Глава 18

The beginning of personal moral sanity Having presented in the XVII chapter. the treachery of Zedekiah is the same reason for the fall of Jerusalem, which was the entire historical past of Israel (chap. XVI), the prophet in the XVIII chapter. substantiates this idea in Chapter XVII. (as Chapter XV bases Chapter XVI) on strict divine truth, which cannot allow anyone to suffer for the sins of others, and, consequently, that the present generation of Jews should be punished for the former sins of Israel. Art. 1–4 constitute the introduction or topic: the proclamation of moral freedom and responsibility of everyone before God - in connection with one popular proverb; in Art. 5–20 this idea is illustrated with three examples; in Art. 21–29 it is explained that the developed principle of personal moral sanity is applicable not to all of a person’s previous behavior, but to his moral state at the onset of God’s judgment; Art. 30–32 – admonishing conclusion. Ezek.18:2. Why do you use this proverb in the land of Israel, saying: “The fathers ate sour grapes, but the children’s teeth are set on edge”? “The fathers ate sour grapes, but the children’s teeth are set on edge.” The same saying is mentioned by the prophet Jeremiah (Jer 31.29; cf. Lamentations 5.7). Unripe grapes are still eaten in huge quantities in Syria; (Delitzsch, Hiob XV, 33). The sore throat appears immediately upon tasting sour berries and soon passes: therefore, it is completely impossible to assume that it is transmitted from fathers to children (adductio ad absurdum). Meanwhile, according to the opinion of the Jews of that time, expressed in this proverb, the actions of Jehovah, punishing them with the real disasters of Judea for the sins of their fathers, resembles the hereditary transmission of sore throats. It is easy to guess how this proverb could have arisen, which reeks of doubt in the truth of God and the self-exaltation of descendants over their ancestors. The proverb had visible foundations for itself in Holy Scripture: God tells Moses that He punishes children for the iniquity of their fathers to the third and fourth generation (Exodus 20.5; Lev. 26.39–40, but adding: “those who hate Me,” which definition, by grammatical construction, can be applied to both children and fathers). And so the 3rd and 4th generations from the wicked Manasseh (Jehoahaz, Jehoiachin, Zedekiah - the grandchildren and great-grandsons of Manasseh) are punished. Even Josiah, despite his piety, meets a sad end in the battle of Megiddo. And the prophets proclaimed that for the sins of Manasseh the Lord would cast Judah away from His presence (2 Kings 24.3; Jer 15.4); Since the time of Manasseh, indeed, Judah has had it worse and worse, despite some efforts to appease Jehovah (cf. Jer 44.18, 14.20, 18.12). Ezek.18:3. I live! says the Lord God, they will not speak this proverb in Israel. “As I live” - the oath testifies to the importance of the subject: it is about the honor of the name of God. - “They will not speak this proverb in Israel.” God will convince with His judgments of the truth of His world rule. The prophet Jeremiah promises the destruction of this proverb only in the days of the new covenant (Jer 31.29, 31). Ezek.18:4. For behold, all souls are Mine: both the soul of the father and the soul of the son are Mine: the soul that sins shall die. “All souls are Mine.” Consequently, it does not seem necessary for God to take revenge on one for the sins of another: He can always punish the sins of everyone and on the culprit himself. “The intrinsic value of the human soul is expressed here as never before: every soul belongs to God, that is, God stands towards every soul in the same relation and relates to it as it relates to him” (Bert.). - “The soul that sins will die.” See explanation. Ezek.3.18. Death is the opposite of the life that is promised to the righteous in v. 9 (see there), therefore, means mainly death in the upcoming catastrophe; and the associated exclusion from the future messianic kingdom. Here, for the first time in V.Z., we are talking about spiritual death, but by soul we mean rather a person in general, a living person. Ezek.18:5. If anyone is righteous and does justice and righteousness, To clearly prove the provision of Art. 4, the prophet presents in v. 5–9 is an example of the complete contrast between the behavior of a godly father, an ungodly son and a godly grandson, and it is believed that the historical figures Hezekiah, Manasseh and Josiah were presented to the prophet. “He creates justice and righteousness.” These two concepts usually embrace all the provisions of the law, and the first may mean more ethical and legal obligations, and the second religious ones. Ezek.18:6. he does not eat sacrificial food on the mountains, and does not turn his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor’s wife, and does not approach his wife during the cleansing of her uncleanness, By listing the particular characteristics of a righteous man and a sinner, the prophet clearly wants to give, as it were, a catechetical set of essential moral rules. He speaks here not from the point of view of an unattainable, although beautiful, ideal (cf. eg Isa 33.15), but of something practically easily achievable (cf. Ps 14; Ps 23). For the prophet’s fellow prisoners, who were just beginning their religious and moral correction and education, such moral teaching was more useful than the most sublime morality. For this purpose, the traits of the righteous are almost all negative. First, religious actions are called, and then ethical. Religious: 1) “They don’t eat sacrificial things on the mountains.” Of the whole ritual of sacrifice, its final part is indicated, perhaps as the most pleasant and attracted