Ezekiel 18:4-22
New American Standard Bible
5But if a man is righteous and practices justice and righteousness,
6if he does not eat at the mountain shrines or raise his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, or defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman during her menstrual period—
7and if a man does not oppress anyone, but restores to the debtor his pledge, does not commit robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing,
8and if he does not lend money at interest or take interest, if he keeps his hand from injustice and executes true justice between one person and another,
9if he walks in My statutes and keeps My ordinances so as to deal faithfully—he is righteous and will certainly live,' declares the Lord God.
10However, he may father a violent son who sheds blood, and does any one of these things to a brother
11(though he himself did not do any of these things), that is, he even eats at the mountain shrines, and defiles his neighbor’s wife,
12oppresses the poor and needy, commits robbery, does not restore a pledge, but raises his eyes to the idols and commits abomination,
13lends money at interest and takes interest; will he live? He will not live! He has committed all these abominations, he shall certainly be put to death; his blood will be on himself.
14Now behold, he has fathered a son who saw all his father’s sins which he committed, but he has seen them and does not do likewise.
15He does not eat at the mountain shrines or raise his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel; he has not defiled his neighbor’s wife,
16nor oppressed anyone, nor retained a pledge, nor committed robbery; instead, he gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing,
17he keeps his hand from the poor, does not take any kind of interest on loans, but executes My ordinances, and walks in My statutes; he will not die for his father’s guilt, he will certainly live.
18As for his father, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother, and did what was not good among his people, behold, he will die for his guilt.
19Yet you say, ‘Why should the son not suffer the punishment for the father’s guilt?’ When the son has practiced justice and righteousness and has kept all My statutes and done them, he shall certainly live.
20The person who sins will die. A son will not suffer the punishment for the father’s guilt, nor will a father suffer the punishment for the son’s guilt; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.
21But if the wicked person turns from all his sins which he has committed and keeps all My statutes and practices justice and righteousness, he shall certainly live; he shall not die.
22All his offenses which he has committed will not be remembered against him; because of his righteousness which he has practiced, he will live.
King James Version
5But if a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right,
6And hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, neither hath defiled his neighbour's wife, neither hath come near to a menstruous woman,
7And hath not oppressed any, but hath restored to the debtor his pledge, hath spoiled none by violence, hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment;
8He that hath not given forth upon usury, neither hath taken any increase, that hath withdrawn his hand from iniquity, hath executed true judgment between man and man,
9Hath walked in my statutes, and hath kept my judgments, to deal truly; he is just, he shall surely live, saith the Lord God.
10If he beget a son that is a robber, a shedder of blood, and that doeth the like to any one of these things,
11And that doeth not any of those duties, but even hath eaten upon the mountains, and defiled his neighbour's wife,
12Hath oppressed the poor and needy, hath spoiled by violence, hath not restored the pledge, and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination,
13Hath given forth upon usury, and hath taken increase: shall he then live? he shall not live: he hath done all these abominations; he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon him.
14Now, lo, if he beget a son, that seeth all his father's sins which he hath done, and considereth, and doeth not such like,
15That hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, hath not defiled his neighbour's wife,
16Neither hath oppressed any, hath not withholden the pledge, neither hath spoiled by violence, but hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment,
17That hath taken off his hand from the poor, that hath not received usury nor increase, hath executed my judgments, hath walked in my statutes; he shall not die for the iniquity of his father, he shall surely live.
18As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed, spoiled his brother by violence, and did that which is not good among his people, lo, even he shall die in his iniquity.
19Yet say ye, Why? doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When the son hath done that which is lawful and right, and hath kept all my statutes, and hath done them, he shall surely live.
20The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father 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 will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
22All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live.
Christian Standard Bible
5"Suppose a man is righteous and does what is just and right:
6He does not eat at the mountain shrines or look to the idols of the house of Israel. He does not defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman during her menstrual impurity.
7He doesn’t oppress anyone but returns his collateral to the debtor. He does not commit robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing.
