- 18The word of the Lord came unto me again, saying, 2What do you mean, that you use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children’s teeth are set on edge? 3As I live, says the Lord God, you shall not have occasion anymore to use this proverb in Israel. 4Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine. The soul that sins, it shall die.
- 5But if a man is just and does that which is lawful and right, 6and has not eaten upon the mountains, neither has lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, neither has defiled his neighbor’s wife, neither has come near to a menstruous woman, 7and has not oppressed any, but has restored to the debtor his pledge, has spoiled none by violence, has given his bread to the hungry, and has covered the naked with a garment, 8he that has not given forth upon usury neither has taken any increase, that has withdrawn his hand from iniquity, has executed true judgment between man and man, 9has walked in my statutes, and has kept my judgments, to deal truly — he is just. He shall surely live, says the Lord God.
- 10If he beget a son that is a robber, a shedder of blood, and that does the like to any one of these things, 11and that does not any of those duties, but even has eaten upon the mountains, and defiled his neighbor’s wife, 12has oppressed the poor and needy, has spoiled by violence, has not restored the pledge, and has lifted up his eyes to the idols, has committed abomination, 13has given forth upon usury, and has taken increase — shall he then live? He shall not live. He has done all these abominations, he shall surely die, his blood shall be upon him.
- 14Now behold, if he beget a son that sees all his father’s sins which he has done, and considers and does not such like — 15that has not eaten upon the mountains, neither has lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, has not defiled his neighbor’s wife, 16neither has oppressed any, has not withheld the pledge, neither has spoiled by violence, but has given his bread to the hungry, and has covered the naked with a garment, 17that has taken off his hand from the poor, that has not received usury nor increase, has executed my judgments, has 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, behold, even he shall die in his iniquity.
- 19Yet say you, Why does not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When the son has done that which is lawful and right, and has kept all my statutes and has done them, he shall surely live. 20The soul that sins, 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 has 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 has committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him; in his righteousness that he has done, he shall live.
- 23Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? — says the Lord God, and not that he should return from his ways and live? 24But when the righteous turns away from his righteousness, and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All his righteousness that he has done shall not be mentioned. In his trespass that he has trespassed, and in his sin that he has sinned, in them shall he die.
- 25Yet you say, The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel, is not my way equal? Are not your ways unequal? 26When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, and commits iniquity and dies in them, for his iniquity that he has done shall he die. 27Again, when the wicked man turns away from his wickedness that he has committed, and does that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive. 28Because he considers and turns away from all his transgressions that he has committed, he shall surely live — he shall not die. 29Yet says the house of Israel, The way of the Lord is not equal. O house of Israel, are not my ways equal? Are not your ways unequal?
- 30Therefore, I will judge you, O house of Israel, everyone according to his ways, says the Lord God. Repent and turn yourselves from all your transgressions, so iniquity shall not be your ruin. 31Cast away from you all your transgressions whereby you have transgressed, and make yourself a new heart and a new spirit; for why will you die, O house of Israel? 32For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dies, says the Lord God; wherefore, turn and live.
- 19Moreover, take up a lamentation for the princes of Israel 2and say, What is your mother? A lioness. She lay down among lions, she nourished her whelps among young lions, 3and she brought up one of her whelps — it became a young lion and it learned to catch the prey. It devoured men. 4The nations also heard of him. He was taken in their pit, and they brought him with chains unto the land of Egypt. 5Now when she saw that she had waited and her hope was lost, then she took another of her whelps and made him a young lion. 6And he went up and down among the lions, he became a young lion, and learned to catch the prey and devoured men. 7And he knew their desolate palaces, and he laid waste their cities; and the land was desolate, and the fullness thereof, by the noise of his roaring. 8Then the nations set against him on every side from the provinces, and spread their net over him; he was taken in their pit. 9And they put him in confinement, in chains, and brought him to the king of Babylon. They brought him into holds, that his voice should no more be heard upon the mountains of Israel.
- 10Your mother is like a vine planted by the waters. She was fruitful and full of branches by reason of many waters, 11and she had strong rods for the scepters of them that bore rule, and her stature was exalted among the thick branches, and she appeared in her height with the multitude of her branches. 12But she was plucked up in fury, she was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up her fruit. Her strong rods were broken and withered, the fire consumed them, 13and now she is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty ground. 14And fire is gone out of a rod of her branches, which has devoured her fruit so that she has no strong rod to be a scepter to rule. This is a lamentation, and shall be for a lamentation.
Chapter 8