Ezekiel 33:5-15

5 The voice of the trumpet he heard, And he hath not taken warning, his blood is on him, And he who took warning his soul hath delivered.

6 And the watchman, when he seeth the sword coming in, And he hath not blown with a trumpet, And the people hath not been warned, And come in doth a sword, And taketh away of them -- a soul, He in his iniquity is taken away, And his blood from the hand of the watchman I require.

7 And thou, son of man, A watchman I gave thee to the house of Israel, And thou hast heard from My mouth a word, And thou hast warned them from Me.

8 In My saying to the wicked, O wicked one -- thou dost surely die, And thou hast not spoken to warn the wicked from his way, He -- the wicked -- in his iniquity doth die, And his blood from thy hand I require.

9 And thou, when thou hast warned the wicked of his way, to turn back from it, And he hath not turned back from his way, He in his iniquity doth die, And thou thy soul hast delivered.

10 And thou, son of man, say unto the house of Israel: Rightly ye have spoken, saying: Surely our transgressions and our sins [are] on us, And in them we are wasting away, How, then, do we live?

11 Say unto them, I live -- an affirmation of the Lord Jehovah, I delight not in the death of the wicked, But -- in the turning of the wicked from his way, And he hath lived, Turn back, turn back, from your evil ways, Yea, why do ye die, O house of Israel?

12 And thou, son of man, say unto the sons of thy people: The righteousness of the righteous doth not deliver him in the day of his transgression, And the wickedness of the wicked, He doth not stumble for it in the day of his turning from his wickedness, And the righteous is not able to live in it in the day of his sinning.

13 In My saying of the righteous: He surely liveth, And -- he hath trusted on his righteousness, And he hath done perversity, All his righteous acts are not remembered, And for his perversity that he hath done, For it he doth die.

14 And in My saying to the wicked: Thou surely diest, And -- he hath turned back from his sin, And hath done judgment and righteousness,

15 (The pledge the wicked restoreth, plunder he repayeth,) In the statutes of life he hath walked, So as not to do perversity, He surely liveth -- he doth not die.

Ezekiel 33:5-15 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 33

This chapter treats of the prophet's duty, and the people's sins; contains a vindication of the justice of God; a threatening of destruction to those who remained in the land after the taking of the city; and a detection of the hypocrisy of the prophet's hearers. The duty of a watchman in general is declared, Eze 33:1-6, an application of this to the prophet, Eze 33:7: the sum of whose business is to warn the wicked man of his wickedness; and the consequence of doing, or not doing it, is expressed, Eze 33:8,9, an objection of the people, and the prophet's answer to it, Eze 33:10,11, who is bid to acquaint them, that a righteous man trusting to his righteousness, and sinning, should not live; and that a sinner repenting of his sins should not die, Eze 33:12-16, the people's charge of inequality in the ways of God is retorted upon them, and removed from the Lord, and proved against them, Eze 33:17-20, then follows a prophecy, delivered out after the news was brought of the taking of the city, threatening with ruin those that remained in the land, confident of safety, and that for their sins, which are particularly enumerated, Eze 33:21-29, and the chapter is closed with a discovery of the hypocrisy of those that attended the prophet's ministry, Eze 33:30-33.