Ezekiel 18
18
True Justice
1The word of the Lord came to me. He said, 2“Why do you people say this proverb:
‘The parents ate the sour grapes,
but the children got the sour taste’#18:2 The parents … sour taste This means the children were suffering for things their parents did.?”
3But the Lord GOD says, “By my life, I swear that people in Israel will not think this proverb is true anymore! 4I will treat everyone, child and parent, just the same. The one who sins is the one who will die!
5“A person who is good will live! He is fair and does what is right. 6He doesn’t go to the mountains to share food offered to idols. He doesn’t pray to those filthy idols in Israel. He doesn’t commit adultery with his neighbor’s wife or with a woman during her period. 7He doesn’t take advantage of others. If someone borrows money from him, he might take something of value before he gives the money. But when that person pays him back, he returns what he took. He gives food to the hungry and clothes to people who need them. 8If someone wants to borrow money from him, he lends the money and doesn’t charge interest on the loan. He refuses to be crooked. He is always fair with everyone. People can trust him. 9He obeys my laws and studies my rules so that he can learn to be fair and dependable. He is good, so he will live.” This is what the Lord GOD said.
10“But someone like that might have a son who does not do any of these good things. The son steals things and kills people. 11He does things his father never did. He goes to the mountains and eats foods offered to false gods. He commits the sin of adultery with his neighbor’s wife. 12He mistreats poor, helpless people. He takes advantage of them. When a debt is paid,#18:12 When a debt is paid See Deut. 24:12-13 for the rules about making loans to the poor. he does not give back what he took from them. He prays to filthy idols and does other terrible things. 13He lends money to people who need it, but he forces them to pay interest on the loan. The evil son will not be allowed to live. He will be put to death because he did such terrible things, and he will be responsible for his own death.
14“Now, that evil son might also have a son. But this son sees the bad things his father did, and he refuses to live as his father did. He treats people fairly. 15He does not go to the mountains and eat foods offered to false gods. He does not pray to filthy idols in Israel. He does not commit the sin of adultery with his neighbor’s wife. 16He does not take advantage of people. If someone borrows money from him, the good son takes something of value and then gives the other person the money. When that person pays him back, the good son gives back what he took. The good son gives food to hungry people, and he gives clothes to those who need them. 17He helps the poor. If people want to borrow money, the good son lends them the money, and he does not charge interest on the loan. He obeys my laws and follows them. He will not be put to death for his father’s sins. The good son will live. 18The father hurts people and steals things. He never does anything good for my people! He will die because of his own sins.
19“You might ask, ‘Why will the son not be punished for his father’s sins?’ The reason is that the son was fair and did good things. He very carefully obeyed my laws, so he will live. 20The one who sins is the one who will be put to death. A son will not be punished for his father’s sins, and a father will not be punished for his son’s sins. A good man’s goodness belongs to him alone, and a bad man’s evil belongs to him alone.
21“Now, if evil people change their lives, they will live and not die. They might stop doing all the bad things they did and begin to carefully obey all my laws. They might become fair and good. 22God will not remember all the bad things they did. He will remember only their goodness, so they will live!”
23The Lord GOD says, “I don’t want evil people to die. I want them to change their lives so that they can live!
24“Now, maybe good people might stop being good. They might change their lives and begin to do all the terrible things that evil people have done in the past. (The evil people changed, so they can live.) So if those good people change and become bad, God will not remember all the good things they did. He will remember that they turned against him and began to sin. So they will die because of their sin.
25“You people might say, ‘The Lord isn’t fair!’ But listen, family of Israel. I am fair. You are the ones who are not fair! 26If good people change and become evil, they must die for the bad things they do. 27And if evil people change and become good and fair, they will save their lives. They will live! 28They saw how wicked they were and came back to me. They stopped doing the evil things they did in the past. So they will live! They will not die!”
29The people of Israel said, “That’s not fair! The Lord isn’t fair!”
“I am fair! You are the ones who are not fair! 30Why? Because, family of Israel, I will judge each of you only for what you do!” This is what the Lord GOD said. “So come back to me! Stop committing those crimes and do away with those things that cause you to sin! 31Throw away all the terrible idols with which you committed your crimes! Change your heart and spirit. People of Israel, why should you do things that will cost you your life? 32I don’t want to kill you! Please come back and live!” This is what the Lord GOD said.
