Ezekiel 18
18
Individual Retribution
1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “What do you mean by quoting this proverb concerning the land of Israel,
“‘The fathers eat sour grapes
And the children’s teeth become numb?’#tn This word only occurs here and in the parallel passage in Jer 31:29-30 in the Qal stem and in Eccl 10:10 in the Piel stem. In the latter passage it refers to the bluntness of an ax that has not been sharpened. Here the idea is of the “bluntness” of the teeth, not from having ground them down due to the bitter taste of sour grapes but to the fact that they have lost their “edge,” “bite,” or “sharpness” because they are numb from the sour taste. For this meaning for the word, see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 2:197.
3 “As surely as I live, declares the sovereign Lord,#tn This expression occurs often in Ezekiel (5:11; 14:16, 18, 20; 16:48; 17:16, 19; 20:3, 31, 33; 33:11, 27; 34:8; 35:6, 11). you will not quote this proverb in Israel anymore! 4 Indeed! All lives are mine – the life of the father as well as the life of the son is mine. The one#tn Heb “life.” who sins will die.
5 “Suppose a man is righteous. He practices what is just and right, 6 does not eat pagan sacrifices on the mountains#tn Heb, “on the mountains he does not eat.” The mountains are often mentioned as the place where idolatrous sacrifices were eaten (Ezek 20:28; 22:9; 34:6). or pray to the idols#tn Heb, “does not lift up his eyes.” This refers to looking to idols for help. of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor’s wife, does not have sexual relations with a#tn Heb, “does not draw near to.” “Draw near” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse (Lev 18:14; Deut 22:14; Isa 8:3). woman during her period, 7 does not oppress anyone, but gives the debtor back whatever was given in pledge,#tn Heb “restores to the debtor his pledge.” The root occurs in Exod 22:25 in reference to restoring a man’s garment as a pledge before nightfall. does not commit robbery,#tn The Hebrew term refers to seizure of property, usually by the rich (Isa 3:14; 10:2; Mic 2:2 [see Lev 5:21, 22]). but gives his bread to the hungry and clothes the naked, 8 does not engage in usury or charge interest,#sn This law was given in Lev 25:36. but refrains#tn Heb, “turns back his hand.” from wrongdoing, promotes true justice#tn Heb “justice of truth.” between men, 9 and follows my statutes and observes my regulations by carrying them out.#tc The MT reads לַעֲשׂוֹת אֱמֶת (la’asot ’emet, “to do with integrity”), while the LXX reads “to do them,” presupposing לַעֲשׂוֹת אֹתָם (la’asot ’otam). The ם (mem) and ת (tav) have been reversed in the MT. The LXX refelcts the original, supported by similar phrasing in Ezekiel 11:20; 20:19. That man#tn Heb “he.” is righteous; he will certainly live,#tn Heb “living, he will live.” The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis. declares the sovereign Lord.
10 “Suppose such a man has#tn Heb “begets.” a violent son who sheds blood and does any of these things#tn Heb “and he does, a brother, from one of these.” If “brother” is retained, it may be an adverbial accusative, “against a brother” (i.e., fellow Israelite). But the form is likely dittographic (note the אח [aleph-heth] combination in the following form). mentioned previously 11 (though the father did not do any of them).#tn Heb “and he all of these did not do.” The parenthetical note refers back to the father described in the preceding verses. He eats pagan sacrifices on the mountains,#sn See note on “mountains” in v. 6. defiles his neighbor’s wife, 12 oppresses the poor and the needy,#sn The poor and needy are often mentioned together in the OT (Deut 24:14; Jer 22:16; Ezek 14:69; Ps 12:6; 35:10; 37:14). commits robbery, does not give back what was given in pledge, prays to#tn Heb “lifts up his eyes.” idols, performs abominable acts, 13 engages in usury and charges interest. Will he live? He will not! Because he has done all these abominable deeds he will certainly die.#tn Heb “be put to death.” The translation follows an alternative reading that appears in several ancient textual witnesses. He will bear the responsibility for his own death.#tn Heb “his blood will be upon him.”
14 “But suppose he in turn has a son who notices all the sins his father commits, considers them, and does not follow his father’s example.#tn Heb “and he sees and does not do likewise.” 15 He does not eat pagan sacrifices on the mountains, does not pray to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor’s wife, 16 does not oppress anyone or keep what has been given in pledge, does not commit robbery, gives his food to the hungry, and clothes the naked, 17 refrains from wrongdoing,#tc This translation follows the LXX. The MT reads “restrains his hand from the poor,” which makes no sense here. does not engage in usury or charge interest, carries out my regulations and follows my statutes. He will not die for his father’s iniquity;#tn Or “in his father’s punishment.” The phrase “in/for [a person’s] iniquity/punishment” occurs fourteen times in Ezekiel: here and in vv. 18, 19, 20; 3:18, 19; 4:17; 7:13, 16; 24:23; 33:6, 8, 9; 39:23. The Hebrew word for “iniquity” may also mean the “punishment for iniquity.” he will surely live. 18 As for his father, because he practices extortion, robs his brother, and does what is not good among his people, he will die for his iniquity.
