Ezekiel 18

²⁹“In those days, it will no longer be said: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the teeth of the children are set on edge.’

³⁰Instead, each will die for his own iniquity. If anyone eats the sour grapes, his own teeth will be set on edge.

⁷Our fathers sinned and are no more, but we bear their punishment.

¹¹Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Look, they are saying, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.’

¹⁹you are to tell them that this is what the Lord God says: ‘I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel associated with him, and I will put them together with the stick of Judah. I will make them into a single stick, and they will become one in My hand.’

²⁵They will live in the land that I gave to My servant Jacob, where your fathers lived. They will live there forever with their children and grandchildren, and My servant David will be their prince forever.

¹⁵Why do you crush My people and grind the faces of the poor?” declares the Lord God of Hosts.

¹⁹Yet you may ask, ‘Why shouldn’t the son bear the iniquity of his father?’ Since the son has done what is just and right, carefully observing all My statutes, he will surely live.

²⁰The soul who sins is the one who will die. A son will not bear the iniquity of his father, and a father will not bear the iniquity of his son. The righteousness of the righteous man will fall upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked man will fall upon him.

¹¹Say 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 should turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’

¹²Therefore, son of man, say to your people: ‘The righteousness of the righteous man will not deliver him in the day of his transgression; neither will the wickedness of the wicked man cause him to stumble on the day he turns from his wickedness. Nor will the righteous man be able to survive by his righteousness on the day he sins.’

³⁰Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each according to his ways, declares the Lord God. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, so that your iniquity will not become your downfall.

³¹Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked deeds, and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and abominations.

³²It is not for your sake that I will act, declares the Lord God—let it be known to you. Be ashamed and disgraced for your ways, O house of Israel!

¹⁹Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.

²⁰The soul who sins is the one who will die. A son will not bear the iniquity of his father, and a father will not bear the iniquity of his son. The righteousness of the righteous man will fall upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked man will fall upon him.

²³For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

²²But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, when one man sins, will You be angry with the whole congregation?”

⁹Furthermore, we have all had earthly fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them. Should we not much more submit to the Father of our spirits and live?

¹⁰All who rely on works of the law are under a curse. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.”

¹¹Now it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.”

¹This is the burden of the word of the Lord concerning Israel. Thus declares the Lord, who stretches out the heavens and lays the foundation of the earth, who forms the spirit of man within him:

¹⁴But if I tell the wicked man, ‘You will surely die,’ and he turns from his sin and does what is just and right—

³To do righteousness and justice is more desirable to the Lord than sacrifice.

⁷Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as Christ is righteous.

²By this we know that we love the children of God: when we love God and keep His commandments.

³For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome,

²⁹If you know that He is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of Him.

²¹Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven.

²²Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’

¹⁵He does not eat at the mountain or look to the idols of the house of Israel. He does not defile his neighbor’s wife.

¹⁹When you look to the heavens and see the sun and moon and stars—all the host of heaven—do not be enticed to bow down and worship what the Lord your God has apportioned to all the nations under heaven.

²⁴For they did not practice My ordinances, but they rejected My statutes and profaned My Sabbaths, fixing their eyes on the idols of their fathers.

¹³Then you will know that I am the Lord, when their slain lie among their idols around their altars, on every high hill, on all the mountaintops, and under every green tree and leafy oak—the places where they offered fragrant incense to all their idols.

⁹Among you are slanderous men bent on bloodshed; within you are those who eat on the mountain shrines and commit acts of indecency.

¹⁰In you they have uncovered the nakedness of their fathers; in you they violate women during their menstrual impurity.

¹¹though the father has done none of them: Indeed, the son eats at the mountain and defiles his neighbor’s wife.

¹²He oppresses the poor and needy; he commits robbery and does not restore a pledge. He lifts his eyes to idols; he commits abominations.

¹⁶He does not oppress another, or retain a pledge, or commit robbery. He gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing.

²⁶If you take your neighbor’s cloak as collateral, return it to him by sunset,

¹²He oppresses the poor and needy; he commits robbery and does not restore a pledge. He lifts his eyes to idols; he commits abominations.

¹²If he is a poor man, you must not go to sleep with the security in your possession;

¹³be sure to return it to him by sunset, so that he may sleep in his own cloak and bless you, and this will be credited to you as righteousness before the Lord your God.

¹⁵if he restores a pledge, makes restitution for what he has stolen, and walks in the statutes of life without practicing iniquity—then he will surely live; he will not die.

²¹You must not exploit or oppress a foreign resident, for you yourselves were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

²²You must not mistreat any widow or orphan.

²⁵If you lend money to one of My people among you who is poor, you must not act as a creditor to him; you are not to charge him interest.

