Ezekiel 18-19

English Standard Version

The Soul Who Sins Shall Die

18 The word of the Lord came to me: ²“What do you^[a] mean ^(A)by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, ^(B)‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge’? ³^(C)As I live, declares the Lord God, ^(D)this proverb shall no more be used by you in Israel. ⁴Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine: ^(E)the soul who sins shall die.

⁵“If a man is righteous and does ^(F)what is just and right— ⁶if he ^(G)does not eat upon the mountains or ^(H)lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, ^(I)does not defile his neighbor's wife ^(J)or approach ^(K)a woman in her time of menstrual impurity, ⁷^(L)does not oppress anyone, but ^(M)restores to the debtor his pledge, ^(N)commits no robbery, ^(O)gives his bread to the hungry ^(P)and covers the naked with a garment, ⁸^(Q)does not lend at interest ^(R)or take any profit,^[b] withholds his hand from injustice, ^(S)executes true justice between man and man, ⁹^(T)walks in my statutes, and keeps my rules by acting faithfully—he is righteous; ^(U)he shall surely live, declares the Lord God.

¹⁰“If he fathers a son who is violent, ^(V)a shedder of blood, who does any of these things ¹¹(though he himself did none of these things), ^(W)who even eats upon the mountains, ^(X)defiles his neighbor's wife, ¹²oppresses the poor and needy, ^(Y)commits robbery, ^(Z)does not restore the pledge, ^(AA)lifts up his eyes to the idols, ^(AB)commits abomination, ¹³^(AC)lends at interest, and takes profit; shall he then live? He shall not live. He has done all these abominations; he shall surely die; ^(AD)his blood shall be upon himself.

¹⁴“Now suppose this man fathers a son who sees all the sins that his father has done; he sees, and does not do likewise: ¹⁵he does not eat upon the mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor's wife, ¹⁶does not oppress anyone, ^(AE)exacts no pledge, ^(AF)commits no robbery, ^(AG)but gives his bread to the hungry ^(AH)and covers the naked with a garment, ¹⁷withholds his hand from iniquity,^[c] takes no interest or profit, obeys my rules, ^(AI)and walks in my statutes; he shall not die for his father's iniquity; ^(AJ)he shall surely live. ¹⁸As for his father, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother, and did what is not good among his people, ^(AK)behold, he shall die for his iniquity.

¹⁹“Yet you say, ^(AL)‘Why should not the son suffer for the iniquity of the father?’ When the son has done ^(AM)what is just and right, and has been careful to observe all my statutes, ^(AN)he shall surely live. ²⁰^(AO)The soul who sins shall die. ^(AP)The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. ^(AQ)The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, ^(AR)and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.

²¹^(AS)“But if a wicked person turns away from all his sins that he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does ^(AT)what is just and right, ^(AU)he shall surely live; he shall not die. ²²^(AV)None of the transgressions that he has committed shall be remembered against him; for the righteousness that he has done he shall live. ²³^(AW)Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? ²⁴^(AX)But when a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and does injustice and does the same abominations that the wicked person does, shall he live? ^(AY)None of the righteous deeds that he has done shall be remembered; for ^(AZ)the treachery of which he is guilty and the sin he has committed, for them he shall die.

²⁵^(BA)“Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear now, O house of Israel: Is my way not just? Is it not your ways that are not just? ²⁶^(BB)When a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and does injustice, he shall die for it; for the injustice that he has done he shall die. ²⁷Again, ^(BC)when a wicked person turns away from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he shall save his life. ²⁸Because he considered and turned away from all the transgressions that he had committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die. ²⁹Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ O house of Israel, are my ways not just? Is it not your ways that are not just?

³⁰“Therefore ^(BD)I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, declares the Lord God. ^(BE)Repent and turn from all your transgressions, ^(BF)lest iniquity be your ruin.^[d] ³¹^(BG)Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed, and ^(BH)make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! ^(BI)Why will you die, O house of Israel? ³²^(BJ)For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; ^(BK)so turn, and live.”

