Ezekiel 18
Personal
Responsibility!
Open your Bibles to…
Ezek. 18:20 The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.
Pray
Intro
√ Personal responsibility
We’ve just completed the study of 3 Parables that Ezekiel shared with the captives in
…the depth of
Yet, the people on the street (both in
They claimed that innocent people would be destroyed along with the wicked and therefore God wasn’t treating them fairly!
So, God responds to their false accusations as recorded here in chapter 18 by telling them that each person is responsible for their own sin…
…and no one will be judged for someone else’s sin.
Ap. Personal responsibility
We live in an age where everyone wants to blame someone else for their problems and sins.
Their parents, children, your parents, or grand parents, the Devil, their spouse, etc.
But since Man’s 1st sin God has made it abundantly clear that we are each responsible for our own behavior.
That’s an important truth to understand because we can’t experience forgiveness until we own up to our own sin…
…and we don’t want to live our lives under the false concept that God is angry with us for the sins of others.
A Just God (vs. 1-4)
Ezek. 18:1 The word of the LORD came to me again, saying,
Ezek. 18:2 “What do
you mean when you use this proverb concerning the
‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
And the children’s teeth are set on edge’?
√ A just God
In spite of the overwhelming
evidence that the people of
…they claimed that God’s judgment was unjust because it was their parents who sinned ~ not them!
Note what they were saying on the street…
‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
And the children’s teeth are set on edge’?” ~ vs. 2
Modern translation…
“My sins aren’t my fault, I was born this way!”
It was apparently a popular saying because Jeremiah reports the same thing was being spoken on the streets of Jerusalem (ref. Jer. 31:29-30) and God didn’t like what He was hearing!
√ God’s response
So, God chooses to respond to this false accusation and demonstrate that He is totally just in all His dealings with people.
Ezek. 18:3 “As I live,” says the Lord GOD, “you shall no longer use this proverb in Israel.
Ezek. 18:4 “Behold, all souls are Mine;
The soul of the father
As well as the soul of the son is Mine;
The soul who sins shall die.
The key here is that God reveals a very important spiritual truth that He is going to develop in the rest of the chapter…
“The soul who sins shall die.” ~ vs. 4
That is, when God brings His judgment upon Jerusalem it will be executed with perfect justice…
…only the sinner will die in the judgment!
The righteous, like Jeremiah, will live and not die as a result of the sins of others.
God is well able to protect the righteous on the day of Judgment!
Ap. Don’t blame anyone else
The sins that you and I commit are not anyone else’s fault.
Other people can introduce us to sin, encourage us to sin, and even help us to participate in sin.
But ultimately we sin because we choose to do so and God holds us responsible for our own sin.
So, don’t blame anyone else for your sin and don’t let others guilt you into believing that you’re responsible for their sin.
A Righteous Man (vs. 5-9)
Ezek. 18:5 But if a man is just
And does what is lawful and right;
Ezek. 18:6 If he has not eaten on the mountains,
Nor lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,
Nor defiled his neighbor’s wife,
Nor approached a woman during her impurity;
Ezek. 18:7 If he has not oppressed anyone,
But has restored to the debtor his pledge;
Has robbed no one by violence,
But has given his bread to the hungry
And covered the naked with clothing;
Ezek. 18:8 If he has not exacted usury
Nor taken any increase,
But has withdrawn his hand from iniquity
And executed true judgment between man and man;
Ezek. 18:9 If he has walked in My statutes
And kept My judgments faithfully—
He is just;
He shall surely live!”
Says the Lord GOD.
√ A righteous man
Beginning in vs. 5 God gives the people 3 hypothetical situations to consider so that they might understand that God deals with people individually and fairly.
The NKJV doesn’t make it as clear, but you’ll see in the NLT and others that verses 5, 10 & 14 all begin with the word…
…”suppose” (“but” & “if” in the NKJV).
The point is that God introduces us to 3 hypothetical men, a father, son and grandson…
…to prove that the proverb of the people is false.
√ The father
Note vs. 5…
“But if a man is just and does what is lawful and right…”
God then goes on to describe the behavior of this man (the father) as moral, righteous, compassionate and law abiding.
His dealings with both God and Men is just and righteous.
So, God says that this man will live because he has chosen to live a righteous life.
“He shall surely live! Says the Lord GOD.” ~ vs. 9
That is, when God’s judgment comes to Jerusalem this man will live because he is not guilty of the sins for which judgment is coming!
Ex. Jeremiah
He lived a righteous life in the midst of a very sinful people in Jerusalem.
Yet, when the Babylonians conquered the city and found Jeremiah God made sure that he was protected and given provisions to live!
His righteousness protected him from God’s judgment upon the wicked in Jerusalem.
Ap. Not works!
Just to clear up any confusion recognize that the chapter is dealing with God’s judgment upon Jerusalem.
We’re not talking about salvation and eternal life.
Eternal life has always been the gift of God’ Grace.
