Question:  Dear Greg,

            Please enlighten me regarding “generational curses” in the biblical context.

            Thank you and God bless,

            David

Answer:  Dear David,

            The term “generational curse” has no biblical context.  It has context in the light of teachings that are extra-biblical and owe their foundation to humanly derived religion, sometimes even primitive religions at that.  Some Christians use this idea in their ministry or public proclamation, but they do not do so under the authority and direction of the Bible but rather their own ideas that are imposed upon the Bible.

            The general idea that some preach is that families and individuals are cursed and that they are held responsible or to blame for sins of previous generations.  In some cases the teaching attributes these penalties for generational behavior and sin to God, at other times to the devil.  Once having convinced others that there is a need or a problem, those advocating “generational curses” teach a variety of methods and panaceas, some of them closer to witchcraft than Christianity.

            As with many flawed teachings, there is some truth and basis in fact to this spurious idea based upon scientifically proven studies that demonstrate genetic predispositions.  There are many issues we all face because of weaknesses, diseases and sins experienced and perpetrated by previous generations in our gene pools.  But to extrapolate “generational curses” from scientific data is torturing scripture and trying to impose an agenda upon it.  Another danger is that it can warp one’s perception of the one true God of the Bible as well as frightening individuals as to the extent of the power given and allowed by God to the devil.

            In Christ,

            Greg Albrecht