Pastor Robert Hammond. February 2022.

Definition: When used today, the term “generational curse” tends to be associated with the unbiblical idea that the LORD punishes people for the sin of their parents and grandparents.

Sometimes, this idea is also wrongly used to excuse sin. An individual holding to this idea may attempt to excuse his or her sin with statements such as, “I sin like this because my parents sinned like this.”

Biblical Background:

The notion of a multi-generational curse is drawn from the Old Testament books of Exodus, Numbers, Deuteronomy and Lamentations. However, a careful examination of those passages reveals that children are held accountable only for their own sins (rather than for the sins of their parents);

Consider the context of the Exodus passage in which we find the LORD pronouncing multi-generational consequences due to idolatry. In Exodus 20:4-5 the LORD commanded Israel to refrain from idolatry:

Exodus 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: 5a Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God…

In that context, the LORD pronounced consequences “upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me” (Ex. 20:5b).

There, the LORD taught that the consequence of committing idolatry would endure to future generations “of them that hate me.”

Those consequences would endure to future generations because children tend to learn sin patterns from their parents. As children learned idolatry from their parents and then committed idolatry (thereby demonstrating personal hatred of the LORD), those children would experience the consequence of their own sin;

Note, however, that the very next verse (Ex. 20:6) states that the LORD would show “mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments” (Ex. 20:6).

A child could escape the so-called generational curse when he demonstrated love to the LORD, i.e. by keeping the commandments. In the immediate context, a child could do that by refusing to enter into the same idolatry that was committed by his parents. While sinful parents model sinful behavior to their children, children always have a choice about whether or not to follow a sinful example!

Importantly, we should take care to observe that the generational curses pronounced in the Old Testament were pronounced to one nation (Israel). And they were pronounced in the immediate context of warnings of one particular sin (idolatry);

Our understanding is further guided by comparing “generational curse” passages with passages that clearly indicate that individuals are responsible only for their own sin:

Ezekiel 18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

In John 9:1-3, Jesus’ disciples asked if a certain man was blind because he had sinned or because his parents had sinned. Evidently, they believed in some sort of punishment for sin committed by one’s parents. Jesus replied, “neither hath this man sinned nor his parents” (John 9:3). In doing so, Jesus taught that the man’s blindness was not the result of either a generational curse or the blind man’s sin.

Dr. David Sorenson summarizes that “God does not punish the children for the sins of the fathers. However, the sins of the fathers will influence and affect their children to three and four generations.

God therefore announced that the sins of the fathers, reproduced in their children, would extend to three and four generations and God would deal accordingly with each generation. A sober principle is at hand how that sin will influence children, grandchildren, and even great grandchildren”

A Biblical Response

Recognize that the only biblical sense in which an individual suffers from a generational curse is the sense in which we inherit a sin nature as the result of the curse that God proclaimed upon all of creation in response to the sin of Adam and Eve. Individuals are released from the eternal consequence of their own sin when they are saved by grace through faith in Christ;
That said, the idea that Christians need to be released from generational curses has no biblical foundation;
Parents should recognize that their sin tends to serve as a poor example to children. As such, parents should confess sin and look to the LORD for strength to forsake a sinful example;
Those who attempt to excuse sin by pointing to the sinful example of parents or grandparents must take responsibility for their own actions. Recognize that, while the sinful example of our parents can influence us to commit the same sin, all of us always have the opportunity to choose obedience to the LORD. If you have attempted to excuse your sin by pointing to someone else’s sinful example, take a moment to pray and confess that sin;
When the Holy Spirit is convicting of sin, be quick to agree (i.e. to confess the sin). Ask the LORD for strength to repent and to forsake the sin. Ask him for grace to put on obedience.

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Sources: Walter Martin, The Kingdom of the Occult, Thomas Nelson, 2008; David Sorenson, Understanding the Bible, Northstar Ministries, 2005.