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The Holy Bible, Berean Study Bible
Ezekiel 3:20
Bible Study Resources
Concordances:
- Nave'sDictionaries:
- BridgewayParallel Translations
Now if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and acts unjustly, and I put a stumbling block in front of him, he will die. If you did not warn him, he will die because of his sin, and the righteous acts he did will not be remembered. Yet I will hold you responsible for his blood.
Again, when a righteous man does turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die: because you have not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at your hand.
Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling-block before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
Again, if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die. Because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds that he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood I will require at your hand.
"Again, when a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and commits sin, and I place an obstacle before him, he will die; since you have not warned him, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require from your hand.
"Again, those who do right may turn away from doing good and do evil. If I make something bad happen to them, they will die. Because you have not warned them, they will die because of their sin, and the good they did will not be remembered. But I will hold you responsible for their deaths.
"Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness (right standing with God) and sins, and I place an obstacle before him, he will die; since you have not warned him, he will die in his sin, and the righteous deeds which he has done will not be remembered; but you will be responsible for his blood.
Again, when a righteous man does turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die: because you have not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at your hand.
Likewise if a righteous man turne from his righteousnesse, and commit iniquitie, I will lay a stumbling blocke before him, and he shal die, because thou hast not giuen him warning: he shall die in his sinne, and his righteous deedes, which he hath done, shall not be remembred: but his blood will I require at thine hand.
"Again, when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I place an obstacle before him, he will die; since you have not warned him, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand.
Again, when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block before him, he will die; since you have not warned him, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand.
Now suppose faithful people start sinning, and I decide to put stumbling blocks in their paths to make them fall. They deserve to die because of their sins. So if you refuse to warn them, I will forget about the times they were faithful, and I will hold you responsible for their death.
Similarly, when a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and commits wickedness, I will place a stumblingblock before him — he will die; because you failed to warn him, he will die in his sin; his righteous acts which he did will not be remembered; and I will hold you responsible for his death.
And when a righteous [man] doth turn from his righteousness, and do what is wrong, and I lay a stumbling-block before him, he shall die; because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous acts which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thy hand.
"If good people stop being good and begin to do evil, and I send something that makes them stumble and sin, they will die because they sinned. But since you did not warn them and remind them of the good things they had done, I will make you responsible for their death.
Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, I will lay a stumbling block before him, and he shall die; because you have not given him warning, he shall die in his sins and his righteousness which he had done shall not be remembered; and his blood will I require at your hand.
"If someone truly good starts doing evil and I put him in a dangerous situation, he will die if you do not warn him. He will die because of his sins—I will not remember the good he did—and I will hold you responsible for his death.
And when the righteous turns from his righteousness and does injustice, and I place a stumbling block before him, he will die, for you did not warn him. Because of his sin he will die, and his righteousness that he did will not be remembered, and his blood I shall seek from your hand.
And when the righteous turns from his righteousness and does injustice, and I lay a stumbling-block before him, he shall die. Since you have not warned him, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered.But I will require his blood at your hand.
Now yf a rightuous ma go fro his rightuousnesse, and do the thinge that is euell: I will laye a stomblinge blocke before him, and he shall dye, because thou hast not geuen him warninge: Yee dye shall he in his owne synne, so that the vertue, which he did before, shall not be thought vpon: but his bloude will I requyre of thine honde.
Again, when a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thy hand.
Again, when an upright man, turning away from his righteousness, does evil, and I put a cause of falling in his way, death will overtake him: because you have given him no word of his danger, death will overtake him in his evil-doing, and there will be no memory of the upright acts which he has done; but I will make you responsible for his blood.
Again, when a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, I will lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die; because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thy hand.
Againe, when a righteous man doth turne from his righteousnesse and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling blocke before him, he shall die: because thou hast not giuen him warning, he shall die in his sinne, and his righteousnesse which he hath done shal not be remembred: but his blood will I require at thine hand.
Nowe if a righteous man go from his righteousnesse and do the thing that is euyll I wyll lay a stumbling blocke before him: and he shall dye, because thou hast not geuen him warning, dye shall he in his owne sinne, so that his righteousnesse whiche he hath done, shall not be thought vpon: but his blood will I require at thyne hande.
