Exodus 20:5

20:5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, ¹  for I, the Lord, your God, am a jealous ²  God, responding to ³  the transgression of fathers by dealing with children to the third and fourth generations ⁴  of those who reject me, ⁵ 

Psalms 109:9-31

109:9 May his children ⁶  be fatherless,

and his wife a widow!

109:10 May his children ⁷  roam around begging,

asking for handouts as they leave their ruined home! ⁸ 

109:11 May the creditor seize ⁹  all he owns!

May strangers loot his property! ¹⁰ 

109:12 May no one show him kindness! ¹¹ 

May no one have compassion ¹²  on his fatherless children!

109:13 May his descendants ¹³  be cut off! ¹⁴ 

May the memory of them be wiped out by the time the next generation arrives! ¹⁵ 

109:14 May his ancestors’ ¹⁶  sins be remembered by the Lord!

May his mother’s sin not be forgotten! ¹⁷ 

109:15 May the Lord be constantly aware of them, ¹⁸ 

and cut off the memory of his children ¹⁹  from the earth!

109:16 For he never bothered to show kindness; ²⁰ 

he harassed the oppressed and needy,

and killed the disheartened. ²¹ 

109:17 He loved to curse ²²  others, so those curses have come upon him. ²³ 

He had no desire to bless anyone, so he has experienced no blessings. ²⁴ 

109:18 He made cursing a way of life, ²⁵ 

so curses poured into his stomach like water

and seeped into his bones like oil. ²⁶ 

109:19 May a curse attach itself to him, like a garment one puts on, ²⁷ 

or a belt ²⁸  one wears continually!

109:20 May the Lord repay my accusers in this way, ²⁹ 

those who say evil things about ³⁰  me! ³¹ 

109:21 O sovereign Lord,

intervene on my behalf for the sake of your reputation! ³² 

Because your loyal love is good, deliver me!

109:22 For I am oppressed and needy,

and my heart beats violently within me. ³³ 

109:23 I am fading away like a shadow at the end of the day; ³⁴ 

I am shaken off like a locust.

109:24 I am so starved my knees shake; ³⁵ 

I have turned into skin and bones. ³⁶ 

109:25 I am disdained by them. ³⁷ 

When they see me, they shake their heads. ³⁸ 

109:26 Help me, O Lord my God!

Because you are faithful to me, deliver me! ³⁹ 

109:27 Then they will realize ⁴⁰  this is your work, ⁴¹ 

and that you, Lord, have accomplished it.

109:28 They curse, but you will bless. ⁴² 

When they attack, they will be humiliated, ⁴³ 

but your servant will rejoice.

109:29 My accusers will be covered ⁴⁴  with shame,

and draped in humiliation as if it were a robe.

109:30 I will thank the Lord profusely, ⁴⁵ 

in the middle of a crowd ⁴⁶  I will praise him,

109:31 because he stands at the right hand of the needy,

to deliver him from those who threaten ⁴⁷  his life.

Isaiah 14:21

14:21 Prepare to execute ⁴⁸  his sons

for the sins their ancestors have committed. ⁴⁹ 

They must not rise up and take possession of the earth,

or fill the surface of the world with cities.” ⁵⁰ 

Ezekiel 18:14

18:14 “But suppose he in turn has a son who notices all the sins his father commits, considers them, and does not follow his father’s example. ⁵¹ 

Ezekiel 18:19-20

18:19 “Yet you say, ‘Why should the son not suffer ⁵²  for his father’s iniquity?’ When the son does what is just and right, and observes all my statutes and carries them out, he will surely live. 18:20 The person who sins is the one who will die. A son will not suffer ⁵³  for his father’s iniquity, and a father will not suffer ⁵⁴  for his son’s iniquity; the righteous person will be judged according to his righteousness, and the wicked person according to his wickedness. ⁵⁵ 

Matthew 23:31-35

23:31 By saying this you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 23:32 Fill up then the measure of your ancestors! 23:33 You snakes, you offspring of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? ⁵⁶ 

23:34 “For this reason I ⁵⁷  am sending you prophets and wise men and experts in the law, ⁵⁸  some of whom you will kill and crucify, ⁵⁹  and some you will flog ⁶⁰  in your synagogues ⁶¹  and pursue from town to town, 23:35 so that on you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, ⁶²  whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.

[20:5]  ¹ tn The combination of these two verbs customarily refers to the worship of pagan deities (e.g., Deut 17:3: 30:17; Jer 8:2; see J. J. Stamm and M. E. Andrew, The Ten Commandments in Recent Research [SBT], 86). The first verb is לאֹ־תִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה (lo’ tishtakhaveh), now to be classified as a hishtaphel imperfect from חָוָה (khavah; BDB 1005 s.v. שׁחה), “to cause oneself to be low to the ground.” It is used of the true worship of God as well. The second verb is וְלֹא תָעָבְדֵם (vÿlo’ to’ovdem). The two could be taken as a hendiadys: “you will not prostrate yourself to serve them.” In an interesting side comment U. Cassuto (Exodus, 242) offers an explanation of the spelling of the second verb: he suggests that it was spelled with the qamets khatuf vowel to show contempt for pagan worship, as if their conduct does not even warrant a correct spelling of the word “serve.” Gesenius says that the forms like this are anomalous, but he wonders if they were pointed as if the verb was a Hophal with the meaning “you shall not allow yourself to be brought to worship them” (GKC 161 §60.b). But this is unlikely.

