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UST by section EZE 18:1

⌂ ← EZE 18:1–18:32 → ║ ═ ©

Ezekiel 18

18 Then Yahweh gave me another message. He said, 2 “What do you people mean when you quote this proverb about the land of Israel? You say,

‘The parents ate sour grapes,

but it was their children who got the sour taste in their mouths.’

3 I swear by myself that you, Israelite people, will no longer quote that proverb in Israel. That is what I, the Sovereign Yahweh, declare! 4 Pay attention! All lives are mine—parents and their children alike. It is the person who sins who will die.

5 Suppose there is a virtuous, honest person

who does what is just and honest.

6 He does not eat meat that people have sacrificed to ritual statues at the shrines on Israel’s hilltops,

nor does he pray to the idols that the Israelite people worship.

He does not defile another man

’s wife, nor does he have sexual relations with a woman during her monthly period of menstruation.

7 He does not extort anyone.

When he borrows money from someone and the person gives him something as collateral for repayment,

he gives that item back to the lender.

He does not steal from anyone.

Instead, he gives his food to hungry people

and gives his clothing to people who have no clothes.

8 When he lends someone money,

he does not charge interest

or engage in usury.

He refuses to do what is immoral or corrupt.

Instead, he judges honestly between one person and another.

9 He carefully acts according to my regulations

and lives faithfully by heeding my norms.

In this case, people should consider this person righteous.

He will surely continue to live!

That is what I, the Sovereign Yahweh, declare.

10 But suppose that such a virtuous and honest man has a violent son, who murders people. Then that son does any of these evil things to other people—11 all the things that his father never did:

He eats meat that people have sacrificed to ritual statues at the shrines on Israel’s hilltops;

he defiles another man’s wife.

12 He extorts people who are poor and helpless.

He steals from people,

and, when he borrows money from someone and the person gives him something as collateral for repayment,

he refuses to return that item to the lender.

He prays to the idols that the Israelite people worship

and commits other disgusting and illicit things.

13 When he lends someone money, he charges

interest and engages in usury.

Such a person will surely not go on living!

Because he has done all these disgusting and illicit things,

people must execute him

and hold him responsible for his own death.

14 But pay attention! Suppose that such a violent man has a son who witnesses all the sins that his father commits, considers them, but does not do such things.

15 He does not eat meat that people have sacrificed to ritual statues at the shrines on Israel’s hilltops,

nor does he pray to the idols that the Israelite people worship.

He does not defile another man’s wife;

16 He does not extort anyone.

When he borrows money from someone and the person gives him something as collateral for repayment

, he gives that item back to the lender.

He does not steal from anyone.

Instead, he gives his food to hungry people

and gives his clothing to people who have no clothes.

17 He refuses to do what is immoral or corrupt.

When he lends someone money, he does

not charge interest or engage in usury.

He lives in a way that heeds my norms

and carefully acts according to my regulations.

In this case, such a person will not die because of his father’s sins;

he will surely go on living!

18 But as for his father, pay attention! He will die because of his own depraved behavior. After all, he extorted people, stole from his relatives, and generally did what is wrong among his people.

19 But you retort, ‘Why would the virtuous son not suffer for the wrong that his father did?’ I answer: The son has done what is just and honest and has carefully lived his life according to all my regulations. For this reason, he will surely go on living! 20 The person who sins is the one who will die. A son will not suffer what his father’s corrupt actions deserve, nor will a father suffer what his son’s corrupt actions deserve. Righteous people will enjoy the consequences of their righteous behavior, and wicked people will suffer the inevitable outcomes of their wicked behavior.

21 But suppose that a wicked person stops doing all the sinful things that he once did and begins to carefully live his life according to all my regulations and do what is just and honest. If this happens, this once-wicked person will surely go on living! I will not put him to death. 22 I, Yahweh, will not treat him according to any of the rebellious things that he once did. Instead, he will go on living because of the virtuous and honest things that he now does. 23 Indeed, I do not enjoy it when wicked people die. I do not want them to die! That is what I, the Sovereign Yahweh, declare. So, when they stop behaving wickedly, they will go on living. 24 But suppose a righteous person stops doing what is virtuous and honest and begins to behave corruptly and to do the same disgusting, illicit things that wicked people do. That once-righteous person will certainly not go on living! I will not treat him according to any of the righteous things that he once did. Instead, he will die because he has disloyally betrayed his promises to me and has committed many sins.

25 But you retort, ‘The Lord’s conduct is not fair!’ Listen to this, you Israelite people: It is not what I do that is unfair; rather, it is what you do that is unfair! 26 If a righteous person stops doing what is right and honest and commits sins, he will die because of the sins that he committed. 27 But if a wicked person stops doing wicked things and does what is just and honest, he will save his own life. 28 Because he witnessed all his sinful actions and stopped revolting against me, he will surely go on living; he will not die. 29 But you people of Israel say, ‘The Lord does not act fairly.’ You people of Israel, it is not my ways that are unfair; rather, it is your ways that are unfair.

30 Therefore, Israelite people, I, Yahweh, will judge each one of you according to what you have done. Repent, and stop all your rebellious behavior, so that your sins will not cause you to die! This is what I, the Sovereign Yahweh, declare! 31 Stop revolting against me. Remove your rebellious behavior as if it were garbage to throw away! Change the way you think and the way you live. Israelite people, there is no reason for you to die! 32 I do not enjoy it when any person must die! So repent so that you might live! This is what I, the Sovereign Yahweh, declare!”

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