What God is dealing with in this chapter is the question of His fairness when He brings judgment on Jerusalem.
The wicked will die for their sins
The righteous will live for their obedience
So, when it comes to the righteous man (the father) God says that he will survive the judgment because he has obeyed the Lord.
A Wicked Son (vs. 10-13)
Ezek. 18:10 “If he begets a son who is a robber
Or a shedder of blood,
Who does any of these things
Ezek. 18:11 And does none of those duties,
But has eaten on the mountains
Or defiled his neighbor’s wife;
Ezek. 18:12 If he has oppressed the poor and needy,
Robbed by violence,
Not restored the pledge,
Lifted his eyes to the idols,
Or committed abomination;
Ezek. 18:13 If he has exacted usury
Or taken increase—
Shall he then live?
He shall not live!
If he has done any of these abominations,
He shall surely die;
His blood shall be upon him.
√ A wicked son
Note the relationship between the 1st man and the 2nd man…
“If he begets a son who is a robber” ~ vs. 10
That is, in our hypothetical scenario God introduces us to the son of the righteous man…
…and we’re told that the son is wicked!
He doesn’t follow in father’s footsteps, instead he disobeys the Law of God, practices wickedness, worships false gods and is cruel to other people.
So, God asks…
“Shall he then live? He shall not live! If he has done any of these abominations, He shall surely die; His blood shall be upon him. “ ~ vs. 13
His point is that the righteousness of the father will not protect the wicked son on the day of judgment.
Rather, each man will be held responsible for their own decisions.
That is, God is fair and the people’s proverb is not an accurate description of how God interacts with Mankind.
Ex. Aaron’s wicked sons
God judged Nadab and Abihu for their sin, but did not judge Aaron or his other sons.
Ap. Be careful not to rush to judgment!
Sometimes in Christian circles people can be quick to judge parents and blame them for their rebellious children.
Certainly parents have a huge part to play in raising their children…
…but raising them to walk with God is no guarantee that they will!
Each person makes their own choices about how they are going to live and we need to be careful that we don’t blame the righteous for the wicked person’s behavior.
Ex. Train up a child
I’ve used to be confused by Proverbs 22:6…
“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.”
Then I would wonder what was going on when you’d find a godly set of parents who had a wayward wicked child.
Was God’s promise not true!?
The solution to the dilemma is to recognize that Solomon called his writings “proverbs”, not “promises.”
Promises are given by revelation and proverbs by observation.
A promise comes through a man who waits on God…
…a proverb comes through a man who observes life.
A promise is future oriented while a proverb is present oriented.
The key then is that the Proverbs communicate general principles about how life operates (“more like guidelines than rules”.)
As a general rule if you raise your kids to walk with God then they most likely will!
But, it’s not a guarantee that they will and we have loads of examples in the Bible of godly parents whose kids rebelled against God.
That truth may lift a lot of undeserved guilt off some parent’s shoulders!
A Righteous Grandson (vs. 14-20)
Ezek. 18:14 “If, however, he begets a son
Who sees all the sins which his father has done,
And considers but does not do likewise;
Ezek. 18:15 Who has not eaten on the mountains,
Nor lifted his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,
Nor defiled his neighbor’s wife;
Ezek. 18:16 Has not oppressed anyone,
Nor withheld a pledge,
Nor robbed by violence,
But has given his bread to the hungry
And covered the naked with clothing;
Ezek. 18:17 Who has withdrawn his hand from the poor
And not received usury or increase,
But has executed My judgments
And walked in My statutes—
He shall not die for the iniquity of his father;
He shall surely live!
Ezek. 18:18 “As for his father,
Because he cruelly oppressed,
Robbed his brother by violence,
And did what is not good among his people,
Behold, he shall die for his iniquity.
Ezek. 18:19 “Yet you say, ‘Why should the son not bear the guilt of the father?’ Because the son has done what is lawful and right, and has kept all My statutes and observed them, he shall surely live.
Ezek. 18:20 The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.
√ A righteous grandson
Note vs. 14 as it identifies the 3rd hypothetical person…
“If, however, he begets a son who sees all the sins which his father has done, and considers but does not do likewise.”
Note the context, this is the son of the wicked man (vs. 10-13), the grandson of the righteous man (vs. 5-9).
We’re told that even though he was raised in a home filled with ungodly living by a father who was wicked…
…none the less after observing his father’s behavior he chose to live a righteous life!
Wow ~ that’s not what we’d expect!
God then tells us that the result of his godly choices that the grandson will live when judgment comes…
…even though his father was a wicked sinner and died in the judgment!
Demonstrating again that the people’s proverb is false, and that those who would suffer in the judgment deserved exactly what they got…
…even though they claimed it wasn’t their fault!
Ex. The kings of Jerusalem
While God’s argument is hypothetical, “suppose”, the reality is that we find a real example of this progression in the kings who ruled over Judah from Jerusalem.
