We have sinned like our fathers; we have done wrong and acted wickedly.
Parallel translations
- WEB We have sinned with our fathers. We have committed iniquity. We have done wickedly.
- KJV We have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.
- NKJV We have sinned with our fathers, We have committed iniquity, We have done wickedly.
- NASB ¶We have sinned like our fathers, We have gone astray, we have behaved wickedly.
- NLT Like our ancestors, we have sinned. We have done wrong! We have acted wickedly!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The psalmist confesses, 'We have sinned with our fathers; we have done wickedly.' It matters because honest confession of sin opens the way to mercy.
Overview
Here the psalm turns to corporate confession, identifying with the sins of past generations. This humble admission of guilt sets the tone for the whole psalm's recounting of rebellion. Such confession reflects the heart God seeks and points to the forgiveness offered through Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Neh 9:16But they and our fathers became arrogant and stiff-necked and did not obey Your commandments.
- Ps 78:8Then they will not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, whose heart was not loyal, whose spirit was not faithful to God.
- 1 Kgs 8:47and when they come to their senses in the land to which they were taken, and they repent and plead with You in the land of their captors, saying, ‘We have sinned and done wrong; we have acted wickedly,’
- Ezra 9:6–7and said: “O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, because our iniquities are higher than our heads, and our guilt has reached the heavens.
- Neh 9:32–34So now, our God, the great and mighty and awesome God who keeps His gracious covenant, do not view lightly all the hardship that has come upon us, and upon our kings and leaders, our priests and prophets, our ancestors and all Your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until today.
- Dan 9:5–8we have sinned and done wrong. We have acted wickedly and rebelled. We have turned away from Your commandments and ordinances.
- Lev 26:40But if they will confess their iniquity and that of their fathers in the unfaithfulness that they practiced against Me, by which they have also walked in hostility toward Me—
- Matt 23:32Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your fathers.
- Jer 3:25Let us lie down in our shame; let our disgrace cover us. We have sinned against the LORD our God, both we and our fathers; from our youth even to this day we have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God.”
- Neh 1:7We have behaved corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments, statutes, and ordinances that You gave Your servant Moses.
- Acts 7:51–52You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did.
- Num 32:14Now behold, you, a brood of sinners, have risen up in place of your fathers to further stoke the burning anger of the LORD against Israel.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 106:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.