¹⁶These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another, render true and sound judgments in your gates,

¹⁹Do not charge your brother interest on money, food, or any other type of loan.

²⁰You may charge a foreigner interest, but not your brother, so that the Lord your God may bless you in everything to which you put your hand in the land that you are entering to possess.

³⁵Now if your countryman becomes destitute and cannot support himself among you, then you are to help him as you would a foreigner or stranger, so that he can continue to live among you.

³⁶Do not take any interest or profit from him, but fear your God, that your countryman may live among you.

⁵who lends his money without interest and refuses a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things will never be shaken.

¹⁸You are to appoint judges and officials for your tribes in every town that the Lord your God is giving you. They are to judge the people with righteous judgment.

¹⁹Do not deny justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.

¹¹And I gave them My statutes and made known to them My ordinances—for the man who does these things will live by them.

⁴Look at the proud one; his soul is not upright—but the righteous will live by faith—

⁴For this is what the Lord says to the house of Israel: “Seek Me and live!

¹²And now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God by walking in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul,

¹³and to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord that I am giving you this day for your own good?

¹⁷For the gospel reveals the righteousness of God that comes by faith from start to finish, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

²⁹If you know that He is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of Him.

¹²Whoever strikes and kills a man must surely be put to death.

²If a thief is caught breaking in and is beaten to death, no one shall be guilty of bloodshed.

⁸Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you ask, ‘How do we rob You?’ In tithes and offerings.

⁹You are cursed with a curse, yet you—the whole nation—are still robbing Me.

¹²Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did Cain slay him? Because his own deeds were evil, while those of his brother were righteous.

¹³You must not defraud your neighbor or rob him. You must not withhold until morning the wages due a hired hand.

⁵And surely I will require the life of any man or beast by whose hand your lifeblood is shed. I will demand an accounting from anyone who takes the life of his fellow man:

⁶Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.

¹⁵He does not eat at the mountain or look to the idols of the house of Israel. He does not defile his neighbor’s wife.

²²but you went back and ate bread and drank water in the place where He told you not to do so, your body shall never reach the tomb of your fathers.’”

²²and we will receive from Him whatever we ask, because we keep His commandments and do what is pleasing in His sight.

²¹Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven.

²²Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’

¹⁴You are My friends if you do what I command you.

⁶He does not eat at the mountain or look to the idols of the house of Israel. He does not defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman during her period.

⁷He does not oppress another, but restores the pledge to the debtor. He does not commit robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing.

¹⁷“Son of man,” He said to me, “do you see this? Is it not enough for the house of Judah to commit the abominations they are practicing here, that they must also fill the land with violence and continually provoke Me to anger? Look, they are even putting the branch to their nose!

⁶“Son of man,” He said to me, “do you see what they are doing—the great abominations that the house of Israel is committing—to drive Me far from My sanctuary? Yet you will see even greater abominations.”

¹Hear this word, you cows of Bashan on Mount Samaria, you women who oppress the poor and crush the needy, who say to your husbands, “Bring us more to drink.”

¹¹“Since Manasseh king of Judah has committed all these abominations, acting more wickedly than the Amorites who preceded him, and with his idols has caused Judah to sin,

¹⁰Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. And do not plot evil in your hearts against one another.’

⁶He does not eat at the mountain or look to the idols of the house of Israel. He does not defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman during her period.

⁷He does not oppress another, but restores the pledge to the debtor. He does not commit robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing.

²⁵If you lend money to one of My people among you who is poor, you must not act as a creditor to him; you are not to charge him interest.

⁸He does not engage in usury or take excess interest, but he withholds his hand from iniquity and executes true justice between men.

⁹If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father or mother; his blood shall be upon him.

³²For I take no pleasure in anyone’s death, declares the Lord God. So repent and live!

⁴Then if anyone hears the sound of the horn but fails to heed the warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood will be on his own head.

⁵Since he heard the sound of the horn but failed to heed the warning, his blood will be on his own head. If he had heeded the warning, he would have saved his life.

¹¹If a man lies with his father’s wife, he has uncovered his father’s nakedness. Both must surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.

¹²If a man lies with his daughter-in-law, both must surely be put to death. They have acted perversely; their blood is upon them.

²¹“Go and inquire of the Lord for me and for those remaining in Israel and Judah concerning the words in the book that has been found. For great is the wrath of the Lord that has been poured out on us because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord by doing all that is written in this book.”

²⁴The father of a righteous man will greatly rejoice, and he who fathers a wise son will delight in him.

¹⁹And no one considers in his heart, no one has the knowledge or insight to say, “I burned half of it in the fire, and I baked bread on its coals; I roasted meat and I ate. Shall I make something detestable with the rest of it? Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”

²⁸Because he considered and turned from all the transgressions he had committed, he will surely live; he will not die.