to paganism, or because the most ancient sacrifice was eating before the deity as his guest. The sacrifices on the heights were semi-pagan: they were performed, albeit illegally, to Jehovah; therefore they are named first; 2) “He does not turn his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,” that is, with prayer and hope for help. By the idols of Israel we mean not only the cult of the golden calves, but also all the foreign idols that Israel has ever worshiped. That's all that could be demanded in terms of worship from a captive Israelite: removed from the sanctuary, he could not perform almost any religious rites; He could demonstrate loyalty to Jehovah only in a negative way - by moving away from idolatry. But the wider was the area of ​​purely moral duties before him. Of the ethical duties, those indicated first of all are those that are closely related to religious ones, namely, the observance of any desecration of blood; and this is carried out 1) by adultery, 2) by conjugal cohabitation during the monthly purification of the wife - an offense that is in the book. Leviticus is placed on a par with incest, bestiality and sodomy and is punishable by the extermination of both offenders from the people (Lev. 18.19, 23; cf. vv. 6–18, 29, Ezek. 20.18). Ezek.18:7. does not oppress anyone, returns his deposit to the debtor, does not steal, gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing, “Does not oppress anyone,” i.e. foreigners, mercenaries, the poor, widows. This refers to the prescription of Ex 22.21 et al. Deut 22.7, 29. “The pledge is returned to the debtor,” i.e., if a necessary thing is pledged, for example. cloth. This refers to the injunction Ex 22.26, etc., etc. - “Does not commit theft” - strengthening the previous thought. After the negative signs of a righteous person, positive traits are indicated - charity: “he gives his bread...” Ezek.18:8. He does not give at interest and does not take interest, he withholds his hand from unrighteousness, he brings justice between man and man, “Growth” can be a higher percentage than “interest”. The unconditional prohibition of giving money on interest, often repeated by Moses (Exodus 22.25 and others; but Deut. 23.20 allows one to give money on interest to a foreigner), puts Jewish antiquity at a height unattainable for our commercial times. - “He keeps his hand from unrighteousness” - from all injustice, for example, as indicated further, from an unjust judgment. - “Judgment is carried out on a person.” Of course, an arbitration court, where every adult can be a judge. Ezek.18:9. walks according to My commandments and keeps My statutes sincerely: then he is righteous, he will certainly live, says the Lord God. “Commandments” and “decrees” see explanation. Ezek.5.6, where the same Heb. The words are translated “statutes” and “decrees”. Here they mainly mean all of the above responsibilities. - “Sincerely”, famous: “even if you create”. - “He will certainly be alive” - glory. more precisely: “life live imat.” By “life” we mean, as often in the Old Testament, the totality of all goods, but mainly d.b. salvation in the coming catastrophe and participation in the future Messianic kingdom. Ezek.18:10. But if he has a son who is a robber, shedding blood, and does any of these things, "The son is a robber, shedding blood." The sharper the contrast between father and son, the more strongly the prophet’s thought will be proven. – “Does something from all that” – lit.: “one something from that”; Wed James 2.10. Ezek.18:11. which he himself did not do at all, and eats sacrificial things on the mountains, and defiles his neighbor’s wife, “What he himself did not do” - a righteous father. Slav.: “I did not go in the way of my righteous father.” The enumeration of sins is further given, although similar to Art. 6–8, but the order was changed, which proves that Ezekiel did not like to mechanically rewrite his words, but his speech flowed vividly. At the same time, some omissions were made in the previous list. So the terms: “he gives his bread…”, “covers the naked” do not have corresponding ones in this list (can he who sheds blood do this?); in the third list (vv. 15-17), calculating the properties of the righteous, these members are again established. Ezek.18:12. oppresses the poor and needy, takes it away by force, does not return the deposit, and turns his eyes to idols, commits abomination, "Does an abomination"; may be named at the end of v. 6; Wed Ezek.22.11. Ezek.18:13. He gives at interest and takes interest; then will he be alive? No, he won't be alive. Whoever does all such abominations will certainly die, his blood will be on him. "Will he live?" The question points out the complete impossibility of such an assumption. - “His blood”, shed by him, at least not in the proper sense (for example, when oppressing a neighbor with interest). Ezek.18:14. But if a son is born to someone, who, seeing all the sins of his father that he commits, sees and does not do the like of them: The case presented here as the 3rd example is very possible: the iniquity of the father, constantly contemplated by the son in all its nakedness and especially having suffered a worthy punishment, can sometimes admonish and warn the son. It is remarkable that the prophet does not allow a middle ground between the righteous and the wicked. – “See”, LXX “will be afraid”, which in Heb. also by design. Ezek.18:15–17. They repeat 6–9 with the omission of the less important (6b) and shortening of expressions (8a cf. Art. 17): instead of “returns the deposit to the debtor” - “does not take the deposit”, which is even better (but in Slavic: “will not withhold”); instead of “withholds his hand from unrighteousness” - “from (offending) the