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Ezekiel 18
18
God’s Just Treatment of Individuals, Both Righteous and Wicked
1And the word of Yahweh came#Literally “was” to me, saying,#Literally “to say” 2“What do you mean by#Literally “What is to you” quoting this proverb about the land of Israel, saying,#Literally “to say” ‘The fathers, they ate unripe fruit, and the teeth of the child became blunt.’#Or “dull,” set on edge” 3As I live,#Literally “life I” declares#Literally “declaration of” the Lord Yahweh, it will surely not any longer be appropriate for you#Literally “to you” to quote this proverb in Israel! 4Look! All lives are mine.#Literally “all of the lives are for me they” The lives of father and son alike are mine.#Literally “Like the life of the father and like the life of the son is to me look” The person#Or “life,” or “soul” sinning will die. 5And if a man is righteous and does justice and righteousness, 6and on the mountains he does not eat and he does not lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, and the wife of his neighbor he does not defile and he does not approach a woman of#Or “in” menstruation, 7and he oppresses no one#Literally “a person not” and he returns a pledge for his loan and he commits no robbery#Literally “robbed things not he seized” and he gives#Or “shares” his bread to the hungry and he covers a naked person with a garment, 8and he does not charge interest#Literally “with the interest not he gives” and he takes no usury, and he holds back#Or “brings back” his hand from injustice and he executes a judgment of fairness between persons,#Literally “man and man” 9and in my statutes he goes about and my regulations he keeps,#Or “watches” performing faithfully#Literally “to do with with faithfulness” —then he is righteous, and certainly he will live,” declares#Literally “declaration of” the Lord Yahweh.
10“And now he has a son, a violent one, who sheds blood#Literally “shedding of blood” and does any of these things#Literally “and he does like from one from these” 11(though#Hebrew “And” he#That is, the father did not do all of these things), for the son also#Or “even” eats on the mountains and he defiles the wife of his neighbor. 12He oppresses the needy and the poor, and he commits robbery,#Literally “robbed things he seized” and he does not return a pledge for a loan, and he lifts his eyes to the idols so he does a detestable thing. 13He charges interest#Literally “with the interest he gives” and takes usury. Then, shall he live? He shall not live, for he did all of these detestable things. Surely he will die! His blood will be on him.
14“And look! He has a son, and he sees all of the sin of his father that he did, and he sees it, but he does not do it. 15On the mountains he does not eat, and he does not lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, and the wife of his neighbor he does not defile. 16And he oppresses no one; he requires no pledge for a loan, and he does not commit robbery;#Literally “robbed things not does he seize” he gives his bread to the hungry, and he covers the naked person with a garment. 17He brings back#Or “holds back” his hand from iniquity;#Cf. verse 8 he does not take interest and usury; he does my regulations; he goes#Or “walks” in my statutes. He will not die because of the guilt of his father; he will surely live! 18Because his father oppressed severely;#Literally “he oppressed oppression” he stole from his brother;#Literally “he seized robbed things of a brother” that which is not good he did in the midst of his people, and look! He will die through#Or “in” his guilt.
19“Yet#Or “And” you say, ‘Why does the son not bear the guilt of the father?’ And since the son does justice and righteousness and he keeps all of my statutes and does them, he shall surely live! 20The person,#Or “soul,” or “life” the one sinning, will die. A son shall not bear the guilt of the father, and a father shall not bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be on him; the wickedness of the wicked#According to the reading tradition (Qere) shall be on him. 21But if the wicked returns from all of his sins#According to the reading tradition (Qere) that he has done and he keeps all of my statutes and he does justice and righteousness, he shall surely live; he shall not die! 22All of his transgressions that he committed will not be remembered against#Or “for” him. Through#Or “By means of” his righteousness that he has done he shall live. 23Have I delight by any means#Or “in any way” in the death of the wicked, declares#Literally “declaration of” the Lord Yahweh, and not at his turning from his way, so that#Literally “and” he lives? 24And when the righteous turns#Literally “at turning of the righteous” from his righteousness, so that#Literally “and” he does injustice, and does all of the detestable things that the wicked do, then#Or “and” will he live because of all of his righteousness#According to the reading tradition (Qere) that he did? Those things will not be remembered because of his infidelity that he displayed, and because of his sin that he committed.#Literally “sin that he sinned” Through#Or “in/by” them he shall die.
25“Yet#Or “And” you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair!’ Listen, now, house of Israel, is my way not fair? Is it not your ways that are not fair? 26When the righteous turns from his righteousness, and he does injustice, then#Or “and” he will die because of them; because of his injustice that he did he will die! 27And when the wicked turns from his wickedness that he did and he does justice and righteousness, he will preserve his life.#Literally “his soul/life he will keep alive” 28And if he sees and he returns from all of his transgressions that he did, surely he will live; he will not die! 29And yet they, the house of Israel, say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair!’ Are not my ways fair, house of Israel? Are not your ways unfair?#Literally “not ways your not are right”
30“Therefore I will judge you, house of Israel, each one#Hebrew “man” according to his ways,” declares#Literally “declaration of” the Lord Yahweh. “Repent#Or “Turn/Return” and turn around from all of your transgression, and it will not be as a stumbling block of iniquity to you. 31Throw away from yourselves#Literally “from on you” all of your transgressions that you committed,#Hebrew “committed with them” and make for yourselves#Literally “to you” a new heart and new spirit, and so why will you die, house of Israel? 32For I have no pleasure in the death of the dying,” declares#Literally “declaration of” the Lord Yahweh. “And so repent#Or “turn/return” and live!”
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