Where did "Curses" originate?
Where do curses come from?
Reprinted by permission, Dr. Roger Sapp of All Nations Ministries, all rights reserved.
Are You Cursed or Blessed?
God speaks through Two Old Testament prophets, Ezekiel and Jeremiah, against the idea of generational curses.
Biblical facts concerning curses:
1.There is not a single example anywhere in the Bible of someone breaking a curse in any way. There are no examples of someone attempting to break a curse either. This idea is found many times in witchcraft and in many movies, but it is not found in the Bible.
2. The Bible does not contain the phrase "breaking a curse" or any similar phrase that would indicate that curses can be broken.
3. Christ does not teach or demonstrate the need for breaking curses anywhere in the Gospels. Christ simply ministers healing and casts out demons without this kind of preparation. This is what the disciples knew that perhaps we don’t know.
4. The 12 apostles, the apostle Paul and the other writers of the New Testament do not teach or demonstrate the need to break curses. They simply minister healing and deliverance to people without this kind of preparation.
5. The New Testament consistently teaches that believers are blessed and does not even hint that they are cursed in any way.
6. When we survey every verse in the New Testament that uses a form of the word "curse", not a single verse even hints that Christians might have a problem with curses.
7. Galatians 3:13-14 is the only passage that remotely connects Christ’s sacrifice with curses. This passage says nothing about breaking curses and is speaking specifically about the curse of the Law of Moses that was spoken by God. There is nothing in this passage or any other about breaking the so-called curses that people might speak.
A Short History of the Curses Teaching. How did we get to teaching about breaking curses? British teacher, the late Derek Prince, revived a Dark Age superstition in the mid-80’s, and it was introduced through widespread public teaching, media and a popular book. Many others were influenced and began teaching it as well.
While Prince's teaching was often excellent, he did make serious mistakes in theology and practice. Prince was a primary leader of the 1970’s authoritarian Shepherding Movement. Thousands were harmed by this movement. The influence of this movement still remains throughout the Church, and tens of thousands of today’s American Christians have embraced the authoritarian ideas that Prince and the four other leaders taught. To his credit, Derek Prince was the first of these leaders to depart from the Shepherding Movement. It is unfortunate that he did not speak against the abuses of this movement at the time.
Derek Prince’s unhealthy teaching on curses is now supported by isolated verses mainly from the Old Testament and by relating positive experiences of "breaking curses." The Law of Moses does not apply to Christians in any way, and spiritual experiences are easily misinterpreted. Breaking curses cannot be taught in a direct way from the New Testament. The ideas behind this teaching are simply not present in the New Testament.
What about positive experiences of breaking curses? Unfortunately, it has been proven that most people are highly suggestible. Most people will have positive experiences doing things that have no real value and then will assume that what they did made the difference. This reality of human nature has been called "the placebo effect." Recent research has shown remarkable and measurable health improvement in 30-40% of patients when they were deceived into thinking that they were taking acupuncture or a new miracle drug when they were getting no treatment at all. Therefore, it is important to evaluate teaching and practice from the New Testament scriptures, not through experience.
The Generational Curses Idea from a Phrase in the Law of Moses. The primary idea supporting generational curses is taken from the Law of Moses without sharing what the rest of the passage actually says. It is certainly a key phrase in the "Generational Curses" teaching. Often people will quote it by saying:
…visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations…
When these same people are queried about where this phrase is located in the Bible, they will often fail to identify it as being from the passage often called "The Ten Commandments" found in the Law of Moses. These are the first and second commandments in that passage:
Then God spoke all these words, saying, "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments." (Exodus 20:1-6)
What specific iniquity is God speaking about? Idolatry. This so-called curse is not attached to other kinds of sin.
Whose descendants is God going to visit iniquity upon? God is going to punish those Jews living under the Law of Moses who practice idolatry and who hate God. No one else is being punished.
How will this so-called curse work out? Those Jewish idolaters, who hate God, will have children who also practice idolatry and will hate God. This so-called curse does not affect anyone else involved in other sins.
Five Important Points to Consider About this Passage
1. No sincere Christian today should be living under the Law of Moses. They should be living by grace in Jesus Christ in the New Covenant, not the Law of Moses.
