Don’t worry when someone curses you for no reason. Nothing bad will happen. Such words are like birds that fly past and never stop.
The Easy-to-Read version of the Bible is a translation to which I often refer, so that the audience may clearly understand the message. Many schools that we have partnered with in South Africa praise the translation, as students understand the Bible easily because of the type of English it uses, while keeping the original meaning.
Solomon is the writer of most of the proverbs in the Old Testament. He uses the Hebrew tradition of using the natural world to paint a vivid picture of the spiritual life and the legal principles that are God-ordained. The ancient Israelite, being familiar with Hebrew culture, would understand the sparrow and the swallow as birds that are not powerful flyers but are erratic and restless, wandering, flitting, and darting in their natural behavior. The two birds usually do not relax for long.
A curse is a spoken word with potential spiritual power. A person calls down harm, misfortune, or divine displeasure upon another person who is a target. Curses were taken seriously during biblical times. In the Old Testament, Balak hired Balaam to pronounce a curse on the Israelites (Numbers 22). Balaam could not because the Israelites were blessed; no one could curse them. In contrast, Jacob understood that he might bring a curse upon himself if his blind father Isaac should find out that he had deceived him (Genesis 27:12-13).
Today’s verse says, “Don’t worry when someone curses you for no reason. Nothing bad will happen.” Solomon used the word “chinam” in Hebrew, denoting without cause, freely, for nothing. Thus, a curse is not a self-propelled missile that automatically targets you unless you have opened a door for it to operate (Ephesians 4:27). Instead, make the Lord your home-base, then no harm shall befall your home (Psalm 91:10).
In Matthew 5:44, our Lord and Savior encourage us to bless them that curse us and do good to them that hate us. The flittering curse and the one who wants to target us is repelled by our Kingdom principles. Let us entreat those who try to pronounce a curse on us to join the undefeated and victorious Kingdom of God! Beloved, we are too blessed to be cursed only when we follow God’s Word. We diminish curses through blessings; we overcome wickedness with goodness! We pray for those who abuse us (Luke 6:28). We cannot run out because our source is Jesus Christ! Remain in Him so that you may bear eternal fruit! Romans 12:14 says, “Wish only good for those who treat you badly. Ask God to bless them, not curse them.” Application of this verse makes the curse, like the bird, continue wandering and restless, seeking whom it may land upon.
“The law says we are under a curse for not always obeying it. But Christ took away that curse. He changed places with us and put himself under that curse. The Scripture says, ‘Anyone who is hung on a tree is under a curse’” (Galatians 3:13).
God’s Kingdom prepares us for the glorious new world, where curses won’t exist at all (Revelation 22:3). Thus, we ought to practice blessing each other so that curses would have no place to land in our communities! Hallelujah! Remain blessed and keep blessing people around your circle of influence! Speak graceful words to each person always.
By Christopher Thetswe, Bible League South Africa staff, Johannesburg