Jotham ~ a good king
Ahaz ~ his son, a wicked king
Hezekiah ~ the grandson, a good king
That is, the Jewish captives in Babylon could look at their own history and see that what God said was true…
…He deals justly with every person and does not destroy the righteous for the sins of the wicked.
Ap. No such thing as a “generational curse”
Undiscerning Christians have developed a false doctrine based upon a wrong understanding of Exodus 20:5 (along with Ex. 34:6-7 & Deut. 5:9).
“For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me…”
They suggest that this so-called “generational curse” means that you may be suffering under the judgment of God for the sins of your forefathers.
However, what we’ve just read in Ezekiel is God’s commentary on how He judges people.
He tells us that each person is responsible for their own behavior and He does not hold anyone accountable for their parents’ sins.
The point of God’s warnings in Exodus and Deuteronomy is that the effects of sin are serious and long-lasting…
…not that God is unjust and punishes the innocent for their ancestors behavior!
A Gracious God (vs. 21-24)
Ezek. 18:21 “But if a wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die.
Ezek. 18:22 None of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him; because of the righteousness which he has done, he shall live.
Ezek. 18:23 Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?” says the Lord GOD, “and not that he should turn from his ways and live?
Ezek. 18:24 “But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he is guilty and the sin which he has committed, because of them he shall die.
√ A gracious God
Remember the context, this is not a salvation text…
…God is talking about the coming judgment on Jerusalem and who will be destroyed and who will be delivered.
God’s already told us that the righteous will live and the wicked will die.
But, now He throws a curve ball at us to demonstrate just how gracious He is even with judgment hanging over the city.
√ Repentance
Our hypothetical subjects, the wicked man and the righteous man, are now presented to us as switching behaviors!
The wicked man repents (changes his mind) and begins to live a godly life.
The righteous man repents (changes his mind) and begins to live a wicked life!
God reveals that in this scenario the ex-wicked man will live and the ex-righteous man will die!
Why?
Because the important criteria is how each man responds to God’s warnings of impending judgment!
Those who respond to God’s warnings given by Jeremiah and Ezekiel will live…
…while those who reject God’s warnings and begin to sin will die.
The point is that it’s how a person is living when the judgment comes that determines whether they live or die.
Ex. Nineveh & Jerusalem
We see this principle on a national scale by comparing how the people of Nineveh responded to Jonah’s warnings…
…as contrasted to how the people of Jerusalem responded the preaching of Jeremiah!
The wicked city of Nineveh repented and lived!
The righteous city of Jerusalem turned to sin and perished!
God’s example demonstrates the Grace of God who is holds open the door of repentance until the last moment!
Ap. Finishing well (contrast Solomon with Manasseh)
This section reminds us that it’s not how we start that matters…
…but how we finish our life that counts!
A Fair God (vs. 25-32)
Ezek. 18:25 “Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ Hear now, O house of Israel, is it not My way which is fair, and your ways which are not fair?
Ezek. 18:26 When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity, and dies in it, it is because of the iniquity which he has done that he dies.
Ezek. 18:27 Again, when a wicked man turns away from the wickedness which he committed, and does what is lawful and right, he preserves himself alive.
Ezek. 18:28 Because he considers and turns away from all the transgressions which he committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die.
Ezek. 18:29 Yet the house of Israel says, “The way of the Lord is not fair.’ O house of Israel, is it not My ways which are fair, and your ways which are not fair?
Ezek. 18:30 “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways,” says the Lord GOD. “Repent, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin.
Ezek. 18:31 Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O house of Israel?
Ezek. 18:32 For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord GOD. “Therefore turn and live!”
√ A fair God
God closes His argument by turning the tables on the people and their stupid proverb.
Their proverb declared that God was not fair.
God demonstrates that it’s they who are not fair!
That is, God only punishes the wicked and the reality is that the people of Jerusalem were wicked…
…therefore His judgment was just and fair.
Then He extends to them another chance to repent and live…
…demonstrating that He is more than fair in that He promises to preserve anyone’s life who even now repents before judgment comes!
Revealing the character of God who is slow to anger, full of mercy and eager to extend His grace to any who desire it.
Ap. How well do we represent God’s heart?
Note He says…
“Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?” says the Lord GOD, “and not that he should turn from his ways and live?” ~ vs. 23
And vs. 32…
“For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord GOD. “Therefore turn and live!”
How often do we rejoice when the wicked perish? When we hear that some terrorist or murderer has been killed?
It’s hard to feel much compassion for the Osama bin Ladan’s of the world.
Yet, God’s heart is that He is grieved by every soul that rejects His love and chooses to dwell in the fires of Hell for eternity.
God help us to have compassion on all people that we might rescue many from the devices of the enemy.
Close
√ Personal responsibility
This section of scripture reminds us that God holds us each responsible for our own behavior…
…we can’t blame our sin on anyone but ourselves!