2. No sincere Christian is making idols and practicing idolatry. The passage does not allow Christian spiritualization and reinterpretation of the sin of idolatry. It is speaking literally about making and worshiping physical idols.
3. No real Christian hates God. These ideas are mutually exclusive. You can’t be a follower of Christ and hate God at the same time. This passage does not apply to practicing Christians in any way.
4. This passage also says that God is "showing lovingkindness to thousands" who love and serve Him, and who are living under the Law of Moses. This is much more true for New Covenant believers.
5. This passage does not say that this so-called generational curse can be broken. This passage does not use the word "curse" either. Only repentance from idolatry would change God’s mind. This passage does not offer the solution of breaking this so-called curse. In fact, there is simply no reference in the entire Bible of someone breaking a curse.
Two Prophets Correct this Misunderstanding. Even the people living under the Law misunderstood this idea of God cursing, punishing, or judging the next generation for the sins of the previous generation. Apparently, the erroneous idea of a generational curse was even being taught to Jews living under the Law.
God corrects this erroneous idea through the prophet Ezekiel. There are three generations spoken of in this passage. Ezekiel wrote:
Then the word of the LORD came to me saying, "What do you mean by using this proverb concerning the land of Israel saying, “The fathers eat the sour grapes, but the children's teeth are set on edge?” As I live, declares the Lord GOD, you are surely not going to use this proverb in Israel anymore. Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins will die. (Ezekiel 18:1-4)
Jews in Ezekiel's day were also teaching the false idea of God punishing succeeding generations for the sins of their parents. God quotes back to them a common proverb that relates the false idea that the children are being affected by the sins of their fathers. God tells them to quit saying this proverb.
God says that He will judge each soul for its own sins. We remind the reader that the New Testament reveals something so much better than this. We are forgiven completely because of Christ’s sacrifice for us. The passage continues with God’s illustration of individual responsibility by describing the first generation in three generations. The Lord God says:
...if a man is righteous, and practices justice and righteousness ... if he walks in My statutes and My ordinances so as to deal faithfully -- he is righteous and will surely live, declares the Lord GOD. (Ezekiel 18:5-9 a long list of righteous acts has been edited for brevity)
The first generation is a righteous man living under the Law of Moses. (Of course, Christians are declared righteous on the basis of what Christ has done for them.) This man is declared righteous under the Law of Moses by what he does and does not do according to the statutes and ordinances in the Law of Moses. He is not judged or cursed by God because of what his parents have done. Then God describes the second generation by saying:
Then he may have a violent son who sheds blood, and who does any of these things to a brother (though he himself did not do any of these things)… will he live? He will not live! He has committed all these abominations, he will surely be put to death; his blood will be on his own head. (Ezekiel 18:10 -13 a long list of unrighteous acts has been edited for brevity)
God makes the same point again. The righteous father does not convey any righteousness to his son. The wicked son will be judged on his own merit as the righteous father was judged on his own merit. God does not hold anyone else responsible for the sins of others. God does not punish succeeding generations for the sins of parents. There is no generational curse being passed down. The key phrase in the Ten Commandments has been misunderstood by these Jews and applied wrongly to everyone when it should only be applied to Jewish idolaters. The passage now speaks to the third generation.
Now behold, he has a son who has observed all his father's sins which he committed, and observing does not do likewise … but executes My ordinances, and walks in My statutes; he will not die for his father's iniquity, he will surely live. (Ezekiel 18:14 -17--a long list of righteous acts has been edited for brevity)
The wicked father has a righteous son. Once again God makes the same point. He will not punish the righteous son for the sins of the wicked father. There is no generational curse being passed down. God is not holding the righteous son responsible for the sins of his wicked father. The next verse reemphasizes that God will hold each individual responsible for his own sins. God speaks about the wicked father again.
As for his father, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother, and did what was not good among his people, behold, he will die for his iniquity. (Ezekiel 18:18)
God is strongly refuting the idea that He would - in any way - hold righteous children responsible for the sins of their unrighteous fathers. This was true even under the Law of Moses, despite the fact that the key phrase that is often quoted by those Christians breaking curses is found in the Law of Moses. This is much more true today in the New Covenant. The idea that a generational punishment in the form of a curse is being passed down to those who are righteous is refuted by God Himself in the above passage. It was not happening to the Jews living under the Law. They were misinterpreting their experience and subtly blaming God for causing them to sin. Many who have accepted this teaching today are doing the same thing.
