affection was extinguished, and the nearest relatives were jealously, avoided, lest they should discover and demand a share of the revolting viands.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Deuteronomy 28:45-68

If God inflicts vengeance, what miseries his curse can bring upon mankind, even in this present world! Yet these are but the beginning of sorrows to those under the curse of God. What then will be the misery of that world where their worm dieth not, and their fire is not quenched! Observe what is here said of the wrath of God, which should come and remain upon the Israelites for their sins. It is amazing to think…

Read the full comment on Deuteronomy 28:45-68 →

Deuteronomy 28:53 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְאָכַלְתָּ֣ve.'a.khal.Taand you will eatH398
פְרִֽי\־fe.ri-[the] fruit ofH6529
בִטְנְךָ֗vit.ne.Khawomb yourH990
בְּשַׂ֤רbe.Sar[the] flesh ofH1320
בָּנֶ֙יךָ֙ba.Nei.khasons yourH1121
וּבְנֹתֶ֔יךָu.ve.no.Tei.khaand daughters yourH1323
אֲשֶׁ֥ר'a.SherwhomH834
נָֽתַן\־na.tan-he has givenH5414
לְךָ֖le.Khato <the> you
יְהוָ֣הYah.wehYahwehH3068
אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ'e.lo.Hei.khaGod yourH430
בְּמָצוֹר֙be.ma.tzOrin [the] siegeH4692
וּבְמָצ֔וֹקu.ve.ma.Tzokand in [the] distressH4689
אֲשֶׁר\־'a.Sher-whichH834
יָצִ֥יקya.Tzikhe will bring distressH6693
לְךָ֖le.Khato <the> you
אֹיְבֶֽךָ\׃'o.ye.Ve.khaenemy yourH341

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Deuteronomy 28:53

  • Lamentations 4:10

    The hands of the pitiful women have sodden their own children: they were their meat in the destruction of the daughter of my people.

  • Jeremiah 19:9

    And I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and they shall eat every one the flesh of his friend in the siege and straitness, wherewith their enemies, and they that seek their lives, shall straiten them.

  • Leviticus 26:29

    And ye shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall ye eat.

  • Deuteronomy 28:57

    And toward her young one that cometh out from between her feet, and toward her children which she shall bear: for she shall eat them for want of all things secretly in the siege and straitness, wherewith thine enemy shall distress thee in thy gates.

  • 2 Kings 6:28-29

    And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, This woman said unto me, Give thy son, that we may eat him to day, and we will eat my son to morrow. So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him: and she hath hid her son.

  • Lamentations 2:20

    Behold, O Lord, and consider to whom thou hast done this. Shall the women eat their fruit, and children of a span long? shall the priest and the prophet be slain in the sanctuary of the Lord?

  • Ezekiel 5:10

    Therefore the fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, and the sons shall eat their fathers; and I will execute judgments in thee, and the whole remnant of thee will I scatter into all the winds.

  • Deuteronomy 28:55

    So that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his children whom he shall eat: because he hath nothing left him in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee in all thy gates.

  • Deuteronomy 28:18

    Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

  • Matthew 24:19

    And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the fruit.
18,55,57; Le 26:29; 2Ki 6:28,29; Jer 19:9; La 2:20; 4:10
Eze 5:10; Mt 24:19
body. Heb. belly.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Deuteronomy 28:52

    And he shall besiege thee in all thy gates, until thy high and fenced walls come down, wherein thou trustedst, throughout all thy land: and he shall besiege thee in all thy gates throughout all thy land, which the Lord thy God hath given thee.

  • Deuteronomy 28:53

    And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the Lord thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee:

  • Deuteronomy 28:54

    So that the man that is tender among you, and very delicate, his eye shall be evil toward his brother, and toward the wife of his bosom, and toward the remnant of his children which he shall leave:

Read all of Deuteronomy 28

Deuteronomy 28:53 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y comerás el fruto de tu vientre, la carne de tus hijos y de tus hijas que Jehová tu Dios te dió, en el cerco y en el apuro con que te angustiará tu enemigo.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et, dans le siège et dans la détresse dont ton ennemi t’enserrera, tu mangeras le fruit de ton ventre, la chair de tes fils et de tes filles que l’ Éternel, ton Dieu, t’aura donnés.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und in der Belagerung und in der Bedrängnis, womit dein Feind dich bedrängen wird, wirst du essen die Frucht deines Leibes, das Fleisch deiner Söhne und deiner Töchter, welche Jehova, dein Gott, dir gegeben hat.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		et comedes fructum uteri tui, et carnes filiorum tuorum et filiarum tuarum, quas dederit tibi Dominus Deus tuus, in angustia et vastitate qua opprimet te hostis tuus.