[20:5]  ² sn The word “jealous” is the same word often translated “zeal” or “zealous.” The word describes a passionate intensity to protect or defend something that is jeopardized. The word can also have the sense of “envy,” but in that case the object is out of bounds. God’s zeal or jealousy is to protect his people or his institutions or his honor. Yahweh’s honor is bound up with the life of his people.

[20:5]  ³ tn Verses 5 and 6 are very concise, and the word פָּקַד (paqad) is difficult to translate. Often rendered “visiting,” it might here be rendered “dealing with” in a negative sense or “punishing,” but it describes positive attention in 13:19. When used of God, it essentially means that God intervenes in the lives of people for blessing or for cursing. Some would simply translate the participle here as “punishing” the children for the sins of the fathers (cf. Lev 18:25; Isa 26:21; Jer 29:32; 36:31; Hos 1:4; Amos 3:2). That is workable, but may not say enough. The verse may indicate that those who hate Yahweh and do not keep his commandments will repeat the sins their fathers committed and suffer for them. Deut 24:16 says that individuals will die for their own sins and not their father’s sins (see also Deut 7:10 and Ezek 18). It may have more to do with patterns of sin being repeated from generation to generation; if the sin and the guilt were not fully developed in the one generation, then left unchecked they would develop and continue in the next. But it may also indicate that the effects of the sins of the fathers will be experienced in the following generations, especially in the case of Israel as a national entity (U. Cassuto, Exodus, 243). God is showing here that his ethical character is displayed in how he deals with sin and righteousness, all of which he describes as giving strong motivation for loyalty to him and for avoiding idolatry. There is a justice at work in the dealings of God that is not present in the pagan world.

[20:5]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew word for “generations” is not found in v. 5 or 6. The numbers are short for a longer expression, which is understood as part of the description of the children already mentioned (see Deut 7:9, where “generation” [דּוֹר, dor] is present and more necessary, since “children” have not been mentioned).

[20:5]  ⁵ tn This is an important qualification to the principle. The word rendered “reject” is often translated “hate” and carries with it the idea of defiantly rejecting and opposing God and his word. Such people are doomed to carry on the sins of their ancestors and bear guilt with them.

[109:9]  ⁶ tn Or “sons.”

[109:10]  ⁷ tn Or “sons.”

[109:10]  ⁸ tn Heb “and roaming, may his children roam and beg, and seek from their ruins.” Some, following the LXX, emend the term וְדָרְשׁוּ (vÿdoreshu, “and seek”) to יְגֹרְשׁוּ (yÿgoreshu; a Pual jussive, “may they be driven away” [see Job 30:5; cf. NIV, NRSV]), but דָּרַשׁ (darash) nicely parallels שִׁאֵלוּ (shi’elu, “and beg”) in the preceding line.

[109:11]  ⁹ tn Heb “lay snares for” (see Ps 38:12).

[109:11]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the product of his labor.”

[109:12]  ¹¹ tn Heb “may there not be for him one who extends loyal love.”

[109:12]  ¹² tn Perhaps this refers to being generous (see Ps 37:21).

[109:13]  ¹³ tn Or “offspring.”

[109:13]  ¹⁴ sn On the expression cut off see Ps 37:28.

[109:13]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “in another generation may their name be wiped out.”

[109:14]  ¹⁶ tn Or “fathers’ sins.”

[109:14]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “not be wiped out.”

[109:15]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “may they [that is, the sins mentioned in v. 14] be before the Lord continually.”

[109:15]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “their memory.” The plural pronominal suffix probably refers back to the children mentioned in v. 13, and for clarity this has been specified in the translation.

[109:16]  ²⁰ tn Heb “he did not remember to do loyal love.”

[109:16]  ²¹ tn Heb “and he chased an oppressed and needy man, and one timid of heart to put [him] to death.”

[109:17]  ²² sn A curse in OT times consists of a formal appeal to God to bring judgment down upon another. Curses were sometimes justified (such as the one spoken by the psalmist here in vv. 6-19), but when they were not, the one pronouncing the curse was in danger of bringing the anticipated judgment down upon himself.

[109:17]  ²³ tn Heb “and he loved a curse and it came [upon] him.” A reference to the evil man experiencing a curse seems premature here, for the psalmist is asking God to bring judgment on his enemies. For this reason some (cf. NIV, NRSV) prefer to repoint the vav (ו) on “it came” as conjunctive and translate the verb as a jussive of prayer (“may it come upon him!”). The prefixed form with vav consecutive in the next line is emended in the same way and translated, “may it be far from him.” However, the psalmist may be indicating that the evil man’s lifestyle has already begun to yield its destructive fruit.

