Psalm 109 14

Psalm 109:14 kjv

Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the LORD; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.

Psalm 109:14 nkjv

Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, And let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.

Psalm 109:14 niv

May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD; may the sin of his mother never be blotted out.

Psalm 109:14 esv

May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!

Psalm 109:14 nlt

May the LORD never forget the sins of his fathers;
may his mother's sins never be erased from the record.

Psalm 109 verses

Psalm 109 14 Meaning

Psalm 109:14 is a prayer for divine retribution, specifically asking the Lord to remember and hold against an enemy the past transgressions of their ancestors. The request is that the iniquity and sin of both their father's and mother's lines be actively brought to God's mind for judgment, and that these sins would explicitly not be forgiven or wiped away, thus serving as grounds for severe judgment upon the targeted individual. This reflects a plea for comprehensive and unyielding justice against one who has caused immense suffering and slander to the psalmist.

Psalm 109 14 Context

Psalm 109 is a highly emotional imprecatory psalm, believed to be by David, though some critical scholars attribute it to others. The psalmist expresses deep anguish and calls upon God for severe judgment against a malicious adversary who has falsely accused and slandered him (vv. 1-5). Verses 6-19 comprise a series of intense curses aimed at this enemy, effectively outlining the judgments the psalmist wishes upon them and their descendants. This particular verse (109:14) stands within this block of imprecations, escalating the plea by invoking not just the enemy's personal sins, but also the unresolved transgressions of their ancestors. In ancient Near Eastern cultures and early Israelite thought, there was a strong concept of corporate solidarity and generational consequences, where the actions (both good and bad) of progenitors could affect the prosperity or adversity of their offspring. Thus, remembering ancestral sins by God for the purpose of the current enemy's punishment would have been seen as a profound and comprehensive form of divine justice, ensuring no stone was left unturned in God's reckoning.

Psalm 109 14 Word analysis

• Let the iniquity ('awon, עָוֹן): This Hebrew word encompasses not only the wrongdoing itself but also the guilt and the resultant punishment associated with it. It suggests a distortion or perversity of action, carrying significant moral weight. The prayer is not merely for the action of sin to be recalled, but for the incurred guilt and the merited penalty to be recognized and applied by God.
• of his fathers: Refers to the male ancestral lineage. In a patriarchal society, the "fathers" represent the lineage and reputation of the family line, carrying significant corporate and social implications. The prayer asks for their collective transgressions to be taken into account.
• be remembered (zakar, זָכַר): This is not a passive mental recollection but an active, judicial act by God. When God "remembers" in the biblical sense, it often signifies that He is bringing something to mind for the purpose of acting upon it – whether to show mercy (as when God remembered Noah in Gen 8:1) or, as here, to enact judgment and dispense justice.
• before the Lord: Specifies God (Yahweh, יְהוָה) as the divine Judge to whom the appeal is made. It highlights that the plea is for a righteous, divine verdict, in God's holy court, not human vengeance.
• and let not the sin (chatta'ah, חַטָּאָה): A general term for "sin" that literally means "missing the mark." It signifies a failure, a transgression against divine standards. The usage alongside iniquity ('awon) emphasizes a thorough and comprehensive invocation of past wrongs.
• of his mother: Refers to the female ancestral lineage. By including both father's and mother's lines, the prayer covers the entirety of the enemy's heritage, underscoring the completeness of the requested divine scrutiny over all generational wrongdoings associated with the individual.
• be blotted out (machah, מָחָה): This verb means to wipe away, to erase, or to obliterate. In other biblical contexts, it is a term often used for divine forgiveness, where God "blots out" or "wipes away" sins (e.g., Ps 51:1, Isa 43:25), signifying that they are remembered no more. Here, the prayer is for the opposite—that these ancestral sins be definitively not wiped away, implying no forgiveness or absolution for these past deeds concerning the target of the curse, so their guilt and consequences would continue to cling to him.

Words-Group Analysis:

• "Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered... and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out": This pairing of phrases powerfully emphasizes the comprehensiveness and severity of the judgment sought. By mentioning both paternal and maternal lines, the psalmist seeks to leave no avenue for mercy or forgotten past on behalf of the enemy. The twin request that sins be "remembered" (for judgment) and "not blotted out" (meaning unforgiven) is a forceful articulation of a desire for unmitigated divine justice. It leverages the concept of generational consequence (found in scriptures like Exod 20:5, Num 14:18) where the patterns or unpunished deeds of ancestors can affect subsequent generations, not necessarily inheriting the personal guilt, but experiencing the societal, spiritual, or judicial consequences.

Psalm 109 14 Bonus section

The concept of "remembering" sin or iniquity in the Bible often carries a forensic, judicial sense, where God's "remembrance" triggers a divine response, either blessing or judgment. In Psalm 109:14, the absence of forgiveness for the "fathers" and "mother" suggests that the unblotted ledger of their deeds is meant to accrue a greater judgment upon the current oppressor. While the New Testament emphasizes individual accountability and Jesus's call to love enemies, these imprecatory psalms reveal a raw, honest expression of human suffering under injustice and a firm trust in God's absolute sovereignty and justice, allowing the believer to vent their anguish and submit the desire for retribution to God, who alone possesses perfect knowledge and right judgment. These prayers are petitions for justice, recognizing God as the ultimate avenger, rather than an instruction for believers to seek personal vengeance.

Psalm 109 14 Commentary

Psalm 109:14 expresses the psalmist's profound distress and desire for God's ultimate justice against a wicked adversary. It's a striking plea because it extends beyond the individual's direct actions to encompass the unresolved "iniquity" and "sin" of their ancestral lines, seeking that these past transgressions be actively brought to God's judicial mind and pointedly not be forgiven or overlooked. This does not imply an inheritance of personal spiritual guilt, but rather reflects the biblical understanding of corporate solidarity and generational consequences, where the legacy of unrighteousness or unpunished deeds within a family line could accumulate and contribute to the reckoning of the present generation. The psalmist effectively asks God to scour the entire record of the enemy's lineage, leaving no ground for leniency, mirroring the thoroughness of God's perfect justice which knows no limitations of time or family relation in its memory and judgment. This contrasts sharply with God's mercy where He chooses to remember sins no more (Isa 43:25), highlighting the psalmist's deep-seated cry for a divine judgment untempered by mercy for this particular enemy. The passage exemplifies the human cry for God to right grievous wrongs, leaving the matter of vengeance solely in God's hands.