Individual Responsibility and the Call to Repentance
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Chapter 18
1The word of the LORD came to me, saying.2What is it to you—you who speak this proverb in Israel, saying, "The fathers eat sour grapes, and the teeth of the sons are blunted"?3As I live, says the Lord GOD, if you will still use this proverb in Israel!4Behold, all the souls are mine; as the soul of the father is mine, so also the soul of the son is mine. Behold, the soul that sins, it shall die.5And a man, if he is righteous and does justice and righteousness.6He did not eat on the mountains, and he did not lift his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, and he did not defile his companion's wife, and he did not approach a woman of menstrual impurity.7He does not oppress his debtor; he restores his debt. He does not rob robbery; he gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with a garment.8He does not lend on interest, and he does not take increase. He withholds his hand from injustice. He does judgment of truth between man and man.9He walks in my statutes and keeps my judgments to do them; the righteous one shall surely live, declares the Lord GOD.10And he fathers a son, a violent one who sheds blood and does one of these.11And he did not do all these things, for he also ate to the mountains, and he defiled his companion's woman.12He oppressed the poor and needy. He robbed stolen goods. He robbed robbery. He did not return a pledge, and he lifted his eyes to the idols. He did an abomination.13He gave on usury and took interest. He shall not live! He has done all these abominations; he shall be put to death; his blood shall be on him.14Behold, he fathered a son, and he saw all the sins of his father that he did. He feared and did not do likewise.15He did not eat on the mountains, and he did not lift his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel. He did not defile his neighbor's wife.16He did not oppress a man, he did not seize a pledge, and he did not rob robbery; he gave his bread to the hungry, and he covered a naked one with a garment.17He restored his hand to the oppressed. He did not take interest or usury. He did my judgments. He walked in my statutes. He will not die for the iniquity of his father; he will live, he will live.18As for his father, because he practiced oppression, he committed robbery against a brother, and he did not do good amid his people—behold, he died in his iniquity.19And you will say, "Why? The son does not bear the iniquity of the father, and the son does justice and righteousness; he does all my statutes, keeps them, and does them; he will live."20The soul that sins, it shall die. A son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, and a father shall not bear the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.21But if the wicked one turns from all his sins that he has done and keeps all my statutes and does justice and righteousness, he shall live, he shall live; he shall not die.22All his transgressions that he has done will not be remembered against him; by his righteousness that he has done, he will live.23Do I desire the death of the wicked? declares the Lord GOD. Is it not that he should return from his ways and live?24But when the righteous one turns from his righteousness and does injustice, according to all the abominations that the wicked one did—he will do, and live? All his righteousnesses that he did will not be remembered; in his unfaithfulness that he was unfaithful and in his sin that he sinned in them—he will die.25You will say, "The way of the Lord is not right." Hear now, house of Israel: Are my ways not right? Is it not your ways that are not right?26When a righteous one turns from his righteousness and does injustice, and dies on them in his injustice that he did, he will die.27And when a wicked one turns from his wickedness that he has done, and he does justice and righteousness—he will save his soul alive.28And he saw and turned back from all his transgressions that he had done; he shall live, he shall not die.29And they said, "The way of the LORD is not right, house of Israel." The ways are not right, house of Israel. Is it not your ways that are not right?30Therefore I will judge you, house of Israel, according to your ways, says the Lord GOD. Return and turn from all your transgressions, and iniquity will not be a stumbling block to you.31Cast away from you all your transgressions by which you have transgressed, and make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, house of Israel?32For I do not delight in the death of the dead, says the Lord GOD. Turn and live.