That's your problem, your father ate the sour grapes. So, if you're some kind of a neurotic nut, you go to a psychologist and they'll tell you, "Well, it's not you, it's your father, you see. He has not only not worshipped those idols, but he has not so much as lifted up his eyes to them; he has not given them a favourable look, has had no regard at all to them, neither desired their favour nor dreaded their frowns. 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. They may even suffer death. We are here assured that this wicked man shall perish for ever in his iniquity, notwithstanding his being the son of a good father. That a righteous man shall be certainly happy, though he be the son of a wicked father. (Ezekiel 18) 1 The word of the LORD came unto me again, saying, 2 What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge? So we must accept that sin causes harm sooner or later, but when that consequence falls into the lap of innocent people, they are not being punished for something they didn'tdo. Now God has a better way of righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ. The fathers defiled the beautiful land. He detests not only the idols of the heathen but the idols of the house of Israel, which were not only allowed of, but generally applauded and adored, by those that were accounted the professing people of God. He that formed the eye, shall he not see? But, 2. Now hence it follows, for the clearing of this matter, 1. Over time, even ones children and grandchildren can suffer because of ones sin. Though the father did eat the sour grapes, if the children do not meddle with them, they shall fare never the worse for that. People die for their own sins, not for the sins of their fathers or the sins of their sons. God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked, Nevertheless, a righteous man who turns to sinful ways shall die. 4. 2. Signs of coming judgment ( Ezekiel 4:1-5:4) 2. Though the righteousness of his government requires that sinners die, yet the goodness of his nature objects against it. The soul who sins shall die. The soul that sinneth it shall die. Let those good parents that have wicked children not look upon their case as singular; it is a case put here; and by it we see that grace does not run in the blood, nor always attend the means of grace. Hence God will not allow them to consult him. (1.) Because he is considered and turned away from all of his transgressions that he hath committed, and he shall surely live, he shall not die. He considers and does not such like; he considers how ill it became his father to do such things, what an offence it was to God and all good men, what a wound and dishonour he got by it, and what calamities he brought into his family, and therefore he does not such like. (2.) (2.) "If thou take thy neighbour's raiment for a pledge, the raiment that is for necessary use, thou shalt deliver it to him again, that he may sleep in his own bedclothes." What encouragement a repenting returning sinner has to hope for pardon and life according to this promise. The only one I answer to God for is me. Ezekiel 18:19. God said,] Hear now, O house of Israel; Is not my way equal? 3. . "Thus plain the case is, and yet you say, Does not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When David penitently acknowledges, I have sinned, he is immediately assured of his pardon: "The Lord has taken away thy sin, thou shalt not die (2 Sam 12 13), thou shalt not die eternally." Now, lo, if he beget a son, that sees all of his father's sins which he has done, and considers, and does not such like, That he has not eaten upon the mountains, neither has lifted up his eyes to the idols to the house of Israel, nor defiled his neighbor's wife, Neither has oppressed any, nor withheld the pledge, [and so forth]. No, he does not; he shall not if he will himself do that which is lawful and right," Ezekiel 18:19; Ezekiel 18:19. This charges him with injustice, as if the judgments executed were a wrong: "You use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, now that it is laid waste by the judgments of God, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge; we are punished for the sins of our ancestors, which is as great an absurdity in the divine regimen as if the children should have their teeth set on edge, or stupefied, by the fathers' eating sour grapes, whereas, in the order of natural causes, if men eat or drink any thing amiss, they only themselves shall suffer by it." 3. When someone would give you a pledge for a debt, a lot of times they would just keep the pledge. 