Ezekiel 18:1-32
The Soul Who Sins Will Die
1 The word of the LORD came to me: 2 "What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel:
" 'The fathers eat sour grapes,
and the children's teeth are set on edge'?
3 "As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel. 4 For every living soul belongs to me, the father as well as the son—both alike belong to me. The soul who sins is the one who will die.
5 "Suppose there is a righteous man
who does what is just and right.
6 He does not eat at the mountain shrines
or look to the idols of the house of Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor's wife
or lie with a woman during her period.
7 He does not oppress anyone,
but returns what he took in pledge for a loan.
He does not commit robbery
but gives his food to the hungry
and provides clothing for the naked.
8 He does not lend at usury
or take excessive interest.
He withholds his hand from doing wrong
and judges fairly between man and man.
9 He follows my decrees
and faithfully keeps my laws.
That man is righteous;
he will surely live,
declares the Sovereign LORD.
10 "Suppose he has a violent son, who sheds blood or does any of these other things 11 (though the father has done none of them):
"He eats at the mountain shrines.
He defiles his neighbor's wife.
12 He oppresses the poor and needy.
He commits robbery.
He does not return what he took in pledge.
He looks to the idols.
He does detestable things.
13 He lends at usury and takes excessive interest.
Will such a man live? He will not! Because he has done all these detestable things, he will surely be put to death and his blood will be on his own head.
14 "But suppose this son has a son who sees all the sins his father commits, and though he sees them, he does not do such things:
15 "He does not eat at the mountain shrines
or look to the idols of the house of Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor's wife.
16 He does not oppress anyone
or require a pledge for a loan.
He does not commit robbery
but gives his food to the hungry
and provides clothing for the naked.
17 He withholds his hand from sin
and takes no usury or excessive interest.
He keeps my laws and follows my decrees.
He will not die for his father's sin; he will surely live. 18 But his father will die for his own sin, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother and did what was wrong among his people.
19 "Yet you ask, 'Why does the son not share the guilt of his father?' Since the son has done what is just and right and has been careful to keep all my decrees, he will surely live. 20 The soul who sins is the one who will die. The son will not share the guilt of the father, nor will the father share the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous man will be credited to him, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against him.
21 "But if a wicked man turns away from all the sins he has committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die. 22 None of the offenses he has committed will be remembered against him. Because of the righteous things he has done, he will live. 23 Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign LORD. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?
24 "But if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits sin and does the same detestable things the wicked man does, will he live? None of the righteous things he has done will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness he is guilty of and because of the sins he has committed, he will die.
25 "Yet you say, 'The way of the Lord is not just.' Hear, O house of Israel: Is my way unjust? Is it not your ways that are unjust? 26 If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits sin, he will die for it; because of the sin he has committed he will die. 27 But if a wicked man turns away from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he will save his life. 28 Because he considers all the offenses he has committed and turns away from them, he will surely live; he will not die. 29 Yet the house of Israel says, 'The way of the Lord is not just.' Are my ways unjust, O house of Israel? Is it not your ways that are unjust?
30 "Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each one according to his ways, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. 31 Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? 32 For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!
The prophet Ezekiel teaches us about sin...If and when we sin, we must repent...The prophet teaches us that we as individuals are not responsible for our father's or parent's sin...In the second commandment of the Ten Commandments, God tells us that He is a jealous God and He will punish the children for the sin of the father to the third and fourth generation (Exodus 20:5)...Ezekiel reminds us that we are responsible for our individual sins...God is telling us through Ezekiel, we have no excuse to avoid any personal responsibility and blaming our parents for our sins...The son will not share the guilt of the father, nor will the father share the guilt of the son...The righteousness of the righteous man will be credited to him, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against him...
Ezekiel's teaching is similar to the Parable of the Lost Son that Jesus teaches...I think Jesus, in some small part, may be explaining Ezekiel's writings of chapter eighteen...In Jesus' Parable of the Lost Son, the lost son leaves with one half of his father's estate, spends it, wastes it, on a sinning life...The other son stays with his father and works with his father, and is still with his father when the lost son comes home...The father forgives the lost son, but the son who has stayed with his father cannot forgive his brother...His father loves that his lost son was lost (as well as his other son), but now the lost son understands and now he is found...The father wants the fattened calf killed, so they may celebrate the return of his lost son...The other son cannot get over his brother spending his father and family's money, wasting the money, spent it on a sinful life, and now wants to be and is forgiven...His father has forgiven him in his heart as soon as he sees the lost son's repentance from afar...The other son cannot forgive...
The righteousness of the righteous man will be credited to him, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against him...But if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits sin and does the same detestable things the wicked man does, will he live?...None of the righteous things he has done will be remembered...Because of the unfaithfulness he is guilty of and because of the sins he has committed, he will die...
If a wicked man turns away from his sins he has committed and keeps My decrees and does what is just and right, he will surely live...If a wicked man turns away from his wickedness, he has committed and does what is just and right , he will save his life...The LORD will judge us, each according to his ways...We must turn away from our sins, so sin will not be our downfall...We must rid ourselves of our offenses we have committed...We must get a new heart and a new spirit...And when we do, we are reborn...When He sees this, He forgives us at that very moment that repentance is in our heart...We, too, must learn forgiveness as a part of our lives...
God wants us to believe in Him and His Son, do good deeds, be repented, and reconciled to Him in the end...Our free will allows us to make our daily choices, and how and what we choose to do affects our eternal life...Let us pray for a new heart and a new spirit, and to repent, if we have any ways like the lost son (who repented and received, a new heart and spirit)...The choices we make are how we will be judged...Like the son, who thought he was righteous, we are not to judge, because we are not the Judge...The LORD will judge us perfectly in the end...