For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly. O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man who trusts in You! — Psalm 84:10–12
It is noteworthy that the authors of this psalm are the sons of Korah, the descendants of the man who sought to lead a rebellion against the leadership of Moses as recorded in Numbers 16. This act of rebellion against the Godappointed leadership of Moses led to God causing the ground to open and swallow alive Korah and those who followed him (Num. 16:31–32). There are many who seek to detract from God’s love and mercy by claiming that the Old Testament portrays God as angry, vengeful, and unconcerned for His people. Yet here we have the descendants of a man who experienced God’s judgment directly proclaiming the greatness and goodness of the Lord. Their spirit of humility stands in direct contrast to the arrogance of their ancestor who had said to Moses, “Who made you the boss? I can do what you can do, and so can any of these other Israelite leaders gathered here.” Amazingly, years later the sons of Korah wrote of the privilege of being a doorkeeper in the house of God rather than dwelling in the tents of wickedness, perhaps a reference to their ancestor whose tents had been swallowed up.
This brings us to a great reality and also addresses a grave misconception that has been making its rounds in the church today: the issue of generational curses. The sons of Korah were not cursed for the actions of their ancestors, for that would be outside the covenant of God’s law. Deuteronomy 24:16 says, “Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall children be put to death for their fathers; a person shall be put to death for his own sin” (emphasis added). Korah’s descendants realized the error of their ancestor and fell in love with the wisdom and wonders of God demonstrated through His act of judgment.
So blessed child of God, do not get sold a bill of goods that makes you think you have to break some kind of ancestral curse on your family before you can move into the fullness of God’s plan and purpose for your life. The curse was broken on the cross of Jesus Christ, and no matter what happened in your family’s past, you are free to do what the descendants of Korah did: praise the Lord for His grace and mercy! No good thing will God withhold from those who walk uprightly, no matter what kind of knuckleheads their ancestors may have been. So praise the Lord today, for the curse of sin’s grasp on your life has been broken by the blood of Jesus Christ!
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