32 For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye. He that gave us our being does us no wrong if he takes it away again, much less when he only takes away some of the supports and comforts of it; it is as absurd to quarrel with him as for the thing formed to say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? (1.) The soul that sinneth it shall die. Wicked Ahaz begets a good Hezekiah, who sees all his father's sins which he has done, and though he will not, like Ham, proclaim his father's shame, or make the worst of it, yet he loathes it, and blushes at it, and thinks the worse of sin because it was the reproach and ruin of his own father. - Rather, Why doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father?. He is here supposed to allow himself in all those enormities which his good father dreaded and carefully avoided, and to shake off all those good duties which his father made conscience of and took satisfaction in; he undoes all that his father did, and goes counter to his example in every thing. That sets God's justice at defiance: "The days are prolonged and every vision fails; the threatenings are a jest." He shall surely live; he shall be restored to the favour of God, which is the life of the soul, and shall not lie under his wrath, which is as messengers of death to the soul. The race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, for then the children that are well taught would do well, but God will let us know that his grace is his own and his Spirit a free-agent, and that though we are tied to give our children a good education he is not tied to bless it. See Deut 4 19. In this, as much as any thing, appears the power of original sin and the necessity of special grace. 1. As the soul of the father, so the soul of the son, is mine. Here it is stated both positively and negatively that God's government and God's justice are eternally equitable and fair. The coats which Dorcas had made for the poor were produced as witnesses of her charity, Acts 9 39. 19 Yet say ye, Why? ), to show how good men walk in the same spirit and in the same steps. The question is not whether the truly righteous ever become apostates. 2. thine, O king? Worldly men insist upon it that their bread is their own, as Nabal, who therefore would not give of it to David (1 Sam 25 11); yet let them know that it is not so their own but that they are bound to do good to others with it. You don't have to think very hard to realise that this would make a very strangeworld. 18 As 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. Though the father did eat the sour grapes, if the children do not meddle with them, they shall fare never the worse for that. I. Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? and has spoiled none by violence, and has given his bread to the hungry, and has covered the naked with a garment; He that hath not given forth upon usury, neither hath taken any increase, that hath withdrawn his hand from iniquity, and hath executed true judgment between man and man, Hath walked in my statutes, and hath kept my judgments, to deal truly; his is just, he shall surely live, saith the Lord GOD ( Ezekiel 18:7-9 ). II. 1. Nay, he has not only restored to the poor that which was their own, but has given his bread to the hungry. Of course this isfoolish, so God sets the record straight. We always like to blame someone else. As for his father (Ezekiel 18:18; Ezekiel 18:18), because he was a cruel oppressor, and did hurt, nay, because, though he had wealth and power, he did not with them do good among his people, lo, even he, great as he is, shall die in his iniquity, and be undone for ever; but he that kept his integrity shall surely live, shall be easy and happy, and he shall not die for the iniquity of his father. The grapes may look well enough in the temptation, but they will be bitter as bitterness itself in the reflection. And it's time that you face up to that reality and you begin to be responsible before God, knowing that we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ to give an account for the things that we have done while we've been living in these bodies. This is his character towards his neighbours; yet it will not suffice that he be just and true to his brother, to complete his character he must be so to his God likewise (v. 9): He has walked in my statutes, those which relate to the duties of his immediate worship; he has kept those and all his other judgments, has had respect to them all, has made it his constant care and endeavour to conform and come up to them all, to deal truly, that so he may approve himself faithful to his covenant with God, and, having joined himself to God, he does not treacherously depart from him, nor dissemble with him. Thus far that is right which is implied in this proverbial saying, That those who are guilty of wilful sin eat sour grapes; they do that which they will feel from, sooner or later. This must be accompanied with a conversion to God and duty; he must keep all God's statutes (for the obedience, if it be sincere, will be universal) and must do that which is lawful and right, that which agrees with the word and will of God, which he must take for his rule, and not the will of the flesh and the way of the world. His wicked acts will not be remembered. 