The word of Jehovah came unto me again, saying,
What mean ye, that ye use this proverb {Or, in}concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge?
As I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in Israel.
Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
But if a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right,
and hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, neither hath defiled his neighbor's wife, neither hath come near to a woman in her impurity,
and hath not wronged any, but hath restored to the debtor his pledge, hath taken nought by robbery, hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment;
he that hath not given forth upon interest, neither hath taken any increase, that hath withdrawn his hand from iniquity, hath executed true justice between man and man,
hath walked in my statutes, and hath kept mine ordinances, to deal truly; he is just, he shall surely live, saith the Lord Jehovah.
If he beget a son that is a robber, a shedder of blood, and {Or, that doeth to a brother any of these}that doeth any one of these things,
and that doeth not any of those duties, but even hath eaten upon the mountains, and defiled his neighbor's wife,
hath wronged the poor and needy, hath taken by robbery, hath not restored the pledge, and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination,
hath given forth upon interest, and hath taken increase; shall he then live? he shall not live: he hath done all these abominations; he shall surely {Hebrew: he put to death.}die; his blood shall be upon him.
Now, lo, if he beget a son, that seeth all his father's sins, which he hath done, and {Another reading is, seeth Or, considereth.}feareth, and doeth not such like;
that hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, hath not defiled his neighbor's wife,
neither hath wronged any, hath not taken aught to pledge, neither hath taken by robbery, but hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment;
that hath withdrawn his hand from the poor, that hath not received interest nor increase, hath executed mine ordinances, hath walked in my statutes; he shall not die for the iniquity of his father, he shall surely live.
As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed, robbed his brother, and did that which is not good among his people, behold, he shall die {Or, for}in his iniquity.
Yet say ye, Wherefore doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When the son hath done that which is lawful and right, and hath kept all my statutes, and hath done them, he shall surely live.
The soul that sinneth, it shall die: the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son; the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.
But if the wicked turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
None of his transgressions that he hath committed shall be remembered against him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live.
Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked? saith the Lord Jehovah; and not rather that he should return from his way, and live?
But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? None of his righteous deeds that he hath done shall be remembered: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die.
Yet ye say, The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel: Is not my way equal? are not your ways unequal?
When the righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, {Or, he shall die}and dieth {Or, because of it}therein; {Or, for}in his iniquity that he hath done shall he die.
Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive.
Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
Yet saith the house of Israel, The way of the Lord is not equal. O house of Israel, are not my ways equal? are not your ways unequal?
Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord Jehovah. Return ye, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; {Or, so shall they not be a stumblingblock of iniquity unto you}so iniquity shall not be your {Hebrew: stumblingblock.}ruin.
Cast away from you all your transgressions, wherein ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel?
For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord Jehovah: wherefore turn yourselves, and live.
Querverweise zu Hesekiel 18,7 Hes 18,7
hath wronged the poor and needy, hath taken by robbery, hath not restored the pledge, and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination,
if the wicked restore the pledge, give again that which he had taken by robbery, walk in the statutes of life, committing no iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die.
Make the chain; for the land is full of {Hebrew: judgement of blood.}bloody crimes, and the city is full of violence.
neither hath wronged any, hath not taken aught to pledge, neither hath taken by robbery, but hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment;
neither hath wronged any, hath not taken aught to pledge, neither hath taken by robbery, but hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment;
If thou at all take thy neighbor's garment to pledge, thou shalt restore it unto him before the sun goeth down:
And the earth was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.
If there be with thee a poor man, one of thy brethren, within any of thy gates in thy land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thy heart, nor shut thy hand from thy poor brother;
but thou shalt surely open thy hand unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need in that which he wanteth.
Beware that there be not a base thought in thy heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou give him nought; and he cry unto Jehovah against thee, and it be sin unto thee.
Thou shalt surely give him, and thy heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him; because that for this thing Jehovah thy God will bless thee in all thy work, and in all that thou puttest thy hand unto.
For the poor will never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt surely open thy hand unto thy brother, to thy needy, and to thy poor, in thy land.
As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed, robbed his brother, and did that which is not good among his people, behold, he shall die {Or, for}in his iniquity.
And if he be a poor man, thou shalt not sleep with his pledge;
And God saw the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth.
If I have withheld {Or, aught that the poor desired}the poor from their desire,Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
Or have eaten my morsel alone,And the fatherless hath not eaten thereof
(Nay, from my youth he grew up with me as with a father,And her have I guided from my mother's womb);
If I have seen any perish for want of clothing,Or that the needy had no covering;
If his loins have not blessed me,And if he hath not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
In thee have they taken bribes to shed blood; thou hast taken interest and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbors by oppression, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord Jehovah.
thou shalt surely restore to him the pledge when the sun goeth down, that he may sleep in his garment, and bless thee: and it shall be righteousness unto thee before Jehovah thy God.
Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.
For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.Blessed is he that considereth {Or, the weak}the poor:Jehovah will deliver him in the day of evil.
Behold, therefore, I have smitten my hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast made, and at thy blood which hath been in the midst of thee.
Thou shalt not wrest the justice due to the sojourner, or to the fatherless, nor take the widow's raiment to pledge;
Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; desolation and destruction are in their {Or, highways}paths.
Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness:He is gracious, and merciful, and righteous.
Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, that they may get dishonest gain.
And her prophets have daubed for them with {Or, whitewash}untempered mortar, seeing false visions, and divining lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, when Jehovah hath not spoken.
The people of the land have used oppression, and exercised robbery; yea, they have vexed the poor and needy, and have oppressed the sojourner wrongfully.
For thou hast taken pledges of thy brother for nought,And stripped the naked of their clothing.
Thus saith Jehovah: Execute ye justice and righteousness, and deliver him that is robbed out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence, to the sojourner, the fatherless, nor the widow; neither shed innocent blood in this place.
He hath dispersed, he hath given to the needy;His righteousness endureth for ever:His horn shall be exalted with honor.
And a sojourner shalt thou not wrong, neither shalt thou oppress him: for ye were sojourners in the land of Egypt.
Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child.
If thou afflict them at all, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry;
and my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.
They drive away the ass of the fatherless;They take the widow's ox for a pledge.
He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Was not this to know me? saith Jehovah.
There is that scattereth, and increaseth yet more;And there is that withholdeth {Or, what is justly due}more than is meet, but it tendeth only to want.
And a sojourner shalt thou not oppress: for ye know the heart of a sojourner, seeing ye were sojourners in the land of Egypt.
There are that pluck the fatherless from the breast,And {Or, take in pledge that which is on the poor}take a pledge of the poor;
But thine eyes and thy heart are not but for thy {Or, dishonest gain}covetousness, and for shedding innocent blood, and for oppression, and for violence, to do it.
The liberal soul shall be made fat;And he that watereth shall be watered also himself.
Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty; but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbor.
and they lay themselves down beside every altar upon clothes taken in pledge; and in the house of their God they drink the wine of such as have been fined.
For they know not to do right, saith Jehovah, who store up violence and robbery in their palaces.
He that augmenteth his substance by interest and increase,Gathereth it for him that hath pity on the poor.
And if thou sell aught unto thy neighbor, or buy of thy neighbor's hand, ye shall not wrong one another.
Forasmuch therefore as ye trample upon the poor, and take exactions from him of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink the wine thereof.
He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack;But he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.
Here I am: witness against me before Jehovah, and before his anointed: whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded? whom have I oppressed? or of whose hand have I taken a {Or, bribe}ransom {Or, that I should hide mine eyes at him}to blind mine eyes therewith? and I will restore it you.
For I know how manifold are your transgressions, and how mighty are your sins— ye that afflict the just, that take a bribe, and that turn aside the needy in the gate from their right.
Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?
Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thy healing shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of Jehovah shall be thy rearward.
Then shalt thou call, and Jehovah will answer; thou shalt cry, and he will say, Here I am.If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger, and speaking wickedly;
and if thou {Or, bestow on the hungry that which thy soul desireth}draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul: then shall thy light rise in darkness, and thine obscurity be as the noonday;
and Jehovah will guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in {Or, drought}dry places, and make strong thy bones; and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.
And they said, Thou hast not defrauded us, nor oppressed us, neither hast thou taken aught of any man's hand.
— ye that put far away the evil day, and cause the {Or, sitting}seat of violence to come near;
Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
for I was hungry, and ye gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in;
naked, and ye clothed me; I was sick, and ye visited me; I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, and fed thee? or athirst, and gave thee drink?
And when saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
And when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of these my brethren, even these least, ye did it unto me.
Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, {Or, Depart from me under a curse}Depart from me, ye cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels:
for I was hungry, and ye did not give me to eat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink;
I was a stranger, and ye took me not in; naked, and ye clothed me not; sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
Then shall they also answer, saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not unto one of these least, ye did it not unto me.
And these shall go away into eternal punishment: but the righteous into eternal life.
If I have despised the cause of my man-servant or of my maid-servant,When they contended with me;
What then shall I do when God riseth up?And when he visiteth, what shall I answer him?
Did not he that made me in the womb make him?And did not one fashion us in the womb?
If I have withheld {Or, aught that the poor desired}the poor from their desire,Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
Or have eaten my morsel alone,And the fatherless hath not eaten thereof
(Nay, from my youth he grew up with me as with a father,And her have I guided from my mother's womb);
If I have seen any perish for want of clothing,Or that the needy had no covering;
If his loins have not blessed me,And if he hath not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
If I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless,Because I saw my help in the gate:
Then let my shoulder fall from the shoulder-blade,And mine arm be broken from the bone.
And in that day I will {Hebrew: visit upon.}punish all those that leap over the threshold, that fill their master's house with violence and deceit.
And he answered and said unto them, He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath food, let him do likewise.
Envy thou not the man of violence,And choose none of his ways.
But as ye abound in everything, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all earnestness, and in {Some ancient authorities read our love to you.}your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.
I speak not by way of commandment, but as proving through the earnestness of others the sincerity also of your love.
For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might become rich.
He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker;But he that hath mercy on the needy honoreth him.
But this I say, He that soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he that soweth {Greek: with blessings. Compare verse 5.}bountifully shall reap also {Greek: with blessings. Compare verse 5.}bountifully.
Let each man do according as he hath purposed in his heart: not {Greek: of sorrow.}grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
And God is able to make all grace abound unto you; that ye, having always all sufficiency in everything, may abound unto every good work:
as it is written, {Psalm 112:9.}He hath scattered abroad, he hath given to the poor;His righteousness abideth for ever.
And he that supplieth seed to the sower and bread for food, shall supply and multiply your seed for sowing, and increase the fruits of your righteousness:
ye being enriched in everything unto all {Greek: singleness. Compare chapter 8:2.}liberality, which worketh through us thanksgiving to God.
For the ministration of this service not only filleth up the measure of the wants of the saints, but aboundeth also through many thanksgivings unto God;
seeing that through the proving of you by this ministration they glorify God for the obedience of your confession unto the {Greek: good tidings. See marginal note on chapter 2:12.}gospel of Christ, and for the {Greek: singleness. Compare chapter 8:2.}liberality of your contribution unto them and unto all;
while they themselves also, with supplication on your behalf, long after you by reason of the exceeding grace of God in you.
Rob not the poor, {Or, for}because he is poor;Neither {Or, crush}oppress the afflicted in the gate:
For judgment is without mercy to him that hath showed no mercy: mercy glorieth against judgment.
What doth it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith, but have not works? can that faith save him?
If a brother or sister be naked and in lack of daily food,
and one of you say unto them, Go in peace, be ye warmed and filled; and yet ye give them not the things needful to the body; what doth it profit?
Even so faith, if it have not works, is dead in itself.
For Jehovah will plead their cause,And despoil of life those that despoil them.
Hereby know we love, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
But whoso hath the world's goods, and beholdeth his brother in need, and shutteth up his compassion from him, how doth the love of God abide in him?
My little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue; but in deed and truth.
Hereby shall we know that we are of the truth, and shall {Greek: persuade. compare Matthew 28:14.}assure our heart {Or, before him, whereinsoever our heart condemn us; because God & c.}before him:
learn to do well; seek justice, {Or, set right the oppressor}relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.
For the vineyard of Jehovah of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah {Hebrew: the plant of his delight.}his pleasant plant: and he looked for justice, but, behold, {Or, shedding of blood}oppression; for righteousness, but, behold, a cry.
He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of {Or, fraud}oppressions, that shaketh his hands from taking a bribe, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from looking upon evil:
Is not this the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
if ye oppress not the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your own hurt:
then will I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, from of old even for evermore.
Thus saith Jehovah: For three transgressions of Israel, yea, for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have sold the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes—
Hear this, O ye that would swallow up the needy, and cause the poor of the land to fail,
saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell grain? and the sabbath, that we may {Hebrew: open.}set forth wheat, making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and dealing falsely with balances of deceit;
that we may buy the poor for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes, and sell the refuse of the wheat?
Woe to them that devise iniquity and work evil upon their beds! when the morning is light, they practise it, because it is in the power of their hand.
ye who hate the good, and love the evil; who pluck off their skin from off them, and their flesh from off their bones;
Thus hath Jehovah of hosts spoken, saying, Execute true judgment, and show kindness and compassion every man to his brother;
and oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the sojourner, nor the poor; and let none of you devise evil against his brother in your heart.
But they refused to hearken, and {Or, turned a stubborn shoulder}pulled away the shoulder, and {Or, made their ears heavy See Isaiah 6:10.}stopped their ears, that they might not hear.
And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against the false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the sojourner from his right, and fear not me, saith Jehovah of hosts.
Come now, ye rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you.
Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten.
Your gold and your silver are rusted; and their rust shall be for a testimony {Or, unto}against you, and shall eat your flesh as fire. Ye have laid up your treasure in the last days.
Behold, the hire of the laborers who mowed your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth out: and the cries of them that reaped have entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.
Ye have lived delicately on the earth, and taken your pleasure; ye have nourished your hearts in a day of slaughter.
Ye have condemned, ye have killed the righteous one; he doth not resist you.