"God's Covenant is Forever!"

"I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant, Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah." (Psalms 89:3-4)
I heard a very interesting take on something yesterday, it's something that is highly misunderstood in the church, and I personally have heard to meant to be a curse upon children, grandchildren and even great-great-grandchildren. It was a message from Pastor Jon, and he was speaking about a well known verse that gets so twisted and distorted, Exodus 20:5, which says, "Thou not shalt bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me." It might be rather easy to confuse God's mercy with His judgment, especially when it comes to sins that have been handed down from generation to generation; but there is one thing we must not ever forget: God will choose mercy over judgment every time! The way Pastor Jon put it, in very simple words, is that God will continue to offer mercy to the descendants of those that hate Him, all the way to through the next generations. In fact, the way Jon put it, the third and fourth were not God's limit, but God's way of saying, "I will never give up offering mercy!" I have literally heard this Scripture used to show how future generations are cursed by the sins of their fathers; when it totally means the complete opposite! Oh, there are consequences for sin, and sin is handed down from generation to generation; but God knows how this works, and He continually offers mercy to break the chain! It is really quite simple, if you are willing to accept it: God offers mercy to everyone that will ask for it! I know it might sound as if judgment needs to be a part of the equation, but judgment was poured out at the cross! That was the whole point of Jesus saying, "It is finished!" Sin had been dealt with once and for all! From that moment on, the curse had been broken. The veil of the Temple had been ripped right down the middle, from the top to the bottom! Which means that God Himself had ripped it in two...
"The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. You will enlarge the nation of Israel, and its people will rejoice. They will rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest and like warriors dividing the plunder. For you will break the yoke of their slavery and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders. You will break the oppressor's rod, just as you did when you destroyed the army of Midian. The boots of the warrior and the uniforms bloodstained by war will all be burned. They will be fuel for the fire. For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the LORD of Heaven's Armies will make this happen!"
(Isaiah 9:2-7) NLT