The Second Witness. There is a second witness in the prophets that God is not cursing, judging or punishing succeeding generations for the sins of fathers. Jeremiah the prophet speaks for the LORD about this matter. Jeremiah also gives us important information about the New Covenant in this passage.
This passage is lengthy so it will be shared a few verses at a time. God says through Jeremiah:
In those days they will not say again, “The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge.” But everyone will die for his own iniquity; each man who eats the sour grapes, his teeth will be set on edge. (Jeremiah 31:29 -30)
God corrects the same idea expressed by the same wrong proverb. God says that He is not cursing, judging or punishing anyone for the sins of their parents. Everyone is responsible for their own behavior. This was true in the Old Covenant, the Law of Moses, but is also true in the New Covenant.
The LORD continues to speak through the prophet by predicting the New Covenant in the next verses:
Behold, days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them, declares the LORD. (Jeremiah 31:31-32)
The LORD says that the New Covenant is "not like" the Old Covenant. Those who wish to impose portions of the Law on Christians today should take notice of this fact. The LORD also tells us that the Children of Israel broke that covenant. God describes Himself as a husband to those in this first covenant, clearly implying that Israel was like an unfaithful wife. The LORD then describes how the New Covenant will be different than the Old Covenant.
But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD, I will put My law within them, and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. (Jeremiah 31:33)
The Old Covenant had laws written on stone tablets. In the New Covenant, the law will be written on the hearts of people. The Old Covenant had law imposed upon people from the outside. Old Covenant Law was external only. Those who partake of the New Covenant will have a new internal nature and will have God's law written on their hearts. They will not need to obey external divine laws as their changed heart will lead them to do the right thing in God's sight.
God also states that He will be their God and they will be His people. Since the same thing could be said of the children of Israel, this implies a new and much more intimate relationship with God than those who experienced the Old Covenant. The next part of God's description of the New Covenant seems to validate the idea of new and profound intimacy with God. God says:
And they shall not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, “Know the LORD,” for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, declares the LORD, for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more." (Jeremiah 31:34)
Those living in the Old Covenant knew God only through leaders such as righteous kings, prophets, and the priests. There were very few exceptions to this. These ordinary Jews needed to be taught by these leaders about God. In other words, the vast majority of the children of Israel did not know God personally. In contrast, the youngest, the poorest, the most sinful participant in the New Covenant can have an intimate, personal relationship with God Himself because of what Christ has done.
This passage also says that God will forgive iniquity and remember sins no more. This is extremely important for our discussion about so-called generational curses. Those who have properly received Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord have had their sins forgiven and forgotten by God. How can there be a generational curse affecting those whose sins are forgiven and forgotten?
A generational curse would require God to remember the sins of a parent when he has forgotten the sins of the person himself. This is highly contradictory and illogical. This false teaching would have God forgive and forget our sins but would remember and curse us with the sins of our fathers. This cannot be true. It makes God double-minded. This makes God schizophrenic. This teaching is a heresy that contradicts the truth of forgiveness of sins and undermines our faith in Christ’s work for us at the cross.
The Generational Repetition of Sins. Some have noted that certain families experience repetition of certain obvious sins and problems. This repetition is not obvious in every family but nevertheless is true of all families. Why is there a repetition of sins generation after generation?
We inherit from our parents a fallen nature that is much like our parent's fallen nature. This is called Original Sin. There is a widespread failure in our day to teach Christians about Original Sin. Original Sin is the sinful, fallen nature of Adam and Eve being passed down to all humanity from generation to generation. It is not a curse but a fallen nature that is being passed down.
God did not curse Adam and Eve or their descendants. He specifically cursed only the ground and the serpent. (Genesis 3:14, 17). God told Eve that He would multiply her pain in childbirth, but the word "curse" is not used in reference to Eve. God told Adam that the ground would be cursed because of his actions and that it would now require toil to produce food.
The capacity to reproduce the sins of our parents is found in the fallen nature of all humanity. We all inherit a sinful nature from our parents who inherited it from their parents. This sinful nature, the adamic nature, is not a curse that can be broken in prayer, and every individual and every family experiences it.
