Deflecting Concern of God's Children over Generational Curses
To buttress their stance on generational curses, Christians of certain persuasions have inter alia sought support from the NIV translation of Exodus 20:5 (which, being placed among the 10 Commandments, raises the eye-brows of many a reader): “… punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation …” (hereafter referred to as version 1). Believers who find version 1 difficult to explicate should fall back on traditional Bible translations (such as KJV, RSV and ASV) and read instead the corresponding text for this otherwise-perplexing verse (which is replicated in Deuteronomy 5:9 amidst Moses’ recollections): “… visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generation …” (hereafter referred to as version 2). In view of the imperative to distinguish between these two versions, the first action item for the present discussion agenda is to mull over the following observations: ● The text “visiting