8He doesn’t lend at interest or for profit but keeps his hand from injustice and carries out true justice between men.
9He follows my statutes and keeps my ordinances, acting faithfully. Such a person is righteous; he will certainly live." This is the declaration of the Lord God.
10"But suppose the man has a violent son, who sheds blood and does any of these things,
11though the father has done none of them. Indeed, when the son eats at the mountain shrines and defiles his neighbor’s wife,
12and when he oppresses the poor and needy, commits robbery, and does not return collateral, and when he looks to the idols, commits detestable acts,
13and lends at interest or for profit, will he live? He will not live! Since he has committed all these detestable acts, he will certainly die. His death will be his own fault.
14"Now suppose he has a son who sees all the sins his father has committed, and though he sees them, he does not do likewise.
15He does not eat at the mountain shrines or look to the idols of the house of Israel. He does not defile his neighbor’s wife.
16He doesn’t oppress anyone, hold collateral, or commit robbery. He gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing.
17He keeps his hand from harming the poor, not taking interest or profit on a loan. He practices my ordinances and follows my statutes. Such a person will not die for his father’s iniquity. He will certainly live.
18"As for his father, he will die for his own iniquity because he practiced fraud, robbed his brother, and did among his people what was not good.
19But you may ask, ‘Why doesn’t the son suffer punishment for the father’s iniquity?’ Since the son has done what is just and right, carefully observing all my statutes, he will certainly live.
20The person who sins is the one who will die. A son won’t suffer punishment for the father’s iniquity, and a father won’t suffer punishment for the son’s iniquity. The righteousness of the righteous person will be on him, and the wickedness of the wicked person will be on him.
New Living Translation
5Suppose a certain man is righteous and does what is just and right.
6He does not feast in the mountains before Israel’s idols or worship them. He does not commit adultery or have intercourse with a woman during her menstrual period.
7He is a merciful creditor, not keeping the items given as security by poor debtors. He does not rob the poor but instead gives food to the hungry and provides clothes for the needy.
8He grants loans without interest, stays away from injustice, is honest and fair when judging others,
9and faithfully obeys my decrees and regulations. Anyone who does these things is just and will surely live, says the Sovereign Lord.
10But suppose that man has a son who grows up to be a robber or murderer and refuses to do what is right.
11And that son does all the evil things his father would never do — he worships idols on the mountains, commits adultery,
12oppresses the poor and helpless, steals from debtors by refusing to let them redeem their security, worships idols, commits detestable sins,
13and lends money at excessive interest. Should such a sinful person live? No! He must die and must take full blame.
14But suppose that sinful son, in turn, has a son who sees his father’s wickedness and decides against that kind of life.
15This son refuses to worship idols on the mountains and does not commit adultery.
16He does not exploit the poor, but instead is fair to debtors and does not rob them. He gives food to the hungry and provides clothes for the needy.
17He helps the poor, does not lend money at interest, and obeys all my regulations and decrees. Such a person will not die because of his father’s sins; he will surely live.
18But the father will die for his many sins — for being cruel, robbing people, and doing what was clearly wrong among his people.
19‘What?’ you ask. ‘Doesn’t the child pay for the parent’s sins?’ No! For if the child does what is just and right and keeps my decrees, that child will surely live.
20The person who sins is the one who will die. The child will not be punished for the parent’s sins, and the parent will not be punished for the child’s sins. Righteous people will be rewarded for their own righteous behavior, and wicked people will be punished for their own wickedness.
21But if wicked people turn away from all their sins and begin to obey my decrees and do what is just and right, they will surely live and not die.
22All their past sins will be forgotten, and they will live because of the righteous things they have done.
English Standard Version
5"If a man is righteous and does what is just and right —
6if he does not eat upon the mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor 's wife or approach a woman in her time of menstrual impurity,
7does not oppress anyone, but restores to the debtor his pledge, commits no robbery, gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with a garment,
8does not lend at interest or take any profit, withholds his hand from injustice, executes true justice between man and man,
9walks in my statutes, and keeps my rules by acting faithfully — he is righteous; he shall surely live, declares the Lord God.
