What does it mean to be “cut off” from the tents of Jacob?

To be cut off is to be excommunicated or removed from the fellowship of God’s people, and more importantly, to be severed from one’s relationship to God. To be “cut off” from God and his people means to come under the curse as a covenant breaker, rather than living under the blessings of God as a covenant keeper (Romans 9:3, where “accursed” and “cut off” are used synonymously). In the New Testament, the equivalent would be excommunication from the church and from God (1 Corinthians 5:2–5).