19 “Yet you say, ‘Why should the son not suffer#tn Heb “lift up, bear.” for his father’s iniquity?’ When the son does what is just and right, and observes all my statutes and carries them out, he will surely live. 20 The person who sins is the one who will die. A son will not suffer#tn Heb “lift up, bear.” for his father’s iniquity, and a father will not suffer#tn Heb “lift up, bear.” for his son’s iniquity; the righteous person will be judged according to his righteousness, and the wicked person according to his wickedness.#tn Heb “the righteousness of the righteous one will be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked one will be upon him.”
21 “But if the wicked person turns from all the sin he has committed and observes all my statutes and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die. 22 None of the sins he has committed will be held#tn Heb “remembered.” against him; because of the righteousness he has done, he will live. 23 Do I actually delight in the death of the wicked, declares the sovereign Lord? Do I not prefer that he turn from his wicked conduct and live?
24 “But if a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and practices wrongdoing according to all the abominable practices the wicked carry out, will he live? All his righteous acts will not be remembered; because of the unfaithful acts he has done and the sin he has committed, he will die.#tn Heb “because of them he will die.”
25 “Yet you say, ‘The Lord’s conduct#tn Heb “way.” is unjust!’ Hear, O house of Israel: Is my conduct unjust? Is it not your conduct that is unjust? 26 When a righteous person turns back from his righteousness and practices wrongdoing, he will die for it;#tn Heb “for them” or “because of them.” because of the wrongdoing he has done, he will die. 27 When a wicked person turns from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he will preserve his life. 28 Because he considered#tn Heb “he saw.” and turned from all the sins he had done, he will surely live; he will not die. 29 Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The Lord’s conduct is unjust!’ Is my conduct unjust, O house of Israel? Is it not your conduct that is unjust?
30 “Therefore I will judge each person according to his conduct,#tn Heb “ways.” O house of Israel, declares the sovereign Lord. Repent#tn The verbs and persons in this verse are plural whereas the individual has been the subject of the chapter. and turn from all your wickedness; then it will not be an obstacle leading to iniquity.#tn Or “leading to punishment.” 31 Throw away all your sins you have committed and fashion yourselves a new heart and a new spirit!#sn In Ezek 11:19, 36:26 the new heart and new spirit are promised as future blessings. Why should you die, O house of Israel? 32 For I take no delight in the death of anyone,#tn Heb “the death of the one dying.” declares the sovereign Lord. Repent and live!
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Ezekiel 18: NET
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Ezekiel 18
18
The Soul Who Sins Will Die
1Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2“What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel:
‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
and the teeth of the children are set on edge’?
3As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel. 4Behold, every soul belongs to Me; both father and son are Mine. The soul who sins is the one who will die.
5Now suppose a man is righteous and does what is just and right:
6He does not eat at the mountain
or look to the idols of the house of Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor’s wife
or approach a woman during her period.
7He does not oppress another,
but restores the pledge to the debtor.
He does not commit robbery,
but gives his bread to the hungry
and covers the naked with clothing.
8He does not engage in usury
or take excess interest,
but he withholds his hand from iniquity
and executes true justice between men.
9He follows My statutes
and faithfully keeps My ordinances.
That man is righteous;
surely he will live,
declares the Lord GOD.
10Now suppose that man has a violent son, who sheds blood or does any of these things, 11though the father has done none of them:
Indeed, the son eats at the mountain
and defiles his neighbor’s wife.
12He oppresses the poor and needy;
he commits robbery
and does not restore a pledge.
He lifts his eyes to idols;
he commits abominations.
13He engages in usury
and takes excess interest.
Will this son live? He will not! Since he has committed all these abominations, he will surely die; his blood will be on his own head.
14Now suppose this son has a son who sees all the sins his father has committed, considers them, and does not do likewise:
15He does not eat at the mountain
or look to the idols of the house of Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor’s wife.
16He does not oppress another,
or retain a pledge, or commit robbery.
He gives his bread to the hungry
and covers the naked with clothing.
17He withholds his hand from harming the poor#18:17 Hebrew; LXX He withholds his hand from iniquity
and takes no interest or usury.
He keeps My ordinances
and follows My statutes.
Such a man will not die for his father’s iniquity. He will surely live.
18As for his father, he will die for his own iniquity, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother, and did what was wrong among his people.
19Yet you may ask, ‘Why shouldn’t the son bear the iniquity of his father?’
Since the son has done what is just and right, carefully observing all My statutes, he will surely live.
20The soul who sins is the one who will die. A son will not bear the iniquity of his father, and a father will not bear the iniquity of his son. The righteousness of the righteous man will fall upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked man will fall upon him.
21But if the wicked man turns from all the sins he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die. 22None of the transgressions he has committed will be held against him. Because of the righteousness he has practiced, he will live. 23Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Lord GOD. Wouldn’t I prefer that he turn from his ways and live?
24But if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and practices iniquity, committing the same abominations as the wicked, will he live? None of the righteous acts he did will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness and sin he has committed, he will die.
25Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’
Hear now, O house of Israel: Is it My way that is unjust? Is it not your ways that are unjust?
26If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and practices iniquity, he will die for this. He will die because of the iniquity he has committed.
27But if a wicked man turns from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he will save his life. 28Because he considered and turned from all the transgressions he had committed, he will surely live; he will not die.
29Yet 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?
30Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each according to his ways, declares the Lord GOD. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, so that your iniquity will not become your downfall. 31Cast away from yourselves all the transgressions you have committed, and fashion for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. Why should you die, O house of Israel?
32For I take no pleasure in anyone’s death, declares the Lord GOD. So repent and live![’’]
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