The Meaning of Psalms 109:14 Explained

Psalms 109:14

KJV: Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the LORD; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.

YLT: The iniquity of his fathers Is remembered unto Jehovah, And the sin of his mother is not blotted out.

Darby: Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with Jehovah, and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out;

ASV: Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with Jehovah; And let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Let the iniquity  of his fathers  be remembered  with the LORD;  and let not the sin  of his mother  be blotted out. 

What does Psalms 109:14 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 109:1-16 - The Persecutor Of The Needy
This psalm is like a patch of the Sahara amid a smiling Eden. But, terrible as the words are, remember that they were written by the man who, on two occasions, spared the life of his persecutor, and who, when the field of Gilboa was wet with Saul's life-blood, sang the loveliest of elegiacs to his memory. These maledictions do not express personal vindictiveness. Probably they should be read as depicting the doom of the wrong-doer. The Apostle, quoting this psalm, expressly says that the Spirit of Inspiration spoke before by the mouth of David, Acts 1:16. The imperative let might better be translated by the future shall. This would be in perfect conformity with Hebrew usage.
Notice in Psalms 109:4 that by omitting the three words in italics, a beautiful suggestion is made of the life of prayer: But I-prayer. The only response of the psalmist to the hatred of his enemies was to give himself more absolutely to prayer. His whole being was consumed in the one intense appeal to God. Such times come to us all. Such prayers always end in praise and thanksgiving, Psalms 109:30. Happy are we who also can count on the Advocate with the Father, Psalms 109:31. Jesus prays our prayers with us. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 109

1  David complains of his slanderous enemies
16  He shows their sin
21  Complaining of his own misery, he prays for help
29  He promises thankfulness

What do the individual words in Psalms 109:14 mean?

Let be remembered the iniquity of his fathers before Yahweh and the sin of his mother not let be blotted out
יִזָּכֵ֤ר ׀ עֲוֺ֣ן אֲ֭בֹתָיו אֶל־ יְהוָ֑ה וְחַטַּ֥את אִ֝מּ֗וֹ אַל־ תִּמָּֽח

יִזָּכֵ֤ר ׀  Let  be  remembered 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: זָכַר 
Sense: to remember, recall, call to mind.
עֲוֺ֣ן  the  iniquity 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct
Root: עָוֹן  
Sense: perversity, depravity, iniquity, guilt or punishment of iniquity.
אֲ֭בֹתָיו  of  his  fathers 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אָב  
Sense: father of an individual.
אֶל־  before 
Parse: Preposition
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
יְהוָ֑ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וְחַטַּ֥את  and  the  sin 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: חַטָּאָה 
Sense: sin, sinful.
אִ֝מּ֗וֹ  of  his  mother 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אֵם  
Sense: mother.
תִּמָּֽח  let  be  blotted  out 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Imperfect Jussive, third person feminine singular
Root: מָחָא 
Sense: to wipe, wipe out.