⁶I have listened and heard; they do not speak what is right. No one repents of his wickedness, asking, ‘What have I done?’ Everyone has pursued his own course like a horse charging into battle.

²¹A man fathers a fool to his own grief; the father of a fool has no joy.

⁶He does not eat at the mountain or look to the idols of the house of Israel. He does not defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman during her period.

⁷He does not oppress another, but restores the pledge to the debtor. He does not commit robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing.

¹¹though the father has done none of them: Indeed, the son eats at the mountain and defiles his neighbor’s wife.

¹²He oppresses the poor and needy; he commits robbery and does not restore a pledge. He lifts his eyes to idols; he commits abominations.

⁷He does not oppress another, but restores the pledge to the debtor. He does not commit robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing.

²¹If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.

¹For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. Blessed is the one who cares for the poor; the Lord will deliver him in the day of trouble.

⁷You gave no water to the weary and withheld food from the famished,

¹³But when you host a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind,

¹⁹if I have seen one perish for lack of clothing, or a needy man without a cloak,

⁸He does not engage in usury or take excess interest, but he withholds his hand from iniquity and executes true justice between men.

⁹He follows My statutes and faithfully keeps My ordinances. That man is righteous; surely he will live, declares the Lord God.

²⁷His master had compassion on him, forgave his debt, and released him.

²⁸But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe me!’

¹¹Then you are to answer them: ‘It is because your fathers have forsaken Me, declares the Lord, and followed other gods, and served and worshiped them. They abandoned Me and did not keep My instruction.

¹²And you have done more evil than your fathers. See how each of you follows the stubbornness of his evil heart instead of obeying Me.

¹⁵if he restores a pledge, makes restitution for what he has stolen, and walks in the statutes of life without practicing iniquity—then he will surely live; he will not die.

¹⁶None of the sins he has committed will be held against him. He has done what is just and right; he will surely live.

²⁸Because he considered and turned from all the transgressions he had committed, he will surely live; he will not die.

³¹Whoever oppresses the poor taunts their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors Him.

¹⁸If I say to the wicked man, ‘You will surely die,’ but you do not warn him or speak out to warn him from his wicked way to save his life, that wicked man will die in his iniquity, and I will hold you responsible for his blood.

²⁴But if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and practices iniquity, committing the same abominations as the wicked, will he live? None of the righteous acts he did will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness and sin he has committed, he will die.

²¹Again He said to them, “I am going away, and you will look for Me, but you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.”

²⁶If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and practices iniquity, he will die for this. He will die because of the iniquity he has committed.

²⁴That is why I told you that you would die in your sins. For unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”

²⁰The soul who sins is the one who will die. A son will not bear the iniquity of his father, and a father will not bear the iniquity of his son. The righteousness of the righteous man will fall upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked man will fall upon him.

⁵You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,

³So tell the people that this is what the Lord of Hosts says: ‘Return to Me, declares the Lord of Hosts, and I will return to you, says the Lord of Hosts.’

⁴Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed that this is what the Lord of Hosts says: ‘Turn now from your evil ways and deeds.’ But they did not listen or pay attention to Me, declares the Lord.

⁹You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,

⁹He follows My statutes and faithfully keeps My ordinances. That man is righteous; surely he will live, declares the Lord God.

⁴I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth because of what Manasseh son of Hezekiah king of Judah did in Jerusalem.

¹⁸In the wilderness I said to their children: ‘Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers or keep their ordinances or defile yourselves with their idols.

¹⁹I am the Lord your God; walk in My statutes, keep My ordinances, and practice them.

⁶Yet he did not put the sons of the murderers to death, but acted according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, where the Lord commanded: “Fathers must not be put to death for their children, and children must not be put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin.”

¹⁶Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin.

⁴Behold, every soul belongs to Me; both father and son are Mine. The soul who sins is the one who will die.

²⁹“In those days, it will no longer be said: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the teeth of the children are set on edge.’

³⁰Instead, each will die for his own iniquity. If anyone eats the sour grapes, his own teeth will be set on edge.

²⁷For the Son of Man will come in His Father’s glory with His angels, and then He will repay each one according to what he has done.

⁴Yet he did not put their sons to death, but acted according to what is written in the Law, in the Book of Moses, where the Lord commanded: “Fathers must not be put to death for their children, and children must not be put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin.”

¹⁹But if a wicked man turns from his wickedness and does what is just and right, he will live because of this.

¹¹For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to everyone.

¹²It instructs us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live sensible, upright, and godly lives in the present age,

²⁷But if a wicked man turns from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he will save his life.

²⁸Because he considered and turned from all the transgressions he had committed, he will surely live; he will not die.

