181 'And there is a word of Jehovah unto me, saying: 2 'What—to you, ye—using this simile Concerning the ground of Israel, saying: Fathers do eat unripe fruit, And the sons' teeth are blunted? 3 I live—an affirmation of the Lord Jehovah, Ye have no more the use of this simile in Israel. 4 Lo, 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 doth die. 5 And a man, when he is righteous, And hath done judgment and righteousness, 6 On the mountains he hath not eaten, And his eyes he hath not lifted up Unto idols of the house of Israel, And the wife of his neighbour defiled not, And to a separated woman cometh not near, 7 A man—he doth not oppress, His pledge to the debtor he doth return, Plunder he doth not take away, His bread to the hungry he doth give, And the naked doth cover with a garment, 8 In usury he doth not give, and increase taketh not, From perversity he turneth back his hand, True judgment he doth between man and man. 9 In My statutes he doth walk, And My judgments he hath kept—to deal truly, Righteous 'is' he, he surely liveth, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah.
10 And—he hath begotten a son, A burglar—a shedder of blood, And he hath made a brother of one of these, 11 And he all those hath not done, For even on the mountains he hath eaten, And the wife of his neighbour he hath defiled, 12 The afflicted and needy he hath oppressed, Plunder he hath taken violently away, A pledge he doth not return, And unto the idols he hath lifted up his eyes, Abomination he hath done! 13 In usury he hath given, and increase taken, And he liveth: he doth not live, All these abominations he hath done, He doth surely die, his blood is on him. 14 And—lo, he hath begotten a son, And he seeth all the sins of his father, That he hath done, and he feareth, And doth not do like them, 15 On the mountains he hath not eaten, And his eyes he hath not lifted up Unto idols of the house of Israel, The wife of his neighbour he hath not defiled, 16 A man—he hath not oppressed, A pledge he hath not bound, And plunder he hath not taken away, His bread to the hungry he hath given, And the naked he covered with a garment, 17 From the afflicted he hath turned back his hand, Usury and increase he hath not taken, My judgments he hath done, In My statutes he hath walked, He doth not die for the iniquity of his father, He doth surely live. 18 His father—because he used oppression, Did violently Plunder a brother, And that which 'is' not good did in the midst of his people, And lo, he is dying in his iniquity. 19 And ye have said, Wherefore hath not the son, Borne of the iniquity of the father? And—the son judgment and righteousness hath done, All My statutes he hath kept, And he doeth them, he surely liveth. 20 The soul that doth sin—it doth die. A son doth not bear of the iniquity of the father, And a father doth 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.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Ezekiel 18:1-20
Commentary on Ezekiel 18:1-20
(Read Ezekiel 18:1-20)
The soul that sinneth it shall die. As to eternity, every man was, is, and will be dealt with, as his conduct shows him to have been under the old covenant of works, or the new covenant of grace. Whatever outward sufferings come upon men through the sins of others, they deserve for their own sins all they suffer; and the Lord overrules every event for the eternal good of believers. All souls are in the hand of the great Creator: he will deal with them in justice or mercy; nor will any perish for the sins of another, who is not in some sense worthy of death for his own. We all have sinned, and our souls must be lost, if God deal with us according to his holy law; but we are invited to come to Christ. If a man who had shown his faith by his works, had a wicked son, whose character and conduct were the reverse of his parent's, could it be expected he should escape the Divine vengeance on account of his father's piety? Surely not. And should a wicked man have a son who walked before God as righteous, this man would not perish for his father's sins. If the son was not free from evils in this life, still he should be partaker of salvation. The question here is not about the meritorious ground of justification, but about the Lord's dealings with the righteous and the wicked.