Ezekiel 3:16-21
New English Translation
16 At the end of seven days the Lord’s message came to me: 17 “Son of man, I have appointed you a watchman[a] for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you must give them a warning from me. 18 When I say to the wicked, ‘You will certainly die,’[b] and you do not warn him—you do not speak out to warn the wicked to turn from his wicked lifestyle so that he may live—that wicked person will die for his iniquity,[c] but I will hold you accountable for his death.[d] 19 But as for you, if you warn the wicked and he does not turn from his wicked deed and from his wicked lifestyle, he will die for his iniquity but you will have saved your own life.[e]
20 “When a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I set an obstacle[f] 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. 21 However, if you warn the righteous person not to sin, and he[g] does not sin, he will certainly live because he was warned, and you will have saved your own life.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Ezekiel 3:17 tn The literal role of a watchman is described in 2 Sam 18:24 and 2 Kgs 9:17.
- Ezekiel 3:18 sn Even though the infinitive absolute is used to emphasize the warning, the warning is still implicitly conditional, as the following context makes clear.
- Ezekiel 3:18 tn Or “in his punishment.” The phrase “in/for [a person’s] iniquity” occurs fourteen times in Ezekiel: here and v. 19; 4:17; 7:13, 16; 18:17, 18, 19, 20; 24:23; 33:6, 8, 9; 39:23. The Hebrew word for “iniquity” may also mean the “punishment for iniquity.”
- Ezekiel 3:18 tn Heb “his blood I will seek from your hand.” The expression “seek blood from the hand” is equivalent to requiring the death penalty (2 Sam 4:11-12).
- Ezekiel 3:19 tn Verses 17-19 are repeated in Ezek 33:7-9.
- Ezekiel 3:20 tn Or “stumbling block.” The Hebrew term refers to an obstacle in the road in Lev 19:14.
- Ezekiel 3:21 tn Heb “the righteous man.”
Ezekiel 3:16-21
International Standard Version
16 At the end of the seven days, this message from the Lord came to me: 17 “Son of Man,” he said,[a] “I’ve appointed you to be a watchman[b] over the house of Israel. Therefore when you hear a message that comes from me, you are to warn them for me.
18 “So when I say to a wicked person, ‘You’re about to die,’ if you don’t warn or instruct that wicked person that his behavior[c] is wicked so he can live, that wicked person will die in his sin, but I’ll hold you responsible for his death.[d] 19 If you warn the wicked person, and he doesn’t repent of his wickedness or of his wicked behavior,[e] he’ll die in his sin, but you will have saved your own life.
20 “When a righteous man abandons his righteousness to practice unrighteousness, I’ll set a stumbling block before him. He’ll die. If you don’t warn him, he’ll die in his sin and the righteous deeds that he had practiced won’t be remembered, but you’ll be held responsible for his death.[f] 21 If you warn the righteous person, so that he[g] doesn’t commit sin, then he’ll live, since he had been warned. And you will have saved your life.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Ezekiel 3:17 The Heb. lacks he said
- Ezekiel 3:17 cf. 2Sam 18:24; 2King 9:17
- Ezekiel 3:18 Lit. ways
- Ezekiel 3:18 Lit. but I’ll seek his blood from your hand
- Ezekiel 3:19 Lit. ways
- Ezekiel 3:20 Lit. but I’ll seek his blood from your hand
- Ezekiel 3:21 Lit. righteous person.
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