Ezekiel 18:2-20

2‘You say this proverb about Israel: “The fathers have eaten bitter fruit, but it causes their children's teeth to hurt.” Why do you say that?

3Now I, the Lord God, tell you this: You will no longer say that proverb in Israel!

4Everyone who lives belong to me. I have authority over the life of the father and over the life of the son. It is the people who do wrong things who will die because of their sins.

5There may be a truly good man who does what is right and fair.

6He does not go up the mountains and eat the food of idols. He does not pray to the idols that other Israelites worship. He does not have sex with another man's wife. He does not have sex with a woman when she is unclean.

7He is not cruel to other people. When he lends money to someone, he gives back anything that he has taken as a guarantee. He does not take things that belong to other people. He gives food to hungry people. He gives clothes to poor people.

8He does not lend money to someone and then ask to receive more money back. He refuses to do anything that is wrong. He helps people in a way that is right and fair.

9He faithfully obeys my laws and my rules. A man like that is righteous. He will continue to live. That is what the Almighty Lord says.

10But that man may have a son who is cruel and violent. He may kill other people. He may do those bad things that his father never did.

11He may go up the mountains and eat the food of idols. He might have sex with another man's wife.

12He might be cruel to people who are poor and weak. He might take things that belong to other people. He might not give back things that he took as a guarantee. He prays to idols. He does disgusting things.

13When he lends money to people, he wants them to pay back a lot more money to him. A man like that will not continue to live! He will certainly die, because he himself has done all these disgusting things. He is guilty, so he himself must die as his punishment.

14But this wicked man might have a son himself. The son sees all the sins that his father has done. He thinks about them. Then he decides that he will not live as his father has lived.

15He does not go up the mountains to eat the food of idols. He does not pray to the idols that other Israelites worship. He does not have sex with another man's wife.

16He is not cruel to anyone. He does not keep anything that he has taken from someone as a guarantee. He does not rob other people. But he gives food to hungry people. He gives clothes to poor people.

17He refuses to do anything that is wrong. When he lends money to people, he does not take more back money back from them. He obeys my rules and my laws. This man will certainly continue to live. He will not die because of his father's sins.

18But his father will die as punishment for his own sins. He cheated people. He robbed people. He did evil things among his own people. So he will die because of his own sins.

19You should not say, “Surely the son should receive punishment because of his father's sins.” If the son does what is good and right, and he obeys my laws and my rules, he will continue to live.

20It is the person who does wrong things who will die. A son will not receive punishment because of his father's sins. And a father will not receive punishment because of his son's sins. Righteous people will receive the good things that they deserve for the good things that they have done. But wicked people will receive the punishment that they deserve for the wicked things that they have done.