Even his enemy’s ancestors are included (verse 14). In the two lines of verse 14, be remembered and not … be blotted out are both ways of asking God not to forgive those people. For a similar use of the verb “blot out” in this sense, see 51.1d. Because of the mention of his mother in line b, some either change the Masoretic text his fathers in line a to “his father” (Oesterley), or else, like Dahood (also Biblia Dios Habla Hoy), take the Masoretic text his fathers to be a plural of excellence, meaning “his father.” It is recommended that the Masoretic text be followed, taking it in the sense of “his ancestors”; “his father” requires a textual footnote. New Jerusalem Bible, strangely enough, has the singular “his father’s iniquity” without textual footnote (similarly Biblia Dios Habla Hoy); Bible en français courant translates his fathers by “his father and his grandfather.”

In verse 15a them means the iniquity and the sin of verse 14a-b; to be before the LORD here means that the LORD is not to forget or forgive.

In verse 15b Good News Translation “they themselves” translates the Masoretic text and ancient versions “their memory”; here “memory” (as in 9.6) means what people remember about the fathers and the mother. Revised Standard Version prefers to follow one manuscript of the Septuagint that has the singular his memory, referring to the memory of the psalmist’s enemy (so Briggs, Oesterley). Be cut off translates the passive form of the verb “cut off,” which appears in two Hebrew manuscripts, the Septuagint, and Jerome; the Masoretic text has the active form “may he cut off,” that is, may Yahweh do it (the only difference between the two forms of the verb is in the vowels used). New Jerusalem Bible, New English Bible, New American Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, Bible de Jérusalem, Bible en français courant, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, New International Version, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy all follow the Masoretic text, which is probably to be preferred.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .