Ezekiel 18
Personal Accountability
1 Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying,†
2 “Son of man, what is the meaning of this parable among the children of Israel which says, ‘The fathers eat unripe grapes, and the children’s teeth grind’?
3 As I live,” says the Lord, “you shall no longer use this parable in Israel.
4 For all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. “The soul who sins, he shall die.
5 But the man who is righteous and does judgment and righteousness,
6 who will not eat on the mountains, or lift up his eyes to the inventions of the house of Israel, or defile his neighbor’s wife, and who will not approach a woman during her menstruation,
7 or oppress any man, but who will restore to the debtor his pledge, and commit no robbery, but who will give his bread to the hungry and cover the naked,
8 and who will not lend his money with interest, but will turn his hand from wrongdoing, and do righteous judgment between a man and his neighbor,
9 and walk in My ordinances, and keep My requirements to do them—this man is righteous. He will surely live!” says the Lord.
10 “But if he begets a troublesome son, who sheds blood, commits sins,
11 does not walk in the way of his righteous father, but eats on the mountains, defiles his neighbor’s wife,
12 oppresses the poor and needy, commits robbery, does not restore a pledge, sets his eyes on the idols, commits lawlessness,
13 exacts interest, and takes unjust gains—this son shall not live, because he did all this lawlessness. He will surely die, and his blood shall be upon himself.
14 “If, however, he begets a son who sees all the sins his father commits, but fears and does not do according to these things—
15 does not eat on the mountains, nor sets his eyes on the inventions of the house of Israel, nor defiles his neighbor’s wife,
16 nor oppresses anyone, nor withholds a pledge, nor commits robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry, covers the naked,
17 and turns his hand from wrongdoing, nor receives interest, nor takes unjust gains, but does righteousness and walks in My ordinances—this son shall not die for the wrongdoings of his father. He will surely live.
18 As for his father, if he cruelly oppresses and robs his brother, and does these contrary things in the midst of My people, he shall die in his wrongdoing.
Turn from Evil and Live
19 “Yet you say, ‘Why does a son not bear the wrongdoing of his father?’ Because the son practiced righteousness, showed mercy, kept all My commandments and did them. Thus he will surely live.
20 But the soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the wrongdoing of his father, nor shall the father bear the wrongdoing of his son. The righteousness of a righteous man shall be upon himself, and the lawlessness of a lawless man shall be upon himself.
21 But if a lawless man turns from all the lawless deeds he commits, keeps all My commandments, does righteousness and shows mercy, he will surely live and not die.
22 None of the transgressions he commits will be remembered. In the righteousness he does, he shall live.
23 Do I ever will the death of a lawless man,” says the Lord, “since My will is for him to turn from the evil way and live?
24 But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits a wrongdoing, according to all the lawlessness a lawless man commits, then all the righteousness he does shall not be remembered. In the transgression he falls into and in his sins he commits, in these he shall die.
25 “Yet you say, ‘The Lord’s way is not straight.’ Hear now, all the house of Israel, is My way not straight? Is your way straight?
26 When the righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits a transgression, and dies in the transgression he commits, he should die because of it.
27 Again when a lawless man turns away from the lawlessness he commits and does judgment and righteousness, then he guards his life;
28 for he turned himself away from all the ungodliness he committed. He will surely live and not die.
29 Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The Lord’s way is not right.’ Is not My way right, O house of Israel? Is not your way wrong?
30 I shall judge you, O house of Israel, each one according to his way,” says the Lord. “Return and turn away from all your ungodliness, and it shall not be to you as a punishment for wrongdoing.
31 Cast away from yourself all your ungodliness you commit against Me, and make a new heart and a new spirit for yourselves. For why should you die, O house of Israel?
32 For I do not will the death of the one who dies,” says the Lord.†
Psalms 118
49 Remember Your word to Your servant, In which You give me hope.
50 This comforted me in my humiliation, For Your teaching gives me life.
51 The arrogant transgressed exceedingly, But I did not turn away from Your law.
52 I remembered Your judgments of old, O Lord, And I was comforted.
53 Despondency held me because of sinners Who abandon Your law.
54 Your ordinances were sung to me In the place of my sojourning.
55 I remembered Your name in the night, O Lord, And I kept Your law.
56 This happened to me in the night, Because I searched Your ordinances.
57 You are my portion, O Lord; I said I will keep Your law.
58 I sought Your presence with my whole heart; Have mercy on me according to Your teaching.
59 I considered Your ways, And I turned my feet toward Your testimonies.
60 I prepared myself, and I was not troubled, That I might keep Your commandments.
61 The ropes of sinners ensnared me, But I did not forget Your law.
62 At midnight I arose to give thanks to You Because of the judgments of Your righteousness.
63 I am a companion of all who fear You And keep Your commandments.
64 O Lord, the earth is full of Your mercy; Teach me Your ordinances.
Proverbs of Solomon 26
The Undiscerning Man
1 As dew in harvest and as rain in summer, So honor is not for a man without discernment.†
2 As birds and sparrows fly, So a curse will not come upon anyone without a cause.
3 As a whip for a horse and a prod for a donkey, So is a rod for a lawless nation.
4 Do not answer an undiscerning man in relation to his lack of discernment, Lest you become like him.
5 But answer an undiscerning man contrary to his lack of discernment, So he may not appear wise to himself.
1 Peter 2
Desire Christ
1 Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking,†
2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby,†
3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.
The New Priesthood
4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious,†
5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.†
6 Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, “Behold, I lay in Zion A chief cornerstone, elect, precious, And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.”
7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, “The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone,”
8 and “A stone of stumbling And a rock of offense.” They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed.
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;†
10 who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.
All Men and Women: Bondservants of God
11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,†
12 having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.
13 Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme,†
14 or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good.
15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men—
16 as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God.
17 Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.
Servants: Submissive to Masters
18 Servants, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh.†
19 For this is commendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully.
20 For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God.
21 For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:
22 “Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth” ;†
23 who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously;
24 who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.
25 For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.†