This verse demonstrates the serious weight of generational iniquity and God’s righteous response to such sin.
David invokes strong and vivid imagery when he proclaims, “Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, And do not let the sin of his mother be blotted out.” (v.14) In this portion of the psalm, he calls upon God to keep the wrongdoing of those who have persisted in evil ever-present, unwilling for their sins to be cleared away. The language reflects the depth of David’s distress and the seriousness with which he views entrenched injustices, possibly referring back to passages where the sins of the fathers have lasting impacts on future generations (Exodus 20:5).
This appeal for remembering transgressions is part of a broader plea, found throughout Psalm 109, where David cries out to God as the ultimate arbiter of justice. By saying, “Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered,” (v.14) he emphasizes that the sins of those who preceded the wrongdoer do not simply vanish if the offender continues in an unrepentant path. Here, David underscores the biblical truth that unconfessed sin has a way of lingering, and that God’s justice can be both restorative and, when necessary, corrective.
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Psalms 109:14 meaning
David invokes strong and vivid imagery when he proclaims, “Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, And do not let the sin of his mother be blotted out.” (v.14) In this portion of the psalm, he calls upon God to keep the wrongdoing of those who have persisted in evil ever-present, unwilling for their sins to be cleared away. The language reflects the depth of David’s distress and the seriousness with which he views entrenched injustices, possibly referring back to passages where the sins of the fathers have lasting impacts on future generations (Exodus 20:5).
This appeal for remembering transgressions is part of a broader plea, found throughout Psalm 109, where David cries out to God as the ultimate arbiter of justice. By saying, “Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered,” (v.14) he emphasizes that the sins of those who preceded the wrongdoer do not simply vanish if the offender continues in an unrepentant path. Here, David underscores the biblical truth that unconfessed sin has a way of lingering, and that God’s justice can be both restorative and, when necessary, corrective.