Read Ezekiel 18
The One Who Sins Will Die
18 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel:
“‘The parents 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 everyone belongs to me, the parent as well as the child—both alike belong to me. The one 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 Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor’s wife
or have sexual relations 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 to them at interest
or take a profit from them.
He withholds his hand from doing wrong
and judges fairly between two parties.
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 interest and takes a profit.
Will such a man live? He will not! Because he has done all these detestable things, he is to be put to death; 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 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 mistreating the poor
and takes no interest or profit from them.
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 one who sins is the one who will die. The child will not share the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share the guilt of the child. The righteousness of the righteous will be credited to them, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against them.
21 “But if a wicked person turns away from all the sins they have committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, that person will surely live; they will not die. 22 None of the offenses they have committed will be remembered against them. Because of the righteous things they have done, they 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 person turns from their righteousness and commits sin and does the same detestable things the wicked person does, will they live? None of the righteous things that person has done will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness they are guilty of and because of the sins they have committed, they will die.
25 “Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear, you Israelites: Is my way unjust? Is it not your ways that are unjust? 26 If a righteous person turns from their righteousness and commits sin, they will die for it; because of the sin they have committed they will die. 27 But if a wicked person turns away from the wickedness they have committed and does what is just and right, they will save their life. 28 Because they consider all the offenses they have committed and turn away from them, that person will surely live; they will not die. 29 Yet the Israelites say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Are my ways unjust, people of Israel? Is it not your ways that are unjust?
30 “Therefore, you Israelites, I will judge each of you according to your own 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, people of Israel? 32 For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live!
Go Deeper
Chapter 18 has the goal of recorrecting a common misconception of the people. It goes into detail debunking their view of a false proverb that says, “the parents eat sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge” meaning the parent’s sin affects the child’s righteousness. God sets the record straight: we belong to Him. Children might inherit the sins of their parents and be affected by their choices, but they are not defined and punished for their parents actions. The consequences of our sins can have a greater effect on those around us, but we are not labeled by the sins of others.
This belief likely comes from Exodus 20:5 which reads, “For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me.” Throughout the Old Testament, we read stories of generations being affected by a single person’s actions. But what this passage and many others show is that our sins have consequences on others. Nobody sins in a vacuum, our actions affect more than just ourselves.
What God is helping us to see here is that despite this, He looks at the individual. To us, this might not seem like a crazy concept, but for a communal, family driven culture, it was harder to separate the individual from the group in the way our modern culture is accustomed to. In fact, if we go to verse 6 of Exodus 6 we see that the sentence wasn’t over yet. God continues with, “but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.”
The point that is repeated constantly throughout this chapter is clarification on His character: we belong to Him and our salvation is found in Him. “Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit… For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!” God makes it clear here that He has always been after our hearts. He desires us to turn and live! There is no bondage from our past, we have been made new in Him. Even in the Old Covenant He is still the same. It’s not about our deeds or perfection, nearness to Him is and always has been the goal.
Questions
- Read Romans 5:12-19. How does it talk about Adam and Jesus being the exception to verse 20?
- Reread verse 29. Do you find yourself having a double standard? Are there aspects of our character that we project onto God’s character?
- How do we view this chapter in light of Jesus?
Keep Digging
Check out this article from GotQuestions.org on generational curses for further commentary of how we look at this in a modern context.
4 thoughts on “Ezekiel 18”
Oh, how we’ve wearied God with our futile thinking! The tone of his voice in this chapter borders on desperation as he corrects misconceptions about his judgement. The bottom line is this—each person is accountable to God for their actions. He is both love and justice, and we must live up to his standards, not our own. The anecdote is given in the last three words of the chapter, “Repent and live.”
Even if you or I are suffering from another’s sin, you and I will only be judged on our sin. vs31(esv) Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord GOD; so turn, and live.” As Ella stated the answer to all is in those last three words “turn (repent) and live. Laying blame on someone else for what is happening is so much easier than working on changing yourself. Regen is a great opportunity to help with some steps for this kind and other situations for recovery. Regen helps you to navigate your personal walk with God every day all day for His glory and He helps you to live in this world. As God states in 31 He has no pleasure in the death of anyone, you were born for His glory.
God thank You for helping me take my eyes of me, me, me. Life is about You. Guide me in Your ways to glorify, honor and make You more known. Thank You for Your grace and mercy being new every morning in Jesus name amen.
WOOHOOO!!!
Amen, Amy and Ella!
I love this. I have so many regrets and horrible choices in the past I worry over since they did cause so many consequences – but when i think of others hurt-its next level repenting. To know without question in this chapter God’s JOY in changing all that yuck to come back to Him and seek His righteousness and love poured out …. Now that is who we can take to the world and make a lasting GOOD “consequence” aka outcome. Who does not need to hear this instead of who we cancel for the day because they went to disney or shopped at target. This world does NOT need that from us.