The Sins of the Fathers

I have always been puzzled by such verses in scripture as:


Exodus 20:5: "...I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments."


Exodus 34:7: "...Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation."


This is repeated several times.  I have heard commentators and pastors try to explain these verses away, but I was never convinced, and it left me with an unsettled feeling about God's character.


Now, I am reading the book of Ezekiel in my daily devotions, and I was thrilled to find this yesterday:


Ezekiel 18;14 - 20:

¹⁴ "But suppose this son has a son who sees all the sins his father commits, and though he sees them, he does not do such things:

 ¹⁵ "He does not eat at the mountain shrines
       or look to the idols of the house of Israel.
       He does not defile his neighbor's wife.

 ¹⁶ He does not oppress anyone
       or require a pledge for a loan.
       He does not commit robbery
       but gives his food to the hungry
       and provides clothing for the naked.

 ¹⁷ He withholds his hand from sin ^[a]
       and takes no usury or excessive interest.
       He keeps my laws and follows my decrees.
      He will not die for his father's sin; he will surely live. ¹⁸ But his father will die for his own sin, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother and did what was wrong among his people.

 ¹⁹ "Yet you ask, 'Why does the son not share the guilt of his father?' Since the son has done what is just and right and has been careful to keep all my decrees, he will surely live. ²⁰ The soul who sins is the one who will die. The son will not share the guilt of the father, nor will the father share the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous man will be credited to him, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against him."

Now this makes sense!  This describes God's just judgement in the way that I understand it.  All those pastors and commentators were right all along, when they interpreted the previous verses to mean that our bad actions can have long-lasting and far-reaching consequences that affect many others, whether we chose to believe it or not. I praise God that he clears up the misconceptions and confusing ideas within the entirety of his word.  One more reason to continue daily study!