Does God visit the sins of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation? Some texts seem to say he does and others seem to say he doesn’t. Our job is to figure out the sense in which he does and the sense in which he doesn’t.
On the one hand it seems as if he does:
The Lord…visits the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation. (Exodus 34:6-7 = Deuteronomy 5:8-10)
“Because of their iniquity, and also because of the iniquities of their fathers they shall rot away like them.” (Leviticus 26:39)
On the other hand it seems that he doesn’t:
Fathers shall not be put to death because of their children, nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers.” (Deuteronomy 24:16)
[Amaziah] did not put to death the children of the murderers, according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, where the Lord commanded, “Fathers shall not be put to death because of their children, nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers. But each one shall die for his own sin.” (2 Kings 14:6)
The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. (Ezekiel 18:20, cf. Jeremiah 31:30)
How do these passages fit together? This matters for the sake of God’s character, and the Bible’s coherence, and how we counsel those whose parents were wicked or just garden variety sinful.
Here are my two conclusions that helps me put them together:
1. The sins of the fathers are punished in the children through becoming the sins of the children.
I the Lord…visit the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.” (Exodus 20:5; cf. Numbers 14:18)
The generations to come who experience the penalty of the fathers’ sins are those who hate God. We are not told how the fathers’ sins become the children’s sins. But what we are told is that when the father’s sins are visited on the children it is because the children are really sinful. That is the form in which the fathers’ sins are visited. Therefore, all judgment is really deserved by the person who is punished.
2. Because of God’s grace, which is finally secured by Christ, the children can confess their own sins and the sins of their fathers and be forgiven and accepted by God.
But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers…if then their uncircumcised heart is humbled and they make amends for their iniquity, then I will remember my covenant with Jacob” (Leviticus 26:40-42).
The precious words of Exodus 34:6-7 are not nullified by the generational migration of sin.
The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.
Of course God visits the sins of the Fathers upon the Sons. You people acknowledge it every time you speak of “original sin”. “Oh, of course, that’s different!” No, it is not! You know the verses in the Bible that speak of visiting the sins of the Fathers upon their descendents, even unto the 3rd and 4th generations. You also know verses that say that the sons shall not be made to suffer for the iniquities of the fathers, or vice versa. And being programmed in your particular version of mindless dogma, you make them fit your dogma rather than think for yourself. It’s like this: The sins that the Lord visits unto the 3rd and 4th generations are those sins that are not dealt with in the generation they occur. The Old Testament, which most burnt again Christians like yourself dispose of except when it agrees with your dogma, gave a very good judicial system for Man to follow. If a person was convicted with the proper number of witnesses, he was convicted and suffered according to God’s Law. The son’s did not do the crime, so they didn’t suffer the consequences. However, on those sins that were done in secret and never revealed and concealed, this is society’s sin, and that generation’s hidden sins will be visited upon subsequent generations. Idol worship is obvious. If the Idol Worshippers were not executed, the sin would be visited upon the 3rd and 4th generations. If, for example, a murder was committed and no perpetrator was found the blood that was spilled would cry out to God and he would curse the land, if they did not do their best to find the culprit and performed the ritual to absolve themselves of this. Interracial breeding is another. This is so obvious, it shouldn’t have to be discussed, but most Christian churches don’t even know what Adultery is and “Like after Like”, so our lands are cursed because there are no Phineas’s to killed the fornicators. Refusing to acknowledge the wraith of God when he makes a desert and barren place out of an evil land, like he did with the land of Israel, which you people worship and sucker your followers into spending money going to this cursed land of Antichrists. There are many examples you would recognize if you weren’t so blinded by ridiculous dogmas, like raptures and all races coming from only 3 descendents of one man. Laughable if it wasn’t so sad.
Sorry I am so late to the string; I see James wrote his well thought out comments back in January. James brings up a great deal of issues in his tyraid. One thing seems to be evident after reading the entire comment, James has trouble believing the Bible is the inspired word of GOD. Correct me if I misinterpret. And there’s the crux of human-kind’s problem. When a person knows as much scripture, or at least assumes a good knowledge of it, and spends all of his time trying to prove it wrong, he is blinded by the bias he already has. This was the same trouble Jesus ran in to in the first century. I believe the O.T. is completely necessary for our understanding of the Creator. However, the hand-picked apostles made it clear that we learn from that document, but we are not bound by it, as by laws it contains. I agree that too many “Christians” abandon the scriptures prior to Christ’s teaching missing out on a wealth of knowledge. A completely true assessment of the verse at hand– (The sins that the Lord visits unto the 3rd and 4th generations are those sins that are not dealt with in the generation they occur.) But recognize this, sins must be dealt with. Do we choose to deal with them according to the O.T. method, which we learn from Hebrews that the blood of bulls and goats cannot take away sins, or do we choose to deal with our personal sins through the blood of GOD’S Lamb(who takes AWAY sin)? If we choose to deal with them according to the O.T. rules, we are obliged to NOT violate ONE rule. Christ proved He was the only Jew ever able to accomplish that requirement. One last thing, GOD’S mercy has always been above the law(i.e. the mercy seat on the ark of the covenant). We have but one obvious choice- Christ!!!