Ezekiel 18

¹ The word of Yahweh was addressed to me as follows,

² ‘Why do you keep repeating this proverb in the land of Israel: The fathers have eaten unripe grapes; and the children’s teeth are set on edge?

³ ‘As I live – it is the Lord Yahweh who speaks – there will no longer be any reason to repeat this proverb in Israel.

⁴ See now: all life belongs to me; the father’s life and the son’s life, both alike belong to me. The man who has sinned, he is the one who shall die.

⁵ ‘The upright man is law-abiding and honest;

⁶ he does not eat on the mountains[*a] or raise his eyes to the idols of the House of Israel, does not seduce his neighbour’s wife or sleep with a woman during her periods.

⁷ He oppresses no one, returns pledges, never steals, gives his own bread to the hungry, his clothes to the naked.

⁸ He never charges usury on loans, takes no interest, abstains from evil, gives honest judgement between man and man,

⁹ keeps my laws and sincerely respects my observances – such a man is truly upright. It is Yahweh who speaks.

¹⁰ ‘But if anyone has a son prone to violence and bloodshed, who commits one of these misdeeds –

¹¹ even though the father never has – a son who dares to eat on the mountains and to seduce his neighbour’s wife,

¹² who oppresses the poor and needy, steals, fails to return pledges, raises his eyes to idols, engages in filthy practices,

¹³ charges usury on loans and takes interest, then this son shall certainly not live; having committed all these appalling crimes he will have to die, and his blood be on his own head.

¹⁴ But if he in turn has a son who, in spite of seeing all the sins that his father has committed, does not imitate him,

¹⁵ does not eat on the mountains or raise his eyes to the idols of the House of Israel, does not seduce his neighbour’s wife,

¹⁶ oppresses no one, takes no pledges, never steals, gives his own bread to the hungry, clothes to the naked,

¹⁷ abstains from evil, does not charge usury or take interest, respects my observances and keeps my laws, he will not die is for his father’s sins, this son shall certainly live.

¹⁸ Because the father was violent, robbed others and never did good among my people, be sure he shall die for his sins.

¹⁹ But you object, “Why does the son not suffer for the sins of his father?” The son, however, has been law-abiding and honest, has kept all my laws and followed them, and so he shall certainly live.

²⁰ The man who has sinned is the one who must die; a son is not to suffer for the sins of his father, nor a father for the sins of his son. To the upright man his integrity will be credited, to the wicked his wickedness.

²¹ ‘But if the wicked man renounces all the sins he has committed, respects my laws and is law-abiding and honest, he will certainly live; he will not die.

²² All the sins he committed will be forgotten from then on; he shall live because of the integrity he has practised.

²³ What! Am I likely to take pleasure in the death of a wicked man – it is the Lord Yahweh who speaks – and not prefer to see him renounce his wickedness and live?

²⁴ ‘But if the upright man renounces his integrity, commits sin, copies the wicked man and practises every kind of filth, is he to live? All the integrity he has practised shall be forgotten from then on; but this is because he himself has broken faith and committed sin, and for this he shall die.

²⁵ But you object, “What the Lord does is unjust”. Listen, you House of Israel: is what I do unjust? Is it not what you do that is unjust?

²⁶ When the upright man renounces his integrity to commit sin and dies because of this, he dies because of the evil that he himself has committed.

²⁷ When the sinner renounces sin to become law-abiding and honest, he deserves to live.

²⁸ He has chosen to renounce all his previous sins; he shall certainly live; he shall not die.

²⁹ And yet the House of Israel objects, “What the Lord does is unjust”. Is what I do unjust, you House of Israel? Is it not what you do that is unjust?

³⁰ House of Israel, in future I mean to judge each of you by what he does – it is the Lord Yahweh who speaks. Repent, renounce all your sins, avoid all occasions of sin!

³¹ Shake off all the sins you have committed against me, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why are you so anxious to die, House of Israel?

³² I take no pleasure in the death of anyone – it is the Lord Yahweh who speaks. Repent and live!