10"If he fathers a son who is violent, a shedder of blood, who does any of these things
11(though he himself did none of these things), who even eats upon the mountains, defiles his neighbor 's wife,
12oppresses the poor and needy, commits robbery, does not restore the pledge, lifts up his eyes to the idols, commits abomination,
13lends at interest, and takes profit; shall he then live? He shall not live. He has done all these abominations; he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon himself.
14"Now suppose this man fathers a son who sees all the sins that his father has done; he sees, and does not do likewise:
15he does not eat upon the mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor 's wife,
16does not oppress anyone, exacts no pledge, commits no robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with a garment,
17withholds his hand from iniquity, takes no interest or profit, obeys my rules, and walks in my statutes; he shall not die for his father 's iniquity; he shall surely live.
18As for his father, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother, and did what is not good among his people, behold, he shall die for his iniquity.
19"Yet you say, ‘Why should not the son suffer for the iniquity of the father?’ When the son has done what is just and right, and has been careful to observe all my statutes, he shall surely live.
20The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.
21"But if a wicked person turns away from all his sins that he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does what is just and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die.
22None of the transgressions that he has committed shall be remembered against him; for the righteousness that he has done he shall live.
New International Version
5"Suppose there is a righteous man who does what is just and right.
6He does not eat at the mountain shrines or look to the idols of Israel. He does not defile his neighbor’s wife or have sexual relations with a woman during her period.
7He does not oppress anyone, but returns what he took in pledge for a loan. He does not commit robbery but gives his food to the hungry and provides clothing for the naked.
8He does not lend to them at interest or take a profit from them. He withholds his hand from doing wrong and judges fairly between two parties.
9He follows my decrees and faithfully keeps my laws. That man is righteous; he will surely live, declares the Sovereign Lord.
11(though the father has done none of them): "He eats at the mountain shrines. He defiles his neighbor’s wife.
12He oppresses the poor and needy. He commits robbery. He does not return what he took in pledge. He looks to the idols. He does detestable things.
15"He does not eat at the mountain shrines or look to the idols of Israel. He does not defile his neighbor’s wife.
16He does not oppress anyone or require a pledge for a loan. He does not commit robbery but gives his food to the hungry and provides clothing for the naked.
17He withholds his hand from mistreating the poor and takes no interest or profit from them. He keeps my laws and follows my decrees. He will not die for his father’s sin; he will surely live.
18But his father will die for his own sin, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother and did what was wrong among his people.
19"Yet you ask, ‘Why does the son not share the guilt of his father?’ Since the son has done what is just and right and has been careful to keep all my decrees, he will surely live.
20The one who sins is the one who will die. The child will not share the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share the guilt of the child. The righteousness of the righteous will be credited to them, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against them.
21"But if a wicked person turns away from all the sins they have committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, that person will surely live; they will not die.
22None of the offenses they have committed will be remembered against them. Because of the righteous things they have done, they will live.
New King James Version
Chapter 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. 5But if a man is just And does what is lawful and right; 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; 7If 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; 8If he has not exacted usury Nor taken any increase, But has withdrawn his hand from iniquity And executed true judgment between man and man; 9 If he has walked in My statutes And kept My judgments faithfully— He is just; He shall surely live!” Says the Lord God. 10“If he begets a son who is a robber Or a shedder of blood, Who does any of these things 11And does none of those duties, But has eaten on the mountains Or defiled his neighbor’s wife; 12If he has oppressed the poor and needy, Robbed by violence, Not restored the pledge, Lifted his eyes to the idols, Or committed abomination; 13If 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. 14“ If, however, he begets a son Who sees all the sins which his father has done, And considers but does not do likewise; 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; 16Has 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; 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! 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.
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.
20The 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.
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.
22None of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him; because of the righteousness which he has done, he shall live.