The answer for Original Sin, the adamic nature, is found in Romans Chapter 6. We are to reckon ourselves "dead" to sin by identification with Christ on the cross. We are to "crucify" the fallen nature. The New Covenant gives us the wonderful gift of a new nature. We should not try to fix the fallen adamic nature but to live in an entirely new nature made in the image of Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit.
We observe Original Sin in people as they reproduce the sins and other characteristics of their parents. Original sin, the adamic nature, is often enflamed by demonic activity occurring in families, generation after generation, as well. Everyone experiences this in some degree and not just a few that have very visible and obvious problems reoccurring. Reoccurring problems and sins are not evidence of a curse but evidence of an inherited fallen adamic nature and the work of familiar spirits.
Defining a Curse. The definition of “curse” in this teaching is very imprecise. Most things being called curses today do not match the actual biblical meaning of the word "curse." There seem to be two basic kinds of curses revealed in the Bible: Divine and human. Here is the definition of a divine curse that seems more in line with Scripture.
A divine curse is the intentional verbal invocation by God that has supernatural power and potential to cause harm.
All of these divine curses are found in Old Testament. Most are found in the Law of Moses and apply only to those Jews living under the Law of Moses. There is no biblical evidence that any of these curses can be broken for those living under the Law.
Those living under the Law simply must repent and become obedient to the Law of Moses in order to deal with a divine curse. None of these curses apply to Christians living under grace. None of them are found in the New Testament. The New Testament only speaks of God’s children being blessed. God is not schizophrenic. He is not cursing His forgiven children.
What about human curses? Here is a definition of a human curse that seems more in line with Scripture.
A human curse is the intentional verbal invocation of God or a false deity to cause harm.
A curse in the Bible is always intentional. It is clear that if God speaks a curse, it is never accidental or without forethought. This is true of human beings as well. If a human person speaks a curse, it is the purposeful invocation of a spiritual power, a deity, to cause harm to an individual, organization or object. It can never be accidental or unintentional and still be a curse. Therefore, a number of things that are often called curses today are not really curses because they are not intentional or they don’t call upon a deity to cause harm.
Here are some things are often called "curses" today that are not curses:
Bad confessions. Saying something negative about yourself or someone else is not a curse unless you are intentionally asking God to harm you or another person. A bad confession may be a reflection of a negative self-image that needs to be changed but does not supernaturally empower a deity (or the devil) to harm you. Certainly our Father would not enforce a bad confession against His forgiven children.
Negative words over a child or a subordinate. A parent or authority figure speaking negative words over a child or an adult is not a curse in a biblical sense. This kind of speaking may cause psychological harm to a child but does not contain the intentional invocation of a spiritual power. Hurtful words spoken - without premeditation - in frustration or anger are not generally intended to harm either. There is no doubt that these things are harmful psychologically but do not empower a deity to bring about supernatural harm.
What about things that are curses in a biblical sense? What if someone intentionally calls on a deity to harm us? God is not going to empower a curse against those whom He has blessed. Some are teaching that the devil empowers the curses of people. However, Scripture does not teach this idea. God is the power behind curses in the Old Testament.
The curse of any being, human or angelic, cannot undo the Father’s blessing on believers because of what Christ has done. However, if the person believes in curses, then fear and unbelief can affect their appropriation of blessing from God. If the Christian believes in the curse more than God’s grace in Christ, then he or she departs from faith in Christ. It is not the curse that impacts the person but the fear and unbelief that impacts the believer as he ceases to believe in Christ’s protective power.
God’s blessing is not fragile. It has powerful substance. However, God's blessing is received and maintained by faith in Christ. The one who maintains his faith in Christ’s total and absolute victory is completely unaffected by the curses of other human beings.
The "breaking curses" teaching creates fear of things that should not be feared and undermines faith in the victory of the cross of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul declares:
Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. (Ephesians 6:10-11)
The "breaking curses" teaching is one of the devil’s schemes to undermine your faith in Christ and His New Covenant blessings and to get you to embrace the Old Covenant Law of Moses and its curses.
For those who need to study this false teaching about curses more thoroughly, Roger Sapp’s book “What About Curses?” reviews every passage in the New Testament that mentions curses and discusses the problem of applying the curses in the Law of Moses to Christian believers. It can be obtained from our secure website: https://allnationsmin.org/
The Holy Bible is God's Written Word for Instruction in Righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16.)