Ezekiel 3:18

Ezekiel 3:18 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
• New International Version (NIV)When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.
• English Standard Version (ESV)If I say to the wicked, 'You shall surely die,' and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand.
• New King James Version (NKJV)When I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life, that same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand.

Context of Ezekiel 3:18

16Now at the end of seven days, the word of Adonai came to me saying: 17“Son of man, I have appointed you as a watchman for the house of Israel. When you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me. When I say to the wicked, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn him or speak to warn the wicked of his wicked way, to save his life, that wicked person will die in his iniquity, but I will require his blood from your hand. 19Yet you, if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his wicked way, he will die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your soul. 20When a righteous person turns from his righteousness and acts perversely, I will lay a stumbling block before him and he will die. Because you have not warned him, he will die in his sin. His righteous deeds that he has done will not be remembered—but I will require his blood at your hand.

Ezekiel 3:18 word by word

בְּאָמְרִ֤י לָֽרָשָׁע֙ מ֣וֹת תָּמ֔וּת וְלֹ֣א הִזְהַרְתּ֗וֹ וְלֹ֥א דִבַּ֛רְתָּ לְהַזְהִ֥יר רָשָׁ֛ע מִדַּרְכּ֥וֹ הָרְשָׁעָ֖ה לְחַיֹּת֑וֹ ה֤וּא רָשָׁע֙ בַּעֲוֹנ֣וֹ יָמ֔וּת וְדָמ֖וֹ מִיָּדְךָ֥ אֲבַקֵּֽשׁ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• When I sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto the wickedרָשָׁעrâshâ‛ · wickedH7563
• Thou shalt surelyמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
• and thou givest him not warningזָהַרzâhar · to warnH2094
• nor speakestדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
• wayדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: conductH1870
• to save his lifeחָיָהchâyâh · to liveH2421
• in his iniquityעָוֺן‛âvôn ‛âvôn · iniquity: crimeH5771
• but his bloodדָּםdâm · bloodH1818
• will I requireבָּקַשׁbâqash · to seekH1245
• at thine handיָדyâd · handH3027

Cross-references for Ezekiel 3:18

• Ezekiel 18:4Behold, every living soul is Mine—the soul of father as well as the soul of son—both are Mine. Behold, the soul who sins is the one who will die.
• Ezekiel 33:6But if the watchman sees the sword come and does not blow the shofar, the people are not warned. Then the sword does come and takes a person from among them—he is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.’
• Genesis 2:17But of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil you must not eat. For when you eat from it, you most assuredly will die!
• Genesis 3:3But of the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God said, ‘You must not eat of it and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”
• Numbers 26:55Certainly the land is to be divided by lot. They will inherit it according to the names of their ancestral tribes.
• 2 Kings 1:4Therefore thus says Adonai: ‘You will not leave the bed you are lying on, for you will surely die.’” And Elijah departed.
• Isaiah 3:11Oy , the wicked! It will be bad for him, for the dealing of his hands will be done to him.
• Luke 13:3No, I tell you! But unless you repent, you all will perish the same way.
• Ephesians 5:5Know for certain that no immoral, indecent, or greedy person—who is really an idol worshipper at heart—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Messiah and God.
• Ezekiel 18:30“Therefore I will judge you, house of Israel, each one according to his ways.” It is a declaration of Adonai. “Return, and turn away from all your transgressions, so they would not be a stumbling block of iniquity for you.
• Acts 2:40With many other words he warned them and kept urging them, saying, “Save yourselves from this twisted generation!”
• Acts 3:19Repent, therefore, and return—so your sins might be blotted out,
• 1 Timothy 4:16Give attention to yourself and your teaching. Persevere in these things, for in doing so you will save yourself and those who hear you.
• James 5:19My brothers and sisters, if any among you strays from the truth and someone turns him back,
• Proverbs 14:32The wicked is brought down in his calamity yet the righteous has a refuge even in death.
• John 8:21Then again Yeshua spoke to them, “I am going away. You will look for Me and die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.”

Commentaries on Ezekiel 3:18

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 18Thou shalt surely die - That is, If he turn not from his wickedness, and thou givest him not warning, as above, he shalt die in his iniquity, which he should not have committed; but his blood will I require at thy hand - I will visit thy soul for the loss of his. O how awful is this! Hear it, ye priests, ye preachers, ye ministers of the Gospel; ye, especially, who have entered into the ministry for a living, ye who gather a congregation to yourselves…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18-21Verses 18-21 This passage anticipates the great moral principle of divine government 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…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-21Verses 12-21 This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to serve his generation. The Lord told the prophet he had appointed…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-19Ezekiel was called to be a watchman, a common role for Old Testament prophets (see Isaiah 56:10; Jeremiah 6:17; Hosea 9:8). The watchman looked out for the community. He had to warn people about approaching enemies so they could find safety in time. In this case, the enemy was not a human invader but God. If Ezekiel stayed silent, he would be responsible for the blood of those he failed to warn.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1818. warning ... speakest to warn--The repetition implies that it is not enough to warn once in passing, but that the warning is to be inculcated continually (2Ti 4:2, "in season, out of season"; Ac 20:31, "night and day with tears"). save--Eze 2:5 had seemingly taken away all hope of salvation; but the reference there was to the mass of the people whose case was hopeless; a few individuals, however, were reclaimable. die in ... iniquity--(Joh 8:21, 24)…Read the comment

Topics related to Ezekiel 3:18

• Ignorance
• Minister, Christian
• Wicked (People)

In the dictionaries

• Hard
• Living creatures
• Warning
• Agabus
• Creature

Commentaries on Ezekiel 3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings