A curse is a malediction, and we know that no word from God can fail of its effect; tinder any circumstances a curse from Him cannot be otherwise than a very terrible thing. It may be a stroke only of God's temporal government (Deut. 30:1-81And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath driven thee, 2And shalt return unto the Lord thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul; 3That then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee. 4If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the Lord thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee: 5And the Lord thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers. 6And the Lord thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live. 7And the Lord thy God will put all these curses upon thine enemies, and on them that hate thee, which persecuted thee. 8And thou shalt return and obey the voice of the Lord, and do all his commandments which I command thee this day. (Deuteronomy 30:1‑8)), or it may be absolute, the fall and final judgment of sin, the full and adequate penalty of our sins. Christ was made a curse for us on the cross (Gal. 3:1313Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: (Galatians 3:13)); He thus bore the judgment of sin, and of our sins. This was primarily for the glory of God—the vindication of the divine glory with regard to sin. It was also for the good of the world as such, the ground of all respite and of every mercy towards it, temporal or spiritual; and it is the ground of the eternal salvation of believers. But, in God's moral government, temporal punishments also attend sin. God works in this world His displeasure of it, as He shows also His love by His mercies. This is always true, however the Israelites may, in a more definite and specific way, be the people of His manifested government.
Thus punishments and blessings may be temporal only, or may go on so as to be eternal. Temporal judgments, however, are not to be called curses, unless distinctly stated to be so in Scripture—in fact are never so to the children of God, even when disciplinary or in chastisement. For “whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every sin whom he receiveth,” and “all things work together for good to them that love God.” So that what may be of the character of a curse to the unbeliever is turned into a blessing to the believer, i.e. the very same dispensation of God's providence, or stroke of His moral government (however painful), may be, and often is, a curse to one person and a blessing to another, such for instance as suffering and death. Moreover, judgments may apply to an individual only, or may extend to a family, to a nation, or even be universal in scope. But they are connected with the moral government of God in this world, and are therefore with a view of vindicating Himself as the Supreme moral Governor, restraining evil, and instructing and benefiting the wise, i.e., the children of God (Isa. 26:99With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. (Isaiah 26:9); Dan. 12:1010Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand. (Daniel 12:10)).
But bear in mind that all instruction, which through the grace of God turns to the profit of the individual or community, is in this world; in the next the results will be seen, and these are then eternal and unalterable. Some of God's severest judgments are remarkable not only for divine wisdom in government, but even as containing mercy towards the world. When our first parents fell, we read of no “curse” pronounced on them personally, though we do read, “cursed is the ground for thy sake;” and the very penalties pronounced upon them were morally necessary, and had mercy in them. For example Adam was condemned to toil, and what would men be, what would the world be, without such a necessity? And even as to death, whilst to the Christian it has neither sting nor terror, for “all things are yours',” says the apostle, “whether the world, or life, or death,” &c., yet, even as regards this world, what would the world become, if wicked men lived on in it without dying? So even the penalty of pain in child-bearing is not wholly punitive. There are in fact always wise reasons for the course which God's moral government takes, nor does He willingly afflict. We should remember that that government is in view of the whole power of evil, that it has objects and results therefore infinitely beyond our comprehension, and that, even though often and deeply in sorrow, we may well trust the love of Him who has saved us, (but at the cost of the sacrifice of His only-begotten Son,) for the maintenance of His own righteousness.
The importance of clear views on this subject is great; for strenuous efforts are being made in connection with other very pernicious doctrines, to represent Christ as a curse-bearer, in common with men, during His life upon earth; as also to put Christians, in common with the world, under curse from God. This would of course destroy their peace; and it is therefore desirable that the truth should be brought prominently forward.