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Ezekiel 33:13

in Ezekiel 33

If I tell the righteous man that he will surely live, but he then trusts in his righteousness and commits iniquity, then none of his righteous works will be remembered; he will die because of the iniquity he has committed.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

When I say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his righteousness, and commit iniquity, none of his righteous deeds shall be remembered; but in his iniquity that he hath committed, therein shall he die.

KJV

When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it.

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This verse in Ezekiel 33

Commentary

7 notes on this verse

A commentator

Gregory the Dialogist

Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 34 · Written before 604.

If you are righteous, fear his wrath lest you slip; if you are a sinner, believe in his mercy so that you can arise. But see, we have already fallen, we are not strong enough to stand, we lie prostrate in our evil desires. He who created us to be upright still waits, and he appeals to us to rise. He opens up his heart of love and seeks to get us back to himself again through repentance.

This site's exposition

righteous man will not deliver him

on Ezekiel 33:12-16

The chapter restates the argument of chapter 18: past righteousness cannot cover a present fall, and past wickedness cannot condemn a present turning. Verses 14 to 16 give the case of a wicked man. The Lord says, “None of the sins he has committed will be held against him”.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers1 voice

A commentator

Jerome

Commentary on Ezekiel · Written before 420.

proposed

(Versed 10ff.) Therefore, son of man, speak to the house of Israel and say to them: 'Our transgressions and sins are upon us, and we waste away because of them. How then can we live?' Say to them: 'As surely as I live, declares the Lord God, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, O house of Israel?'

The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

Here is a particular message sent to those who yet remained in the land of Israel, and (which is very strange) grew secure there, and confident that they should take root there again, to tell them that their hopes would fail them because they persisted in their sins,

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

So the case is put here: If he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, and come to make a trade of sin--if he not only take a false step, but turn aside into a false way and persist in it. This may possibly be the case of a righteous man, and it is the effect of his trusting to his own righteousness.
When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live,....

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

If he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity - If he trust in his acting according to the statutes and ordinances of religion, and according to the laws relative to rights and wrongs among men, and in other respects commit iniquity, he shall die for it.

How the passage was read

What the Jewish commentators add

none.. will be remembered to save him from being punished for his sin.
Rashi: France, 1040–1105 · Rashi on Ezekiel 33:13:1, via Sefaria, The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg

This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.

Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.

The words behind it

19 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • בְּאָמְרִ֤יwhen say I

    beameriH559 →5305 times

  • לַצַּדִּיק֙to the righteous [person]

    latzadikH6662 →206 times

  • חָיֹ֣הcertainly <live>

    chayohH2421 →282 times

  • יִֽחְיֶ֔הhe will live

    yichyehH2421 →282 times

  • וְהֽוּא־and he

    vehu'-H1931 →1879 times

  • בָטַ֥חhe relies

    vatachH982 →

  • עַל־on

    ʾal-H5921 →5755 times

  • צִדְקָת֖וֹrighteousness his

    tzidkatoH6666 →157 times

  • וְעָ֣שָׂהand he will do

    veasahH6213 →2628 times

  • עָ֑וֶלunrighteousness

    ʾavelH5766 →54 times

  • כָּל־all

    kol-H3605 →5413 times

  • צִדְקֹתָיו֙righteousness<es> his

    tzidkatovH6666 →157 times

  • לֹ֣אnot

    lo'H3808 →5168 times

  • תִזָּכַ֔רְנָהthey will be remembered

    tizakharnahH2142 →230 times

  • וּבְעַוְל֥וֹand in unrighteousness his

    uveavloH5766 →54 times

  • אֲשֶׁר־which

    ʾasher-H834 →5497 times

  • עָשָׂ֖הhe has done

    ʾasahH6213 →2628 times

  • בּ֥וֹin it

    bo

  • יָמֽוּת׃he will die

    yamutH4191 →839 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

14 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Ezekiel 18:24But if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and practices iniquity, committing the same abominations as the wicked, will he live? None of the righteous acts he did will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness and sin he has committed, he will die.7 worksHebrews 10:38But My righteous one will live by faith; and if he shrinks back, I will take no pleasure in him.”6 worksEzekiel 18:4Behold, every soul belongs to Me; both father and son are Mine. The soul who sins is the one who will die.5 works2 Corinthians 1:9Indeed, we felt we were under the sentence of death, in order that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God, who raises the dead.5 worksLuke 18:9–14To some who trusted in their own righteousness and viewed others with contempt, He also told this parable:3 worksEzekiel 3:20Now if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I put a stumbling block before him, he will die. If you did not warn him, he will die in his sin, and the righteous acts he did will not be remembered. And I will hold you responsible for his blood.3 works
The other 8 cross-references, with their words ▾
1 John 2:19They went out from us, but they did not belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. But their departure made it clear that none of them belonged to us.2 worksRomans 10:3Because they were ignorant of God’s righteousness and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.2 works2 Peter 2:20–22If indeed they have escaped the corruption of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, only to be entangled and overcome by it again, their final condition is worse than it was at first.2 worksPhilippians 3:9and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God on the basis of faith.2 worksEzekiel 16:15But because of your fame, you trusted in your beauty and played the harlot. You lavished your favors on everyone who passed by, and your beauty was theirs for the asking.2 worksEzekiel 18:17He withholds his hand from harming the poor and takes no interest or usury. He keeps My ordinances and follows My statutes. Such a man will not die for his father’s iniquity. He will surely live.2 worksJeremiah 18:8But if that nation I warned turns from its evil, then I will relent of the disaster I had planned to bring.2 worksJeremiah 31:30Instead, each will die for his own iniquity. If anyone eats the sour grapes, his own teeth will be set on edge.2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Hebrews 10:38

    But My righteous one will live by faith; and if he shrinks back, I will take no pleasure in him.”

    it leads to

    • Galatians 3:11

      Now it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.”

    • Habakkuk 2:4

      Look at the proud one; his soul is not upright—but the righteous will live by faith—

    • Romans 1:17

      For the gospel reveals the righteousness of God that comes by faith from start to finish, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

    • Psalms 85:8

      I will listen to what God the LORD will say; for He will surely speak peace to His people and His saints; He will not let them return to folly.

    • Hebrews 6:4–6

      It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit,

  • Through

    Ezekiel 18:4

    Behold, every soul belongs to Me; both father and son are Mine. The soul who sins is the one who will die.

    it leads to

    • Ezekiel 18:20

      The soul who sins is the one who will die. A son will not bear the iniquity of his father, and a father will not bear the iniquity of his son. The righteousness of…

    • Romans 6:23

      For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

  • Through

    Ezekiel 18:24

    But if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and practices iniquity, committing the same abominations as the wicked, will he live? None of the righteous acts he did will be remembered. Because of…

    it leads to

    • Ezekiel 33:12–13

      Therefore, son of man, say to your people: ‘The righteousness of the righteous man will not deliver him in the day of his transgression; neither will the wickedness of the wicked man cause him…

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

Where this verse is studied

About Ezekiel

Ezekiel’s Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Ezekiel’s Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Ezekiel: the study guide →Read Ezekiel 33 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Gregory the Dialogist, Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 34; Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Patrick Fairbairn, An Exposition of Ezekiel.

Read on in Ezekiel 33 →