Bible Strands
Ezekiel 33:12
Therefore, 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.’
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — God commands the prophet Ezekiel to address the exiled Israelites regarding their reliance on past moral standing. This instruction follows a direct plea for immediate repentance and precedes a warning about the nullification of past righteous deeds.
The words — The term צִדְקַ֣ת (tzid.Kat) literally means "righteousness" and anchors the opening clause. The imperative אֱמֹ֤ר ('e.Mor) literally means "say" and directs the prophet to deliver this specific warning to the people.
The thread — The text states that past righteousness cannot secure deliverance when sin occurs, a claim repeated in Ezekiel 33:13 and Ezekiel 33:18. This pattern aligns with the call to turn from wicked ways in 2 Chronicles 7:14 and the demonstration of righteousness through faith in Romans 3:25.
Why it lands — The text demands that readers abandon any assumption that past moral performance guarantees future safety. It requires an active, present-tense reliance on repentance rather than a static record of good works.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Therefore, thou son of man, say unto the children of thy people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression: as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness; neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousness in the day that he sinneth.
Cross-references
- 2 Chronicles 7:14 and if My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land.
- Ezekiel 33:18 If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, he will die for it.
- Romans 3:25 God presented Him as an atoning sacrifice in His blood through faith, in order to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had passed over the sins committed beforehand.
- 1 Kings 8:48 and when they return to You with all their heart and soul in the land of the enemies who took them captive, and when they pray to You in the direction of the land that You gave to their fathers, the city You have chosen, and the house I have built for Your Name,
- Ezekiel 3:20 Now if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I put a stumbling block before him, he will die. If you did not warn him, he will die in his sin, and the righteous acts he did will not be remembered. And I will hold you responsible for his blood.
- Ezekiel 18:21 But 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.
- Ezekiel 18:24 But 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.
- Ezekiel 33:2 “Son of man, speak to your people and tell them: ‘Suppose I bring the sword against a land, and the people of that land choose a man from among them, appointing him as their watchman,
- Matthew 21:28 But what do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first one and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’
- 1 John 2:1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate before the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.