And when the righteous turns away from his righteousness, and commits a trespass, and I shall bring punishment before him, he shall die, because thou didst not warn him: he shall even die in his sins, because his righteousness shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
Again, when a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
But also if a iust man is turned fro his riytfulnesse, and doith wickidnesse, Y schal sette an hirtyng bifor hym; he schal die, for thou teldist not to hym; he schal die in his synne, and hise riytfulnessis, whiche he dide, schulen not be in mynde, but Y schal seke his blood of thin hond.
Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness, and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die: because you have not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand.
Again, When a righteous [man] doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling-block before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thy hand.
"When a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I set an obstacle before him, he will die. If you have not warned him, he will die for his sin. The righteous deeds he performed will not be considered, but I will hold you accountable for his death.
"Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die; because you did not give him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand.
"If righteous people turn away from their righteous behavior and ignore the obstacles I put in their way, they will die. And if you do not warn them, they will die in their sins. None of their righteous acts will be remembered, and I will hold you responsible for their deaths.
Again, if a right and good man turns away from his right and good way and sins, and I put a cause of falling in his way, he will die. Because you have not told him of the danger, he will die in his sin, and the right and good things he has done will not be remembered. But you will be guilty for his blood.
Again, if the righteous turn from their righteousness and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before them, they shall die; because you have not warned them, they shall die for their sin, and their righteous deeds that they have done shall not be remembered; but their blood I will require at your hand.
And when a righteous man hath turned from his righteousness, and committed perversity, and I have suffered a stumbling- block to be laid before him he shall die, - though thou hast not warned him, in his sin I shall he die, neither shall be remembered his righteous deeds which he hath done, but his blood, at thy hand will I require;
Moreover if the just man shall turn away from his justice, and shall commit iniquity: I will lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die, because thou hast not given him warning: he shall die in his sin, and his justices which he hath done, shall not be remembered: but I will require his blood at thy hand.
Again, if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die; because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand.
`And in the turning back of the righteous from his righteousness, and he hath done perversity, and I have put a stumbling-block before him, he dieth; because thou hast not warned him, in his sin he dieth, and not remembered is his righteousness that he hath done, and his blood from thy hand I require.
"And if the righteous turn back from living righteously and take up with evil when I step in and put them in a hard place, they'll die. If you haven't warned them, they'll die because of their sins, and none of the right things they've done will count for anything—and I'll hold you responsible. But if you warn these righteous people not to sin and they listen to you, they'll live because they took the warning—and again, you'll have saved your life."
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
When: Ezekiel 18:24, Ezekiel 18:26, Ezekiel 33:12, Ezekiel 33:13, 2 Chronicles 24:2, 2 Chronicles 24:17-22, Psalms 36:3, Psalms 125:5, Zephaniah 1:6, Matthew 13:20, Matthew 13:21, Hebrews 10:38, 2 Peter 2:18-22, 1 John 2:19
righteousness: Heb. righteousnesses, Isaiah 64:6, Daniel 9:18
and I lay: Ezekiel 7:19, Ezekiel 14:3, Ezekiel 14:7-9, Deuteronomy 13:3, Psalms 119:165, *marg. Isaiah 8:14, Jeremiah 6:21, Luke 2:34, Romans 9:32, Romans 9:33, Romans 11:9, 1 Corinthians 1:23, 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12, 1 Peter 2:8
because: Ezekiel 3:18, Leviticus 19:17, 2 Samuel 12:7-13, 2 Chronicles 19:2-4, 2 Chronicles 25:15, Proverbs 25:12, Matthew 18:15
and his: Ezekiel 18:24, Ezekiel 18:26, Ezekiel 33:12, Ezekiel 33:13, Matthew 12:43-45, Luke 8:15, Romans 2:7, Romans 2:8, Hebrews 10:38, 2 Peter 2:21
but his: Ezekiel 3:18, Ezekiel 33:6, Hebrews 13:17
Reciprocal: Genesis 43:9 - of my hand Deuteronomy 22:8 - thou bring Jeremiah 34:16 - ye turned Ezekiel 3:21 - he shall Ezekiel 34:10 - and I will Amos 5:7 - leave Romans 11:22 - otherwise Revelation 2:14 - a stumblingblock
Cross-References
The man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam no suitable helper was found.
And the man said: "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for out of man she was taken."
And he named him Noah, saying, "May this one comfort us in the labor and toil of our hands caused by the ground that the LORD has cursed."
The Angel of the LORD proceeded: "Behold, you have conceived and will bear a son. And you shall name him Ishmael, for the LORD has heard your cry of affliction.
And with her last breath-for she was dying-she named him Ben-oni. But his father called him Benjamin.
When the child had grown older, she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses and explained, "I drew him out of the water."
So in the course of time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, "Because I have asked for him from the LORD."
She will give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins."
"Behold, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel" (which means, "God with us").
From one man He made every nation of men, to inhabit the whole earth; and He determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their lands.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
Again, when a righteous [man] doth turn from his righteousness,.... This is to be understood not of one that is truly righteous, or is justified by the righteousness of Christ; for such can never turn from that righteousness, or be in an unjustified state; seeing that is the righteousness of God, and an everlasting one; but of one that is denominated righteous, from "his" own righteousness, from a righteousness "which he hath done", as is afterwards expressed; one that is outwardly righteous before men, that is outwardly reformed, that has a righteousness of his own, consisting of a little negative holiness, and a few moral performances; from such righteousness a man may apostatize, and go into a vicious course of life:
and commit iniquity; live in sin, make a trade of it; lead a life, the whole series and course of which is nothing else but sin; in this sense, one that is born of God, and has the righteousness of Christ revealed from faith to faith unto him, and lives by faith upon it, cannot commit sin, 1 John 3:9;
and I lay a stumbling block before him; the Targum renders it, "the stumbling block of sins"; which designs either an occasion of sinning, which God permits, leaving him to his own lusts, and suffering him to fall thereby; and by this means he is discovered to be what he is, not a truly righteous man, but only one in appearance; that looked like a righteous person, but secretly a sinner, and now the Lord by such means exposes him openly; so Jarchi and other Jewish Rabbins; but Kimchi's father interprets the stumbling block of prosperity in this world u: or rather the punishment of sin is meant, as Kimchi himself observes; and the Septuagint renders it "torment"; since this follows up on his turning from righteousness, and committing sin; and seems to be explained by the next clause:
he shall die; the second death:
because thou hast not given him warning: of the dreadful evil of apostasy, and the sad estate of apostates, and the danger they are in, their last estate being worse than the first:
he shall die in his sin; of apostasy, and for it, being never to be recovered and brought to repentance:
and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; according to the "Keri" or marginal reading it is, "his righteousnesses"; all his works of righteousness which he hath done; and which reading is followed by the Targum, Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and the eastern versions; these shall not be remembered, neither in this world nor in that to come; no account shall be taken of them, nor shall they be reckoned as a righteousness unto him:
but his blood will I require at thine hand; 1 John 3:9- :.
u Vid. T. Bab. Yoma, fol. 86. 2.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
This passage anticipates the great moral principle of divine government Ezekiel 18:0 that each man is individually responsible for his own actions, and will be judged according to these and these alone.
Ezekiel 3:20
I lay a stumblingblock before him - I bring him to trial by placing difficulties and temptations in his way (compare Ezekiel 7:19; Ezekiel 44:12 margin; Ezekiel 14:3-4). It is true that God tempts no man in order to his destruction, but in the course of His Providence He permits men to be tried in order that their faith may be approved, and in this trial some who seem to be righteous fall.
Because thou ... his blood ... - So far as the prophet was concerned, the neglect of his duty is reckoned as the cause of the seemingly righteous man’s fall.
His righteousness ... - Or, righteousnesses, i. e. acts of righteousness. The “righteous” man here is one, who had hitherto done the “acts of righteousness” prescribed by the Law, but when trial came was shown to lack the “principle of righteousness.”
Ezekiel 3:21
The repetition of the word “righteous” is to be noted. There seems to be an intimation that sin is alien to the character of a “righteous” man. Compare 1 John 3:7-9.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Ezekiel 3:20. When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness — Which these words plainly state he may do, and commit iniquity, and die in his sin; and consequently die eternally, which is also here granted; if he have not been warned, though he die in his sin, the blood-the life and salvation, of this person also will God require at the watchman's hand. Pastor hunc occidit, quia eum tacendo morti tradidit. "This man the pastor kills; for in being silent, he delivers him over to death." - GREGORY. From these passages we see that a righteous man may fall from grace, and perish everlastingly. Should it be said that it means the self-righteous, I reply, this is absurd; for self-righteousness is a fall itself, and the sooner a man falls from it the better for himself. Real, genuine righteousness of heart and life is that which is meant. Let him that standeth take heed lest he fall.
And I lay a stumbling-block before him — That is, I permit him to be tried, and he fall in the trial. God is repeatedly represented as doing things which he only permits to be done. He lays a stumbling-block, i.e., he permits one to be laid.
