Ezekiel 18

1 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:

And there is a word of YHWH to me, saying,

2 “Why is it that you circulate among yourselves this parable, as a proverb in the land of Israel, saying: ‘The fathers ate a bitter grape, and the teeth of the sons have been affected.’

“What [is it] to you [that] you are using this allegory Concerning the ground of Israel, saying, Fathers eat unripe fruit, And the sons’ teeth are blunted?

3 As I live, says the Lord God, this parable shall no longer be a proverb for you in Israel.

[As] I live,” a declaration of Lord YHWH, “You no longer have the use of this allegory in Israel.

4 Behold, all souls are mine. Just as the soul of the father is mine, so also is the soul of the son. The soul that sins, the same shall die.

Behold, all the souls are Mine, As the soul of the father, So also the soul of the son—they are Mine, The soul that is sinning—it dies.

5 And if a man is just, and he accomplishes judgment and justice,

And a man, when he is righteous, And has done judgment and righteousness,

6 and if he does not eat upon the mountains, nor lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, and if he has not violated the wife of his neighbor, nor approached a menstruating woman,

He has not eaten on the mountains, And has not lifted up his eyes To idols of the house of Israel, And did not defile his neighbor’s wife, And did not come near to a separated woman,

7 and if he has not grieved any man, but has restored the collateral to the debtor, if he has seized nothing by violence, has given his bread to the hungry, and has covered the naked with a garment,

He does not oppress a man, He returns his pledge to the debtor, He does not take away plunder, He gives his bread to the hungry, And covers the naked with a garment,

8 if he has not lent upon usury, nor taken any increase, if he has averted his hand from iniquity, and has executed true judgment between man and man,

He does not give in usury, and does not take increase, He turns back his hand from perversity, He does true judgment between man and man.

9 if he has walked in my precepts and kept my judgments, so that he acts in accord with truth, then he is just; he shall certainly live, says the Lord God.

He walks in My statutes, And he has kept My judgments—to deal truly, He [is] righteous—he surely lives,” A declaration of Lord YHWH.

10 But if he raises a son who is a robber, who sheds blood, and who does any of these things,

“And he has begotten a son, A burglar—a shedder of blood, And he has made a brother of one of these,

11 (even though he himself does not do any of these things, ) and who eats upon the mountains, and who defiles the wife of his neighbor,

And he has not done all those, For he has even eaten on the mountains, And he has defiled his neighbor’s wife,

12 who grieves the needy and the poor, who seizes with violence, who does not restore the collateral, and who lifts up his eyes to idols, committing abomination,

He has oppressed the afflicted and needy, He has taken away plunder violently, He does not return a pledge, And he has lifted up his eyes to the idols, He has done abomination!

13 who lends upon usury, and who takes an increase, then shall he live? He shall not live. Since he has done all these detestable things, he shall certainly die. His blood shall be upon him.

He has given in usury, and taken increase, And he lives? He does not live, He has done all these abominations, He surely dies, his blood is on him.

14 But if he raises a son, who, seeing all his father’s sins that he has done, is afraid and so does not act in a way similar to him,

And—behold, he has begotten a son, And he sees all the sins of his father, That he has done, and he fears, And does not do like them,

15 who does not eat upon the mountains, nor lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, and who does not violate the wife of his neighbor,

He has not eaten on the mountains, And he has not lifted up his eyes To idols of the house of Israel, He has not defiled his neighbor’s wife,

16 and who has not grieved any man, nor withheld the collateral, nor seized by violence, but instead has given his bread to the hungry, and has covered the naked with a garment,

He has not oppressed a man, He has not bound a pledge, And he has not taken away plunder, He has given his bread to the hungry, And he covered the naked with a garment,

17 who has averted his hand from injuring the poor, who has not taken usury and an overabundance, who has acted according to my judgments and walked in my precepts, then this one shall not die for the iniquity of his father; instead, he shall certainly live.

He has turned back his hand from the afflicted, He has not taken usury and increase, He has done My judgments, He has walked in My statutes, He does not die for the iniquity of his father, He surely lives.