¹³For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

¹⁹Repent, then, and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped away,

¹³He who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.

¹⁹He will again have compassion on us; He will vanquish our iniquities. You will cast out all our sins into the depths of the sea.

²⁵I, yes I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake and remembers your sins no more.

¹⁶None of the sins he has committed will be held against him. He has done what is just and right; he will surely live.

²⁰The Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness; He has repaid me according to the cleanness of my hands.

²¹For I have kept the ways of the Lord and have not wickedly departed from my God.

²⁴But if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and practices iniquity, committing the same abominations as the wicked, will he live? None of the righteous acts he did will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness and sin he has committed, he will die.

¹²As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.

¹¹Say 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 should turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’

⁴who wants everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

⁹The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise as some understand slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance.

³²For I take no pleasure in anyone’s death, declares the Lord God. So repent and live!

¹⁰In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.”

³²But it was fitting to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”

¹⁸If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, he will die for it.

¹⁶The man who strays from the path of understanding will rest in the assembly of the dead.

⁸Watch yourselves, so that you do not lose what we have worked for, but that you may be fully rewarded.

¹²Therefore, son of man, say to your people: ‘The righteousness of the righteous man will not deliver him in the day of his transgression; neither will the wickedness of the wicked man cause him to stumble on the day he turns from his wickedness. Nor will the righteous man be able to survive by his righteousness on the day he sins.’

¹³If I tell the righteous man that he will surely live, but he then trusts in his righteousness and commits iniquity, then none of his righteous works will be remembered; he will die because of the iniquity he has committed.

¹⁷After the death of Jehoiada, however, the officials of Judah came and paid homage to the king, and he listened to them.

¹⁸They abandoned the house of the Lord, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherah poles and idols. So wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this guilt of theirs.

⁴Have you suffered so much for nothing, if it really was for nothing?

¹⁷Yet your people say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ But it is their way that is not just.

¹³“Your words against Me have been harsh,” says the Lord. “Yet you ask, ‘What have we spoken against You?’

¹⁴You have said, ‘It is futile to serve God. What have we gained by keeping His requirements and walking mournfully before the Lord of Hosts?

¹⁷You have wearied the Lord with your words; yet you ask, “How have we wearied Him?” By saying, “All who do evil are good in the sight of the Lord, and in them He delights,” or, “Where is the God of justice?”

²⁰Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ But I will judge each of you according to his ways, O house of Israel.”

²⁵Far be it from You to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Will not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?”

⁵The Lord within her is righteous; He does no wrong. He applies His justice morning by morning; He does not fail at dawn, yet the unjust know no shame.

²¹But if the wicked man turns from all the sins he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die.

¹⁸“Come now, let us reason together,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are as red as crimson, they will become like wool.

⁷Let the wicked man forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that He may have compassion, and to our God, for He will freely pardon.

¹⁹Repent, then, and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped away,

²¹testifying to Jews and Greeks alike about repentance to God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

¹³But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

²⁹If only they were wise, they would understand it; they would comprehend their fate.

¹⁷Finally he came to his senses and said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have plenty of food, but here I am, starving to death!

¹⁸I will get up and go back to my father and say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.

¹⁰Whoever keeps the whole law but stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.

¹¹For He who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.

⁵Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry.

⁶Because of these, the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience.

³Therefore, son of man, pack your bags for exile. In broad daylight, set out from your place and go to another as they watch. Perhaps they will understand, though they are a rebellious house.

³¹Cast away from yourselves all the transgressions you have committed, and fashion for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. Why should you die, O house of Israel?

³A man’s own folly subverts his way, yet his heart rages against the Lord.

²⁵Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear now, O house of Israel: Is it My way that is unjust? Is it not your ways that are unjust?

²“What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the teeth of the children are set on edge’?

²⁷For the Son of Man will come in His Father’s glory with His angels, and then He will repay each one according to what he has done.

²¹But if the wicked man turns from all the sins he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die.

²and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”

³No, I tell you. But unless you repent, you too will all perish.

⁶Therefore tell the house of Israel that this is what the Lord God says: ‘Repent and turn away from your idols; turn your faces away from all your abominations.

³The end is now upon you, and I will unleash My anger against you. I will judge you according to your ways and repay you for all your abominations.

¹⁰Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

²⁶I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

¹³For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

¹⁹And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them; I will remove their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh,

¹⁶Wash and cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil!

¹⁷Learn to do right; seek justice and correct the oppressor. Defend the fatherless and plead the case of the widow.”

²Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

⁹The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise as some understand slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance.

²³Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Lord God. Wouldn’t I prefer that he turn from his ways and live?

¹¹Say 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 should turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’

³³For He does not willingly afflict or grieve the sons of men.