Old/New Testament
The Soul Who Sins Will Die
18 The word of the Lord came to me again, saying: 2 What do you mean in using this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying:
“The fathers have eaten sour grapes,
and the children’s teeth are set on edge”?
3 As I live, says the Lord God, you shall not have occasion anymore to use this proverb in Israel. 4 All souls are Mine. The soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins shall die.
5 But if a man is righteous
and does that which is lawful and right,
6 and has not eaten on the mountains;
nor has he lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,
nor has he defiled his neighbor’s wife,
nor has he approached a woman during her impurity;
7 and he has not oppressed anyone,
but has restored to the debtor his pledge;
has devastated no one by violence,
has given his bread to the hungry,
and has covered the naked with a garment;
8 if he has not lent at interest,
nor has taken any increase,
but has withdrawn his hand from iniquity,
has executed true justice between man and man;
9 has walked in My statutes,
and has kept My judgments to deal truly,
he is righteous
and shall surely live,
says the Lord God.
10 If he begets a son who is a robber, a shedder of blood, and who does any of these things to a brother 11 (though he himself does not do any of these things),
but even has eaten on the mountain shrines
and defiled his neighbor’s wife;
12 has oppressed the poor and needy,
has devastated by violence,
has not restored the pledge,
and has lifted up his eyes to the idols,
has committed abomination,
13 has lent at interest, and has taken increase, shall he then live?
He shall not live. He has done all these abominations. He shall surely die. His blood shall be upon his own head.
14 Now if he begets a son who sees all his father’s sins which he has done, and considering does not do likewise:
15 He has not eaten on the mountain shrines,
nor has he lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,
has not defiled his neighbor’s wife;
16 nor has he oppressed anyone,
has not withheld a pledge,
nor has he devastated by violence,
but has given his bread to the hungry,
and has covered the naked with a garment;
17 he keeps his hand from the poor,
has not received usury nor increase,
has executed My judgments, and has walked in My statutes.
He shall not die for the iniquity of his father; he shall surely live. 18 As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed, devastated his brother by violence, and did that which is not good among his people, he shall die for his iniquity.
Repent and Live
19 Yet you say, “Why should the son not bear the punishment of the iniquity of the father?” When the son has done what is lawful and right, and has kept all My statutes, and has done them, he shall surely live. 20 The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the punishment of the iniquity of the father, nor shall the father bear the punishment of the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.
21 But if the wicked turns from all his sins that he has committed, and keeps all My statutes, and does that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live. He shall not die. 22 All his transgressions that he has committed, they shall not be remembered against him. Because of his righteousness that he has done, he shall live. 23 Do I have any pleasure in the death of the wicked, says the Lord God, but rather that he should turn from his ways and live?
24 But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All his righteousness that he has done shall not be remembered for his trespass that he has committed and in his sin that he has done. In them he shall die.
25 Yet you say, “The way of the Lord is not right.” Hear now, O house of Israel. Is not My way right? Are not your ways not right? 26 When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, he dies in it. For his iniquity that he has done he shall die. 27 Again, when the wicked man turns away from his wickedness that he has committed and does that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul. 28 Because he considered and turned away from all his transgressions that he has committed, he shall surely live. He shall not die. 29 Yet the house of Israel says, “The way of the Lord is not right.” O house of Israel, are not My ways right? Are not your ways not right?
30 Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, says the Lord God. Repent, and turn away from all your transgressions so that iniquity shall not be your ruin. 31 Cast away from you all your transgressions whereby you have transgressed, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why will you die, O house of Israel? 32 For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies, says the Lord God. Therefore, repent and live.
A Lament for Israel’s Princes
19 Moreover take up a lamentation for the officials of Israel, 2 and say:
What was your mother?
A lioness among lions!
She lay down among young lions;
she nourished her whelps.
3 When she brought up one of her whelps,
he became a lion
and learned to catch his prey;
he devoured men.
4 The nations also heard of him;
he was taken in their pit,
and they brought him with chains
to the land of Egypt.
5 Now when she saw as she had waited
that her hope was lost,
then she took another of her whelps
and made him a young lion.
6 He went up and down among the lions;
he became a young lion,
and learned to catch the prey,
and devoured men.
7 He destroyed their fortified palaces,
and he laid waste their cities;
and the land and its fullness
were appalled by the noise of his roaring.
8 Then the nations set against him
on every side from their provinces,
and spread their net over him;
he was taken in their pit.
9 They put him in a cage with hooks
and brought him to the king of Babylon;
they brought him in hunting nets,
so that his voice would be heard no more
on the mountains of Israel.
10 Your mother was like a vine in your vineyard,
planted by the waters;
it was fruitful and full of branches
by reason of many waters.
11 It had strong rods
for the scepters of those who rule.
And its stature
was exalted above the clouds,
so it appeared in its height
with the multitude of its branches.
12 But it was plucked up in fury,
it was cast down to the ground,
and the east wind dried up its fruit.
Its strong rod was broken and it withered;
the fire consumed it.
13 Now it is planted in the wilderness,
in a dry and thirsty ground.
14 Fire has gone out from its branch;
it has devoured its shoots and fruit,
so that there is no strong rod in it,
a scepter to rule.
This is a lamentation, and has become a lamentation.
Friendship With the World
4 Where do wars and fights among you come from? Do they not come from your lusts that war in your body? 2 You lust and do not have, so you kill. You desire to have and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have, because you do not ask. 3 You ask, and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your passions.
4 You adulterers and adulteresses, do you not know that the friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. 5 Do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “He yearns jealously for the spirit that lives in us”[a]? 6 But He gives more grace. For this reason it says:
“God resists the proud,
but gives grace to the humble.”[b]
7 Therefore submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Grieve and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to dejection. 10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
Judging a Brother
11 Do not speak evil of one another, brothers. He who speaks evil of his brother and judges his brother speaks evil of the law and judges the law. If you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge. 12 There is one Lawgiver who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?
Warning Against Boasting
13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into this city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit,” 14 whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? It is just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” 16 But now you are rejoicing in your boastings. All such rejoicing is evil. 17 Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, it is sin.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.