[109:17]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and he did not delight in a blessing and it is far from him.”

[109:18]  ²⁵ tn Heb “he put on a curse as [if it were] his garment.”

[109:18]  ²⁶ tn Heb “and it came like water into his inner being, and like oil into his bones.” This may refer to this individual’s appetite for cursing. For him cursing was as refreshing as drinking water or massaging oneself with oil. Another option is that the destructive effects of a curse are in view. In this case a destructive curse invades his very being, like water or oil. Some who interpret the verse this way prefer to repoint the vav (ו) on “it came” to a conjunctive vav and interpret the prefixed verb as a jussive, “may it come!”

[109:19]  ²⁷ tn Heb “may it be for him like a garment one puts on.”

[109:19]  ²⁸ tn The Hebrew noun מֵזַח (mezakh, “belt; waistband”) occurs only here in the OT. The form apparently occurs in Isa 23:10 as well, but an emendation is necessary there.

[109:20]  ²⁹ tn Heb “[may] this [be] the repayment to my accusers from the Lord.”

[109:20]  ³⁰ tn Or “against.”

[109:20]  ³¹ tn The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “being; soul”) with a pronominal suffix is often equivalent to a pronoun, especially in poetry (see BDB 660 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 4.a).

[109:21]  ³² tn Heb “but you, Lord, Master, do with me for the sake of your name.” Here “name” stands metonymically for God’s reputation.

[109:22]  ³³ tc The verb in the Hebrew text (חָלַל, khalal) appears to be a Qal form from the root חלל meaning “pierced; wounded.” However, the Qal of this root is otherwise unattested. The translation assumes an emendation to יָחִיל (yakhil), a Qal imperfect from חוּל (khul, “tremble”) or to חֹלַל (kholal), a polal perfect from חוּל (khul). See Ps 55:4, which reads לִבִּי יָחִיל בְּקִרְבִּי (libbiy yakhil bÿqirbbiy, “my heart trembles [i.e., “beats violently”] within me”).

[109:23]  ³⁴ tn Heb “like a shadow when it is extended I go.” He is like a late afternoon shadow made by the descending sun that will soon be swallowed up by complete darkness. See Ps 102:11.

[109:24]  ³⁵ tn Heb “my knees stagger from fasting.”

[109:24]  ³⁶ tn Heb “and my flesh is lean away from fatness [i.e., “lean so as not to be fat”].”

[109:25]  ³⁷ tn Heb “as for me, I am a reproach to them.”

[109:25]  ³⁸ sn They shake their heads. Apparently shaking the head was a taunting gesture. See also Job 16:4; Ps 22:7; Lam 2:15.

[109:26]  ³⁹ tn Heb “deliver me according to your faithfulness.”

[109:27]  ⁴⁰ tn After the preceding imperative, the prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose or result.

[109:27]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “that your hand [is] this.”

[109:28]  ⁴² tn Another option is to translate the imperfect as a prayer/request (“may you bless”).

[109:28]  ⁴³ tn The verbal sequence is perfect + prefixed form with vav (ו) consecutive. Since the psalmist seems to be anticipating the demise of his enemies, he may be using these forms rhetorically to describe the enemies’ defeat as if it were already accomplished. Some emend the text to קָמוּ יֵבֹשׁוּ (qamu yevoshu, “may those who attack me be humiliated”). See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 75.

[109:29]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “clothed.” Another option is to translate the prefixed verbal forms in this line and the next as jussives (“may my accusers be covered with shame”).

[109:30]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “I will thank the Lord very much with my mouth.”

[109:30]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “many.”

[109:31]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “judge.”

[14:21]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “the place of slaughter for.”

[14:21]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “for the sin of their fathers.”

[14:21]  ⁵⁰ sn J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:320, n. 10) suggests that the garrison cities of the mighty empire are in view here.

[18:14]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “and he sees and does not do likewise.”

[18:19]  ⁵² tn Heb “lift up, bear.”

[18:20]  ⁵³ tn Heb “lift up, bear.”

[18:20]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “lift up, bear.”

[18:20]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “the righteousness of the righteous one will be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked one will be upon him.”

[23:33]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “the judgment of Gehenna.”

[23:34]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “behold I am sending.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[23:34]  ⁵⁸ tn Or “scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:34]  ⁵⁹ sn See the note on crucified in 20:19.

[23:34]  ⁶⁰ tn BDAG 620 s.v. μαστιγόω 1.a states, “of flogging as a punishment decreed by the synagogue (Dt 25:2f; s. the Mishna Tractate Sanhedrin-Makkoth, edited w. notes by SKrauss ’33) w. acc. of pers. Mt 10:17; 23:34.”

[23:34]  ⁶¹ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[23:35]  ⁶² sn Spelling of this name (Βαραχίου, Baraciou) varies among the English versions: “Barachiah” (RSV, NRSV); “Berechiah” (NASB); “Berachiah” (NIV).