Ezekiel
Chapter 18
Personal Responsibility
The word of the Lord came to me:
“Why are you applying this proverb to the land of Israel: ‘The parents have eaten sour grapes and the children’s teeth are set on edge?’
As I live, word of the Lord, this proverb will no longer be quoted in Israel.
All life is in my hands; the life of the parentand the life of the child are mine. The lives of both are in my hands; so, the one who sins will die.
Imagine a man who is righteous and practices what is just and right.
He does not eat at mountain shrines or look toward the filthy idols of Israel;he does not defile his neighbor’s wife or have intercourse with a woman during her period.
He harms no one, pays what he owes, does not steal, provides food for the hungry and clothes for the naked.
He demands no interest on a loan and does not lend for interest; he refrains from injustice, practices true justice, man to man.
He follows my decrees and obeys my laws in acting loyally. Because such a man is truly righteous, he will live, says the Lord.
But perhaps this man has a son who steals and shed blood, committing crimes his father never committed.
Maybe the son eats at mountain shrines, defiles his neighbor’s wife,
oppresses the poor and needy, steals, neglects to pay his debts, turns to idols, commits abominations,
demands interest on a loan, and practices usury. Will such a man live? No, he will not! Because he has committed all these evils, he will die; his guilt will be on him.
But imagine that such a man has, in turn, a son who does not commit the sins his father has committed.
He does not eat at mountain shrines or worship idols of Israel, nor does he defile his neighbor’s wife.
He does not oppress anyone or ask for a pledge on a loan; he does not steal. Instead, he feeds the hungry and clothes the naked.
He turns away from injustice, charges no usury or excessive interest, and follows my decrees and laws. Such a man will not die because of his father’s sins; instead, he will live!
His father, on the other hand, who committed extortion and stole from others, will die for his sin because he did wrong among his people.
You might ask: ‘Why does the son not bear the guilt of his father?’ But the son did what was just and right, obeying and practicing my decrees; he will live!
The person who sins is the one who will die. The son will not be held accountable for his father’s sin, nor will the father be responsible for his son’s sin. The righteous deeds of the righteous will be credited to him, and the wicked’s sin will be charged against him.
If the sinner turns from his sin, follows my decrees, and does what is right and just, he will live; he will not die.
None of the sins he has committedwill be held against him; he will live as a result of his righteous actions.
Do I take pleasure in the death of the sinner?—word of the Lord. Do I rather want him to turn from his ways and live?
But if the righteous man turns away from what is good and commits sins like the wicked do, will he live? His righteous deeds will no longer be credited to him;instead, he will die because of his infidelity and sins.
But you say: The Lord’s way is not just! Why, Israel! Is my judgment wrong? Or is it rather that yours is wrong?
If a righteous man turns from his righteous deeds and sins, he will die because of his sins.
And if the wicked man does what is good and right after turning from the sins he committed, he will save his life.
He will live and not die because he has opened his eyes and turned from the sins he had committed.
But you, Israel, say: The Lord’s way is not just! Is my way not just?Is it not, rather, yours that is wrong?
That is why I will judge you, Israel, each one according to his ways, declares the Lord. Turn back, and stop your offenses, so that you may not deserve punishment.
Free yourselves from all the offenses you’ve committed, and receive a new heart and a new spirit. Why should you die, Israel?
I do not want the death of anyone, word of the Lord, but that you turn and live!
Commentaries
Personal Responsibility.
Here we have one of the most important messages in this book, which is summarized more briefly in 14:12-14 and 33:10. The proverb that Ezekiel rejects expresses a reality: the generation of exiles is suffering the consequences of the mistakes and sins of previous generations. For Ezekiel’s contemporaries, this certainty justified a certain fatalism and a feeling of defeat regarding their current situation. They equated God’s justice with that of humans, being used to the punishment of the father’s sins through the massacre of all his family (cf. 2 Sm 21:4-6).
Now that they are far from their homeland and no longer observing the worship of the Lord, there is no remedy. Ezekiel speaks of a just God who considers people’s actions and gives everyone what they deserve. He emphasizes the possibility of repentance and receiving blessings from God that were lost through past actions; God only desires to give life, as long as they return to his Covenant.