Hey Pastor John,
What does verse 2 mean in the following passage:
Ezekiel 18
- And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
- “Why are you using this parable concerning the land of Israel, saying, ‘Fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’?
- As I live, says the Lord God, I will damn myself if you will continue to use this parable in Israel.
Thank you!
Michelle G
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Hi Michelle.
In Ezekiel 18:2, God’s people were saying that their fathers disobeyed God (the “sour grapes”) and that they were suffering the consequences. That was the truth. Their fathers had sinned, and they were suffering for it. But God added the more important promise that in the Final Judgment, no one would reap another’s sin. He said in verse 4, “Behold, all souls are mine, the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son; they are mine. The soul that sins, it shall die!”
In Jeremiah 31, God also said it:
- In those days, they will no longer say, ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’ teeth are set on edge.”
- Instead, every man will die in his own iniquity; every man who eats sour grapes, his own teeth will be set on edge.
Thank you for the question, Michelle. It is a good thing to read the Bible and pay enough attention to it to have questions. Keep it up!
Pastor John