18 As for his father, because he oppressed and did violence to his brother, and worked evil in the midst of his people, behold, he has died by his own iniquity.

His father—because he used oppression, Violently plundered a brother, And did that which [is] not good in the midst of his people, And behold, he is dying in his iniquity.

19 And you say, ‘Why has not the son borne the iniquity of the father?’ Clearly, since the son has worked judgment and justice, has observed all my precepts, and has done them, he shall certainly live.

And you have said, Why has the son not borne of the iniquity of the father? And the son has done judgment and righteousness, He has kept all My statutes, And he does them, he surely lives.

20 The soul that sins, the same shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, and the father shall not bear the iniquity of the son. The justice of the just man shall be upon himself, but the impiety of the impious man shall be upon himself.

The soul that sins—it dies. A son does not bear of the iniquity of the father, And a father does not bear of the iniquity of the son, The righteousness of the righteous is on him, And the wickedness of the wicked is on him.

21 But if the impious man does penance for all his sins which he has committed, and if he keeps all my precepts, and accomplishes judgment and justice, then he shall certainly live, and he shall not die.

And the wicked—when he turns back From all his sins that he has done, And he has kept all My statutes, And has done judgment and righteousness, He surely lives, he does not die.

22 I will not remember all his iniquities, which he has worked; by his justice, which he has worked, he shall live.

All his transgressions that he has done Are not remembered to him, In his righteousness that he has done he lives.

23 How could it be my will that an impious man should die, says the Lord God, and not that he should be converted from his ways and live?

Do I take pleasure [or] delight in the death of the wicked?” A declaration of Lord YHWH, “Is it not in his turning back from his way—And he has lived?

24 But if a just man turns himself away from his justice, and does iniquity in accord with all the abominations that the impious man so often does, why should he live? All his justices, which he has accomplished, shall not be remembered. By the transgression, in which he has transgressed, and by his sin, in which he has sinned, by these he shall die.

And in the turning back of the righteous from his righteousness, And he has done perversity, According to all the abominations That the wicked has done, Does he then live? All his righteous deeds that he has done are not remembered, For his trespass that he has trespassed, And for his sin that he has sinned, For them he dies.

25 And you have said, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ Therefore, listen, O house of Israel. How could it be that my way is not fair? And is it not instead your ways that are perverse?

And you have said, The way of the Lord is not pondered. Now hear, O house of Israel, My way—is it not pondered? Are not your ways unpondered?

26 For when the just man turns himself away from his justice, and commits iniquity, he shall die by this; by the injustice that he has worked, he shall die.

In the turning back of the righteous from his righteousness, And he has done perversity, And he is dying by them, He dies for his perversity that he has done.

27 And when the impious man turns himself away from his impiety, which he has done, and accomplishes judgment and justice, he shall cause his own soul to live.

And in the turning back of the wicked From his wickedness that he has done, And he does judgment and righteousness, He keeps his soul alive.

28 For by considering and turning himself away from all his iniquities, which he has worked, he shall certainly live, and he shall not die.

And he sees and turns back, From all his transgressions that he has done, He surely lives, he does not die,

29 And yet the sons of Israel say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ How could it be that my ways are not fair, O house of Israel? And is it not instead your ways that are perverse?

And the house of Israel has said, The way of the Lord is not pondered, My ways—are they not pondered? O house of Israel—are not your ways unpondered?

30 Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge each one according to his ways, says the Lord God. Be converted, and do penance for all your iniquities, and then iniquity will not be your ruin.

Therefore, I judge each according to his ways, O house of Israel,” A declaration of Lord YHWH, “Turn back, indeed, turn yourselves back, From all your transgressions, And iniquity is not for a stumbling-block to you,

31 Cast all your transgressions, by which you have transgressed, away from you, and make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. And then why should you die, O house of Israel?

Cast away all your transgressions from over you, By which you have transgressed, And make a new heart and a new spirit for yourselves, And why do you die, O house of Israel?

32 For I do not desire the death of one who dies, says the Lord God. So return and live.”

For I have no pleasure in the death of the dying,” A declaration of Lord YHWH, “Therefore turn back and live!”