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. "Yet say ye, Wherefore doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? He has taken off his hand from the poor; where he found his father had put hardships upon poor servants, tenants, neighbours, he eased their burden. However here the point is that people do not die for the sins of their parents, grandparents, children, or grandchildren but for their own sins. Another and entirely different section opens, and we see at once from what it started. He takes away from those to whom he should give. Here is, I. God does you no wrong, but you have wronged yourselves." Our earthly parents are only the fathers of our flesh; our souls are not theirs; God challenges them. are not our present case and circumstances a full evidence of it? 4 "Behold, all souls are Mine; All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die. He that makes conscience of conforming in every thing to the will of God, that makes it his business to serve God and his aim to glorify God, shall without fail be happy here and for ever in the love and favour of God; and, wherein he comes short of his duty, it shall be forgiven him, through a Mediator. This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Ordinarily, children partake of the parents' temper and are drawn in to imitate their example; but here the son, instead of seeing his father's sins, and, as is usual, doing the like, sees them and dreads doing the like. 2. "Now Jeremiah makes mention of the fact that this same proverb was being spoken back in Jerusalem. If that righteous man before described beget a son whose character is the reverse of his father's, his condition will certainly be so too. That it shall be well with penitents, though they began ever so ill, ver 21-23 and 27, 28. The first step towards conversion is consideration (v. 28): Because he considers and turns. This is so whether or not the person who transgressed has beenforgiven. And God isn't gonna punish your parents for what you are, nor is He going to punish you for what your parents were. Proud member That a wicked man shall certainly perish in his iniquity, though he be the son of a pious father. He has not only not sacrificed in the high places to the images there set up, but he has not so much as eaten upon the mountains, that is, not had any communion with idolaters by eating things sacrificed to idols, 1 Cor 10 20. The reason why sinners go on in their evil ways is because they do not consider what will be in the end thereof; but if the prodigal once come to himself, if he sit down and consider a little how bad his state is and how easily it may be bettered, he will soon return to his father (Luke 15 17), and the adulteress to her first husband when she considers that then it was better with her than now, Hos 2 7. O that we may understand and regard them before they be hidden from our eyes! [4.] And still in Ezekiels time they continue the rebellion and defilement. Here it is the matter of a precept. Get Your Bible Minute in Your Inbox Every Morning. What an absurd thing it is for you to choose death and damnation rather than life and salvation. Doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? And all his transgressions that he has committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. He is an idolater: He has eaten upon the mountains (v. 11) and has lifted up his eyes to the idols, which his good father never did, and has come at length not only to feast with the idolaters, but to sacrifice with them, which is here called committing abomination, for the way of sin is down-hill. This just man here, when he took care to avoid his father's sins, took care to imitate his grandfather's virtues; and, if we look back, we shall find some examples for our imitation, as well as others for our admonition. 27 Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive. He shall surely die; he shall be for ever miserable; his blood shall be upon him. That he hath taken of his hand for the poor, and he hath not received usury nor increase, and has executed my judgments, has walked in my statutes; he shall not die for the iniquity of his father, he shall surely live ( Ezekiel 18:10-17 ). The doom of an apostate: Shall he live because he was once a righteous man? 'The fathers have eaten sour grapes, And the children's teeth are set on edge'? As it was in the royal line of the kings of Judah, so it often happens in private families, that godly parents have wicked children and wicked parents have godly children. 30 Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord God. It is true that we are sinners not only because we practice sin personally (Romans 3:23; Romans 6:23) but also because we were born with a sinful human nature that we inherited from our parents (Psalms 51:5; Ephesians 2:3; Galatians 5:17) and because God imputed the sin of Adam to us (Romans 5:12-21). Divine assignment to Ezekiel ( Ezekiel 2:1-3:27) B. Proclamation of Jerusalem's Condemnation ( Ezekiel 4:1-24:27) 1. (1.) (30-32) Commentary on Ezekiel 18:1-20 (Read Ezekiel 18:1-20) The soul that sinneth it shall die. But they suggest it as unreasonable that the children should smart for the fathers' folly and feel the pain of that which they never tasted the pleasure of, and that God was unrighteous in thus taking vengeance and could not justify it. The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways. If he beget a son that is a robber, or a shedder of blood, and that does the like to any of these things, And that does not any of those duties, but has eaten upon the mountains, and defiled his neighbor's wife, oppressed the poor and needy, has spoiled by violence, has not restored the pledge, and has lifted up his eyes to idols, and committed abomination, and has given forth upon usury [loaned with usurious interest rates], and hath taken increase: shall he then live? And there is no unrighteousness with God in doing so. In this, as much as any thing, appears the power of original sin and the necessity of special grace. Again, if the example here has any reference to Josiah, there is a special significance that, "he hath kept all my statutes." God's grace, God's mercy, if the wicked will turn. He never was in sincerity a righteous man (as appears by that of the apostle, 1 John 2 19, If they had been of us, they would, no doubt, have continued with us), but he passed for a righteous man. (2.) Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers (19) Why? Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin. The 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.". Verse Ezekiel 18:20. That a wicked man shall certainly perish in his iniquity, though he be the son of a pious father. And should a wicked man have a son who walked before God as righteous, this man would not perish for his father's sins. doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? As it was in the royal line of the kings of Judah, so it often happens in private families, that godly parents have wicked children and wicked parents have godly children. But you will be responsible for you. He has taken off his hand from the poor; where he found his father had put hardships upon poor servants, tenants, neighbours, he eased their burden. [That isn't fair. This just man can not only say, as the Pharisee, I am no adulterer, no extortioner, no oppressor, no usurer, no idolater; but he has given his bread to the hungry and covered the naked. He says, "I will never leave you or forsake you" (Deuteronomy 31:8, Hebrews 13:5). God does not punish the children for the fathers' sins unless they tread in their fathers' steps and fill up the measure of their iniquity (Matt 23 32), and then they have no reason to complain, for, whatever they suffer, it is less than their own sin has deserved. doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? 2. It is only in temporal calamities that children (and sometimes innocent ones) fare the worse for their parents' wickedness, and God can alter the property of those calamities, and make them work for good to those that are visited with them; but as to spiritual and eternal misery (and that is the death here spoken of) the children shall by no means smart for the parents' sins. As Nebuchadnezzars final assult on Jerusalem draws nearer, those who are in denial are discussing Gods justice or lack of it. 'Our fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge.'". They intended it as a reflection upon God, and an impeachment of his equity in his proceedings against them. 19 "Yet you ask, 'Why does the son not share the guilt of his father?'. Judgment therefore is next to be given; and one would think it should be a judgment of condemnation, nothing short of Go, you cursed, into everlasting fire. Must those be suffered to draw another breath that have once breathed out such wickedness as this? All of his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in the trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die. Perhaps, in reading some of the foregoing chapters, we may have been tempted to think ourselves not much concerned in them (though they also were written for our learning); but this chapter, at first view, appears highly and nearly to concern us all, very highly, very nearly; for, without particular reference to Judah and Jerusalem, it lays down the rule of judgment according to which God will deal with the children of men in determining them to their everlasting state, and it agrees with that very ancient rule laid down, Gen 4 7, "If though doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?" This fire will be a sign. "Yet you say, 'Why should the son not bear the punishment for the father's iniquity?'. It is true that there is a curse entailed upon wicked families, but it is as true that the entail may be cut off by repentance and reformation; let the impenitent and unreformed therefore thank themselves if they fall under it. And, when God speaks of visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, that is so far from putting any hardship upon the children, to whom he only renders according to their works, that it accounts for God's patience with the parents, whom he therefore does not punish immediately, because he lays up their iniquity for their children, Job 21 19. God pleads with Israel to Repent and live, turn from all their transgressions, cast them away, and fashion for themselves a new heart, for God takes no pleasure in the death of a sinner, Ezekiel is told to preach a lament for the princes of Israel, Jerusalem is pictured as a lion who lies down among the cubs she reared, One cub became a lion [ie Jehoahaz Josiahs son became king in Jerusalem] but he was a nasty beast and he reigned 3monthis only. Who transgressed has beenforgiven draw another breath that have once breathed ezekiel 18:19-20 commentary such as. 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