A Lament for the Princes of Israel

19 And you, ^(BL)take up a lamentation for the princes of Israel, ²and say:

What was your mother? ^(BM)A lioness!
    Among lions she crouched;
in the midst of young lions
    she reared her cubs.
³And she brought up one of her cubs;
    ^(BN)he became a young lion,
^(BO)and he learned to catch prey;
    he devoured men.
⁴The nations heard about him;
    ^(BP)he was caught in their pit,
^(BQ)and they brought him with hooks
    to the land of Egypt.
⁵When she saw that she waited in vain,
    that her hope was lost,
^(BR)she took another of her cubs
    and made him a young lion.
⁶He prowled among the lions;
    he became a young lion,
and he learned to catch prey;
    he devoured men,
⁷and seized^[e] their widows.
    He laid waste their cities,
and the land was appalled and all who were in it
    at the sound of his roaring.
⁸^(BS)Then the nations set against him
    from provinces on every side;
^(BT)they spread their net over him;
    ^(BU)he was taken in their pit.
⁹With hooks ^(BV)they put him in a cage^[f]
    and ^(BW)brought him to the king of Babylon;
    they brought him into custody,
that his voice should no more be heard
    on ^(BX)the mountains of Israel.

¹⁰Your mother was ^(BY)like a vine in a vineyard^[g]
    planted by the water,
^(BZ)fruitful and full of branches
    ^(CA)by reason of abundant water.
¹¹Its strong stems became
    rulers' scepters;
it towered aloft
    among the thick boughs;^[h]
it was seen in its height
    with the mass of its branches.
¹²But the vine was plucked up in fury,
    cast down to the ground;
^(CB)the east wind dried up its fruit;
    they were stripped off and withered.
As for its strong stem,
    fire consumed it.
¹³^(CC)Now it is planted in the wilderness,
    in a dry and thirsty land.
¹⁴^(CD)And fire has gone out from the stem of its shoots,
    has consumed its fruit,
^(CE)so that there remains in it no strong stem,
    no scepter for ruling.

This is ^(CF)a lamentation and has become a lamentation.

Footnotes

Ezekiel 18:2 The Hebrew for you is plural
Ezekiel 18:8 That is, profit that comes from charging interest to the poor; also verses 13, 17 (compare Leviticus 25:36)
Ezekiel 18:17 Septuagint; Hebrew from the poor
Ezekiel 18:30 Or lest iniquity be your stumbling block
Ezekiel 19:7 Hebrew knew
Ezekiel 19:9 Or in a wooden collar
Ezekiel 19:10 Some Hebrew manuscripts; most Hebrew manuscripts in your blood
Ezekiel 19:11 Or the clouds

Revelation 5

English Standard Version

The Scroll and the Lamb

5 Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne ^(A)a scroll written within and on the back, ^(B)sealed with seven seals. ²And ^(C)I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” ³And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, ⁴and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. ⁵And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, ^(D)the Lion ^(E)of the tribe of Judah, ^(F)the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”

⁶And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw ^(G)a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with ^(H)seven eyes, which are ^(I)the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. ⁷And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. ⁸And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders ^(J)fell down before the Lamb, ^(K)each holding a harp, and ^(L)golden bowls full of incense, ^(M)which are the prayers of the saints. ⁹And they sang ^(N)a new song, saying,

“Worthy are you to take the scroll
    and to open its seals,
for ^(O)you were slain, and by your blood ^(P)you ransomed people for God
    from ^(Q)every tribe and language and people and nation,
¹⁰and you have made them ^(R)a kingdom and priests to our God,
    and they shall reign on the earth.”

¹¹Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering ^(S)myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, ¹²saying with a loud voice,

^(T)“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!”

¹³And I heard ^(U)every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying,

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”

¹⁴And the four living creatures ^(V)said, “Amen!” and the elders ^(W)fell down and worshiped.