Good Question! Punishment on Future Generations

I have an occasional (very occasional!) segment on this blog called “Good Question!” where I take a stab at questions people send me. (Click the “Good Question” label at the bottom of this post to see previous entries in the series—or just click here.)

Here’s one from one of our Sunday School teachers:

Pastor,

Last Sunday the question was asked about the Lord's statement that he would punish the sins of the Israelites on future generations.  Here is the scripture

Deuteronomy 5:6-10 (NIV), ⁶ “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. ⁷ “You shall have no other gods before me. ⁸ “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. ⁹ You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, ¹⁰ but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

I have searched my limited Commentaries and can find no help with the idea that God punishes several generations for the sin of one generation.

I know you are very busy, and I am in no big rush for a response. When a class member raises a question, I try to find a good answer, but I hit a wall on this one.

Thank you for your help.

Jim

 

Here was my answer to him, which he gave me permission to share at this weblog:

I have always understood it as the inevitable consequences of sin. We’ve certainly seen the consequences upon children and grandchildren from a father who ruined the family name and/or fortune. In other words, it’s not that God holds subsequent generations liable for what a certain generation does, but that the consequences can’t help but last long beyond one’s proverbial 3 score and 10 years.

I’m convinced that the Babylonian Exile lurks like a shadow behind the vast majority of the Old Testament, and I fully expect Deut 5 was a preemptory warning regarding that Exile. And, in fact, it was into the 3^rd and 4^th generation that the Exile endured, all because of the rebellion of the unfaithful kings and their subjects.

What’s beautiful about the passage, though, is how disproportionate it is. While the consequences of faithlessness extends to the third and fourth generation, the consequences of faithfulness shines down through a thousand!

Thanks, Jim, for asking your question—and for letting me post our exchange on “Get Anchored.”

Agree? Disagree? Comment on the “Get Anchored” Facebook Page. And send me your own questions for a “Good Question” entry.