³ As I live,” declares the Lord ^[a]God, “you certainly are not going to use this proverb in Israel anymore. ⁴ Behold, ^(A)all ^[b]souls are Mine; the ^[c]soul of the father as well as the ^[d]soul of the son is Mine. The ^[e]soul who ^(B)sins will die.

⁵ “But if a man is righteous and practices justice and righteousness, ⁶ if he does not ^(C)eat at the mountain shrines or ^(D)raise his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, or ^(E)defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman during her menstrual period— ⁷ and if a man does not oppress anyone, but ^(F)restores to the debtor his pledge, ^(G)does not commit robbery, but ^(H)gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing, ⁸ and if he does not ^[f]lend money at ^(I)interest or take ^[g](J)interest, if he keeps his hand from injustice and ^(K)executes true justice between one person and another, ⁹ if he walks in ^(L)My statutes and keeps My ordinances so as to deal faithfully—^(M)he is righteous and will certainly ^(N)live,” declares the Lord God.

¹⁰ “However, 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 ^(O)defiles his neighbor’s wife, ¹² oppresses the ^(P)poor and needy, ^(Q)commits robbery, does not restore a pledge, but raises his eyes to the idols and ^(R)commits abomination, ^13 (S)lends money at interest and takes ^[h]interest; will he live? He will not live! He has committed all these abominations, he shall certainly be put to death; his ^(T)blood will be on himself.

¹⁴ “Now behold, he has fathered a son who saw all his father’s sins which he committed, but he has ^(U)seen them and does not do likewise. ¹⁵ He 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, ¹⁶ nor oppressed anyone, nor retained a pledge, nor committed robbery; instead, he ^(V)gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing, ¹⁷ he keeps his hand from ^[i]the poor, does not take any kind of interest on loans, but executes My ordinances, and walks in My statutes; ^(W)he will not die for his father’s guilt, he will certainly live. ¹⁸ As 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.

¹⁹ “Yet you say, ‘^(X)Why should the son not suffer the punishment for the father’s guilt?’ When the son has practiced ^(Y)justice and righteousness and has kept all My statutes and done them, he shall certainly live. ²⁰ The person who ^(Z)sins will die. A ^(AA)son will not suffer the punishment for the father’s guilt, nor will a father suffer the punishment for the son’s guilt; the ^(AB)righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.

²¹ “But if the ^(AC)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. ^22 (AD)All his offenses which he has committed will not be remembered against him; because of his ^(AE)righteousness which he has practiced, he will live. ^23 (AF)Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked,” declares the Lord God, “^[j]rather than that he would ^(AG)turn from his ways and live?

²⁴ “But when a righteous person ^(AH)turns away from his righteousness, commits injustice and does according to all the abominations that the wicked person does, will he live? ^(AI)All his righteous deeds which he has done will not be remembered for his ^(AJ)treachery which he has committed and his sin which he has committed; for them he will die.