poor...”, but in glory. the same with 8 tbsp. Ezek.18:18. Through his punishment, the father’s sin is, as it were, erased from the world; therefore, his son cannot suffer for him. Ezek.18:19. You say: “Why does not the son bear the guilt of his father?” Because the son acts lawfully and righteously, keeps all My statutes and fulfills them; he will be alive. Ezek.18:20. The soul that sins, it will die; the son will not bear the guilt of the father, and the father will not bear the guilt of the son; the righteousness of the righteous remains with him, and the iniquity of the wicked remains with him. The view of personal moral sanity developed by the prophet was so contrary to popular ideas that it was immediately met with surprised questions and demanded a new persistent presentation of its essence. - “The truth of the righteous remains with him,” that is, its fruit, its consequences. Ezek.18:21. And the wicked man, if he turns from all his sins that he has committed, and keeps all My statutes and does what is lawful and righteous, he will live and will not die. If until now the prophet proved personal moral sanity by examples of individuals and generations, now he breaks down one person (individual) into separate periods of his life. One and the same person can be a lawless person for one part of his life and a righteous person for another part of his life, and vice versa. The truth of God remains unchanged here too, valuing in man what he has finally become. First, the prophet takes the case when the wicked becomes righteous, since such a case is both more possible and more pleasant for him, in his zealous pastoral concerns for the correction of his compatriots. Ezek.18:22. All his crimes that he committed will not be remembered to him: in the righteousness that he will do, he will live. “They will not be remembered” - more than “they will not be punished”: as if they will be completely erased from the memory of God. Ezekiel 18:23. Do I want the death of the wicked? says the Lord God. Is it not that he should turn from his ways and live? “The most precious words of the entire book” (Kretschmar), “the highest point of Old Testament theology” (Bert.). Ezekiel rises here to the height of the New Testament view of the grace of God: 1 Tim 2.4; 2 Pet 3.9. This place teaches us how to understand those seemingly harsh and bleak views of Ezekiel on the truth of God, which breathe the entire first part of his book. Ezek.18:24. And the righteous, if he departs from his righteousness and acts unrighteously, does all the abominations that the wicked does, will he live? all his good deeds that he did will not be remembered; for the iniquity that he commits, and for the sins that he commits, he will die. The prophet also takes the opposite, sad case, when the righteous is seduced. His sins cannot but bring about his destruction; God is not to blame here. Ezek.18:25. But you say: “The way of the Lord is wrong!” Listen, house of Israel! Is my way wrong? are not your ways wrong? He cites another popular saying, which is outrageous, like the related proverb of Article 2 of the Prophet (cf. Art. 29; Ezek. 33.17, 20): “The way of the Lord is not right.” “Wrong”, or how the Hebrew can be translated. the expression “unstable” (glorified “will not manage”) “God’s path (way of action in relation to the world)” seems only because this path is exactly consistent with the human path, responds with disaster to untruth, and changes with the change in the human path, as shown in Art. 21–24: a righteous person or a sinner changes his path, and God changes his attitude towards them. “Just as food that is pleasant to a healthy person is punished by food that is pleasant to a healthy person, and just as the light that is pleasant to healthy vision is hateful to sick eyes, so the truth of God is unpleasant to the unrighteous, to which anyone who obeys is not indignant” (Blessed Augustine). Ezek.18:26–28. Repetition of v. 24 and 21. necessary in view again in art. 25 raised an objection to the truth of God from a different point of view. - “He will return his soul to life” - he himself, not I. - “I saw.” This is the first step to conversion: the wicked pays no attention to himself or to God. Ezek.18:29. But the house of Israel says, “The way of the Lord is not right!” Are my ways wrong, O house of Israel? are not your ways wrong? Repeat 25 tbsp. with a slight change imparting an expression of more sorrow than indignation. Ezek.18:30. Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD; repent and turn from all your transgressions, so that wickedness will not be a stumbling block for you. The final exhortation begins, closely related to the thought of Art. 29. and the entire chapter: if the apparent unevenness in retribution has its basis not in God, but in the inconstancy of human behavior, then let everyone understand that his fate depends on himself. - “I will judge”, mainly during the coming catastrophe to Judea. “So that wickedness will not be a stumbling block for you,” glory: “to torment,” to destruction. If you convert, then all your previous sins will not be able to destroy you. Ezek.18:31. Cast away from yourself all the sins that you have committed, and create for yourself a new heart and a new spirit; and why should you die, O house of Israel? “New heart”, “new spirit” - see explanation. Ezek.11.19; but there, as in Ezek.36.26, God himself creates them; the present passage shows that this does not happen without the participation of man himself, moreover, just as active as on the part of God. - “Why do you need to die” cf. Jer 27.13. Ezek.18:32. For I do not want the death of the dying, says the Lord God; but turn and live! Ezek.18 v. 23; Wed Lamentations 3.33. You might be interested in: