Souls in Ezekiel 18 Looked to the Righteousness of Christ for THEIR SOUL TO BE SAVED ETERNALLY.

"This chapter contains an answer to an objection of the Jews
to the dealings of God with them in a Providential Way.
The objection is expressed in a proverb of common use among them,
and complained of as being without cause, Ezekiel 18:1;

"however, for the future, no occasion should be given them to use it;
for, though God could justify His Proceedings upon the foot of His Sovereignty,
all souls being His; yet He was determined none but the sinner himself
should suffer, Ezekiel 18:3; and puts various cases for the illustration
and vindication of His Proceedings;

"as that a just man, who is described by his proper characters,
as abstaining from several sins specified, and doing what is right and good,
should surely live*, Ezekiel 18:5;

"but that the son of such a just man,
being the reverse of his father's character, should surely die, Ezekiel 18:10."

Ezekiel 18:4
"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."

"Behold, all souls are Mine",....
By creation; they being the immediate produce of His Power;
hence He is called "the Father of spirits", Hebrews 12:9,
or the souls of men;"

"...the soul that sinneth, it shall die"; the soul that continues in sin,
without Repentance towards God, and Faith in Christ,
shall die the second death;
shall be separated from the Presence of God,
and endure His Wrath to all Eternity:"

Ezekiel 18:5
"But if a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right,..."

"But if a man be just",.... Not legally, as to be wholly free from sin,
for there is no such just man, Ecclesiastes 7:20; but evangelically,
through the Imputation of the Righteousness of Christ unto him*;

and who has a Principle of Grace and Holiness Wrought in him;
a man of a just principle and good conscience;
who is disposed by the Grace of God to that which is just and right;"

Ezekiel 18:6
"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 neighbour's wife,
neither hath come near to a menstruous woman,"

"And hath not eaten upon the mountains",....
Where temples and altars were built for idols,
and sacrifices offered up to them; and where feasts
were kept to the honour of them,
and the sacrifices to them eaten; see Ezekiel 6:13;"

"neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel";
their "dunghill gods"
as the word signifies; as not to the idols of the Gentiles,
so not to those of Israel,
as the calves at Dan and Bethel; these he does not worship,
nor pray unto, or invoke,
nor even give a pleasant and favourable look unto;
but turned from them with abhorrence and contempt:"

Ezekiel 18:9
"Hath walked in My statutes, and hath kept My judgments, to deal truly;
he is just, he shall surely live*, saith the Lord GOD."

"Hath walked in My statutes",....
Respecting the Worship of God and True Religion;
being observant of all laws and ordinances relating thereunto:
and hath kept My Judgments to deal truly;
in things moral and civil among men;
regarding all such laws of God as oblige to such things:

"he is just"; such a man is a just man, at least externally;
and if he does all these things from a right principle,
without trusting to them for Justification before God,
and Acceptance with Him,
but looking to the Righteousness of Christ for these things,
he is truly, and in the sight of God, a just man:

"he shall surely live", saith the Lord God;
Spiritually and comfortably here, and an Eternal Life hereafter*;"

Ezekiel 18:19
"Yet say ye, Why? 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 son hath done that which is lawful and right,
and hath kept all My statutes,
and hath done them":
this is the reason why he shall not bear his father's sins,
or be punished for them;...
"for otherwise the man that does what is just and right with God*,
and between man and man, he shall surely live; See Gill on Ezekiel 18:17."

Ezekiel 18:20
"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."

"The soul that sinneth, it shall die",....
This is repeated from Ezekiel 18:4, for the further confirmation of it:"

This is to be understood of adult persons, and of actual sins;
for of such only the prophet speaks throughout the whole chapter,
or of temporal, and not of Eternal Punishment:

"the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him";
he shall be rewarded with temporal good things in this life,
according to his righteousness;
see Psalm 112:9; he shall eat of the fruit of his own doings, Isaiah 3:10;
this is true of a man that is evangelically righteous,
or is so through the Imputation of Christ's Righteousness to him*;
which is upon him as a robe to clothe him, and will always remain on him,
being an Everlasting Righteousness*,
and will answer for him in a time to come:

"and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him";
and not another;
his sin shall remain on him unatoned for, unexpiated,
not taken away or forgiven;
the punishment of it shall be on him, and abide upon him."


Commentary adapted from: Ezekiel 18 Gill's Exposition
con't;

 

Ezekiel 18:21
"But if the wicked will 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."

"But if the wicked",....
So far is the Lord from punishing the sins of one man upon another,
that He will not punish a man for his own sins:
if he will turn from all his sins
that he hath committed: if he truly repents of them,
and thoroughly forsakes them;

for it must not be one sin only, but all;
every sin is to be loathed and mourned over,
and sorrow expressed for it, and to be forsaken;

not one sin is to cherished and retained,
but all to be relinquished: or the repentance
and conversion may be justly questioned
whether they be sincere:

"and keep all My statutes, and do that which is lawful and right";
as the Repentance and Turning from sin must be general,
so also Obedience to the Commands of God*,
both Moral and Positive; respect is to be had to all His Ordinances,
which are all of them to be esteemed as right and lawful,
and to be observed:
this is bringing forth fruits meet for Repentance*:"

"he shall surely live, he shall not die";
he shall live in his own land, and not go into captivity....
"he shall live in this world, and not die in the world to come;"

Ezekiel 18:31
"Cast away from you all your transgressions,
whereby ye have transgressed;

and make you a new heart and a new spirit:
for why will ye die, O house of Israel?"

"...and make you a new heart and a new spirit";
which the Lord elsewhere Promises to Give,

and He does give to His own Elect; See Gill on Ezekiel 11:19;

and if here to be understood
of a Regenerated heart and spirit,

in which are new principles of Light, Life,
and Love, Grace and Holiness,

it will not prove that it is in the power of man
to make himself such a heart and spirit;

"since from God's Command, to man's power, is no argument;

and the design of the exhortation is to convince men
of their want of such a heart;

of the importance of it: and which,
through the Efficacious Grace of God,

may be a means of His people having it,
seeing He has in Covenant Promised it to them."


*NOT trusting that he "Hath walked in My statutes,
and hath kept My judgments, to deal truly", etc.;
for His Justification before God,
and Acceptance with Him, FOR SALVATION,
but looking to the Righteousness of Christ
for HIS SOUL TO BE SAVED ETERNALLY.