Ezekiel 33:19
in Ezekiel 33But if a wicked man turns from his wickedness and does what is just and right, he will live because of this.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And when the wicked turneth from his wickedness, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall live thereby.
KJV
But if the wicked turn from his wickedness, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall live thereby.
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This verse in Ezekiel 33
Commentary
8 notes on this verseHe shall live thereby - “The wages of sin is death;” the “gift of God is eternal life.” It is a miserable trade by which a man cannot live; such a trade is sin.
This site's exposition
The way of the Lord is not just
on Ezekiel 33:17-20
The people's complaint that the Lord's way is unjust returns a second time, and the Lord turns the charge back on them. Verse 20 closes the exchange, “I will judge each of you according to his ways”. Wesley notes the prophet answers the same complaint twice in the one book.
This site's exposition
he will live because of this
This verse answers the despairing question of verse 10. The way to life is turning from wickedness to what is just and right. The door stood open to the exiles.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(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 Awakening4 voices
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,
), suggesting that God was partial in his proceedings, that with him there was respect of persons and that he was more severe against sin and sinners than there was cause. Here is a satisfactory answer given to both these cavils. Those that despaired of finding mercy with God are here answered with a solemn declaration of God's readiness to show mercy,
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
), He has done that which is lawful and right, and he shall live thereby. But will not his wickednesses be remembered against him? No; he shall not be punished for them (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation
But if the wicked turn from his wickedness,.... See Gill on Eze 18:27.
The words behind it
9 Hebrew wordsEvery 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.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּבְשׁ֤וּב | uveshuv | and when turns back | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| רָשָׁע֙ | rasha' | a wicked [person] | H7563 → | 263 times |
| מֵֽרִשְׁעָת֔וֹ | merishato | from wickedness his | H7564 → | 15 times |
| וְעָשָׂ֥ה | veasah | and he will do | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| מִשְׁפָּ֖ט | mishpat | justice | H4941 → | 422 times |
| וּצְדָקָ֑ה | utzedakah | and righteousness | H6666 → | 157 times |
| עֲלֵיהֶ֖ם | ʾaleihem | on them | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| ה֥וּא | hu' | he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| יִֽחְיֶֽה׃ | yichyeh | he will live | H2421 → | 282 times |
וּבְשׁ֤וּבand when turns back
uveshuvH7725 →1056 times
רָשָׁע֙a wicked [person]
rasha'H7563 →263 times
מֵֽרִשְׁעָת֔וֹfrom wickedness his
merishatoH7564 →15 times
וְעָשָׂ֥הand he will do
veasahH6213 →2628 times
מִשְׁפָּ֖טjustice
mishpatH4941 →422 times
וּצְדָקָ֑הand righteousness
utzedakahH6666 →157 times
עֲלֵיהֶ֖םon them
ʾaleihemH5921 →5755 times
ה֥וּאhe
hu'H1931 →1879 times
יִֽחְיֶֽה׃he will live
yichyehH2421 →282 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 stopsEach 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
Ezekiel 33:14But if I tell the wicked man, ‘You will surely die,’ and he turns from his sin and does what is just and right—
it leads to
- Ezekiel 18:27
But if a wicked man turns from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he will save his life.
- Hosea 14:1
Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled by your iniquity.
- Ezekiel 33:8
If I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you will surely die,’ but you do not speak out to dissuade him from his way, then that wicked man will die in his iniquity,…
- Jeremiah 18:7–8
At any time I might announce that a nation or kingdom will be uprooted, torn down, and destroyed.
- Isaiah 55:7
Let the wicked man forsake his own way and the unrighteous man his own thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that He may have compassion, and to our God, for He will freely…
- Ezekiel 18:27
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Ezekiel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Ezekiel; Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible.