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Ezekiel 18
Sour grapes and the justice of God
Before the judge
The pinstripe blue suit was impressive, especially with that power red tie. He sat silently at the
defendant table next to his attorney who had his briefcase opened and was shuffling papers
around.
The bailiff introduced the judge as they all stood and then they all sat down together.
They knew the question the judge had for them: How do you plead?
The lawyer stood: “Guilty your honor, as you well know.”
“But for the record we should state the explanation for our guilt”
The judge nodded to hear the explanation as the stenographer listened intently.
“Our reason is one you know well. ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth
are on edge.’”
The judge looked at him in disbelief.
“Let me see if I understand you correctly. You are saying that the reason that you are a robber,
oppressor of the needy, committing adultery with your neighbor’s wife, and bribing people, is
because of your dad? You’re saying that he ate the sour fruit and now your face is all puckered
up because of it? Do I understand you correctly?”
“That’s it exactly. This is all my dad’s fault.”
Now let me ask you—do you have this same tendency? To blame your parents for your
mistakes?
Your father didn’t hug you.
Your mother was too strict.
No one taught you basic discipline so now you are lazy.
No one taught you how to take care of your finances, so it’s their fault you spend like you
do.
No one taught you what a healthy loving relationship is so it’s not really your fault that
your spouse dislikes you.
Let me say two things to you right now:
1. You are right. Many of the things you do right now are because your parents failed. You
may be a lousy father because your dad was a lousy dad. You may have a tendency
towards drinking too much because they did. I understand this. It is true. They do indeed
deserve some of the blame. And I am very sorry for the faults of your parents. Truly
2. But today in Ezekiel 18:32, God will say to you these simple words “Turn and live.” We
can choose to live in the past or we can turn from our patterns and live a flourishing life.
That’s where Ezekiel’s words to us will end this morning: Turn and live.
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Of course, Ezekiel isn’t actually talking to us. He is talking to Judah, a Judah in exile who has
watched Israel die and is watching Jerusalem die right in front of them. And Ezekiel is giving
them God’s word which for the 18th chapter in a row is saying the same thing: Repent. Turn and
live.
What does the proverb mean?
It begins with a proverb that God dislikes in verse 2
“The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are on edge.” Basically, Israel is
saying, our fathers were the sinners and we are the ones paying for it.
Is it a true proverb in this case?
But God disputes it—no longer will this proverb be said. No, the fact is that the soul who sins
will die (verse 4). In fact, the first 20 verses set up for us a courtroom scene where various
examples are considered and an answer given and he closes this section with the same words
over again: The soul who sins, will die. (verse 20).
Who are each of the generations?
Let me see if I can summarize each section of chapter 18.
After giving the proverb and denouncing it as never being permitted to be said again in Judah, he
puts forward an example of a righteous man, who does what is just and right (5). Remember this
doesn’t mean he is perfect, it just means he upholds the laws found in Deuteronomy. He doesn’t
worship idols or take others wives or break the purity codes, or rob people—he keeps the statutes
of God.
What will happen to him?
He will live. He is righteous and the wages of righteousness is life.
Remember life doesn’t necessarily mean physically staying alive. Life is living in abundance
under the pleasure of God. Just as death doesn’t necessarily mean they will cease to breathe. It
may mean they will live in misery under the curse of God.
The point here though is that they will live. Righteous = life.
But what about if the son is nothing like the father? Verses 10-13 say he is violent, killing,
idolatrous, adulterer, oppressor of the needy, robber, etc. Will he be blessed because of his
father?
No, (end of 13) his blood shall be upon himself.
But what if that man has a son and he is like his grandfather, righteous and doing all the good
things listed above?
If a father eats sour grapes, it’s his children that reap the curse of a puckered mouth. Right?
Wrong.
God doesn’t punish the grandson for the sins of the father.
Okay, who cares?
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Well, Judah cares.
Think about this. This isn’t a single person blaming dad for what he did. In fact, I would argue
that this chapter has nothing to do with individuals vs. corporate punishment.
This is a story of Judah.
It’s corporate Judah thinking that they are the third person in the story. Not the first father, or the
son, but the grandson. They are ones living right and being just. The reason, they say, that they
are being punished is because of their fathers. The generation prior.
If you are on the path of destruction, whose fault is it?
But God is saying, “No! You can’t say that anymore. No more sour grapes proverb. The fact is
that you are the second person. The unrighteous son. You think you are being judged because of
your fathers, but you’re not. You are being judged for your own sin.”
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"Yet you ask, 'Why does the son not share the guilt of his father?' Since the son has
done what is just and right and has been careful to keep all my decrees, he will surely
live.
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The soul who sins is the one who will die.
The soul who sins is the one who will die. If you are dying, it’s because of your own guilt
The son will not share the guilt of the father, nor will the father share the guilt of the son.
The righteousness of the righteous man will be credited to him, and the wickedness of the
wicked will be charged against him.
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"But if a wicked man turns away from all the sins he has committed and keeps all my
decrees and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die.
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None of the offenses he has committed will be remembered against him. Because of the
righteous things he has done, he will live.
Yes, you will die if you continue in unrighteousness, but the beautiful thing is that if you are
wicked your whole life and you repent and follow God, then all will be well. Forgiven.
Completely.
God doesn’t want to destroy anyone. He doesn’t want anyone living in misery. See verse 23?
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Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign LORD.
Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?
The implied answer is no, no pleasure in the death of the wicked. He wants them to live.
But this doesn’t give anyone the right to be complacent either. Verse 24:
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"But if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits sin and does the
same detestable things the wicked man does, will he live? None of the righteous things he
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has done will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness he is guilty of and because of
the sins he has committed, he will die.
You are judged for what you do, not what you parents do.
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"Yet you say, 'The way of the Lord is not just.' Hear, O house of Israel: Is my way
unjust? Is it not your ways that are unjust?
God is saying, “How is that unfair?”
I’m unfair? You’re unfair. This whole trial is unfair.
[in Best Al Pacino voice: you’re out of order, you’re out of order. This whole trial is out
of order]
Then he starts over and says it all again in case you didn’t understand it the first time:
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If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits sin, he will die for it;
because of the sin he has committed he will die.
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But if a wicked man turns away from the wickedness he has committed and does what
is just and right, he will save his life.
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Because he considers all the offenses he has committed and turns away from them, he
will surely live; he will not die.
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Yet the house of Israel says, 'The way of the Lord is not just.' Are my ways unjust, O
house of Israel? Is it not your ways that are unjust?
So since you are judged based on what you do. . . Turn away from what you have been doing.
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"Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each one according to his ways,
declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will
not be your downfall.
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Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new
spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel?
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For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent
and live!
There is so much to take from this passage for the church
1. Blaming others for our sin doesn’t work
First of all, most of us have a major problem with the blame game. Someone else is always to
blame for our problems.
Many people are still blaming a goat for the fact that the Chicago Cubs have not only not won,
but not played in a World Series game in 68 years. In 1945 when Billy Sianis tried to bring his
goat into game 4 of the 1945 world series, he was turned away. Sianis put a curse on the cubs
vowing that they would never again play in the world series.
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Steve Bartman is also to blame apparently. He is the kid who reached over the wall in game 6 of
the playoffs which gave Florida a home run that may have otherwise been caught. For a long
time they had to have protection for him and he couldn’t leave the house without reporters
dogging him and others trying to hurt him.
It must be Bartmans fault or Sianis’ goat’s fault or anything so we don’t have to admit that the
cubs just stink at baseball.
One more baseball one?
John Killinger tells about the manager of a minor league baseball team who was so
disgusted with his center fielder’s performance that he ordered him to the dugout and
assumed the position himself. The first ball that came into center field took a bad hop and
hit the manager in the mouth. The next one was a high fly ball, which he lost in the glare
of the sun--until it bounced off his forehead. The third was a hard line drive that he
charged with outstretched arms; unfortunately, it flew between is hands and smacked his
eye. Furious, he ran back to the dugout, grabbed the center fielder by the uniform, and
shouted. ’You idiot! You’ve got center field so messed up that even I can’t do a thing
with it!
(Don McCullough, Discipleship Journal.)
My boss hates me; it’s obviously because my boss has serious problems
My wife doesn’t want to kiss me anymore; it’s obviously because she has serious problems
I do poorly on my test; obviously my teacher hates me
I can’t seem to get anything done; it’s obviously a hormonal issue
I drink too much; obviously because my mom drank too much
I don’t make enough money; obviously because my employer prefers minorities
I can’t catch a break; obviously God is angry at me.
It’s always someone else’s fault
My genetics
My family
My government
My teachers
My God
We are in the era of the “abuse excuse” so says John Leo (U.S. News/World Report). We are all
victims and not responsible for our actions.
I will go a step further. Even though original sin is a doctrine that most evangelicals still hold to,
that is, that Adam’s sin in the garden tainted all of creation and it lost its innocence in him—he is
to blame for our lack of innocence in some sense, the truth is that no one is sentenced because of
Adam. They are sentenced because of their own lack of obedience and recognition of God.
We can’t blame Adam either.
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But isn’t there a sense in which we are punished for our parent’s sins? After all Exodus 20, the
second commandment is pretty clear: you shall not bow down to them (the graven image)
because I the Lord your God am a jealous God visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children
to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me.
I can still be punished for my grandfathers sin?
What has happened here is the Judahites have taken the Decalogue statement and turned it on its
head. It was originally intended as a proleptic (the author is anticipating a possible objection in
order to answer them in advance) warning to adults to guard their conduct because of the
implications of their actions for their children. Ezekiel’s hearers are turning this into an
accusation of divine injustice. They are saying, that’s not fair, it’s their fault not ours, and God is
saying, no it’s your fault.
It’s kind of like when Jesus says we should love our neighbor as ourself and we take this
as an injunction towards self-love. It’s just assuming we love ourselves, try to love others
as much as ourselves.
Back to the application for us:
We can’t blame others for our faults.
Do you? Be honest.
2. God is always just
If we can’t blame others, it should be very obvious that this goes especially for God.
No blaming God
If you are punished for your sin, it is for your sin. He is consistently just, perfectly just.
Verse 29 makes this clear, in verse 29 when he asked them rhetorically, are not my ways just?
Of course they are.
For Israel, God is being perfectly just in giving them exactly what was promised in the law. If
they keep the covenant he will take care of them, if not, he will create a people who will.
That goes for us too I think. We may blame God for things, but he insists that the problem is
ours. He is being completely just.
3. The choice is before us
The third point follows easily from this. We make our own choices yes, and God is just, now we
must choose.
Vs 4, the soul who sins shall die
Vs 9, the one who is righteous shall surely live
Vs 13, done abominations, shall surely die
Vs 18, done what is not good among his people, he shall die
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And so it continues
But it ends with the main point: Turn and live.
Verse 31
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Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new
spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel?
This isn’t just another irrelevant decision. I know our world has given us so many choices that
we don’t have a clue what making an ultimate decision even means. Should I have a big mac or a
chicken nuggets? Important decision? Not so much.
Should I have sprinkles on the ice cream or not?
Should I spend my money on a DVD or on jewelry?
Should I go to this college or this one?
Now I am not saying that these decisions are irrelevant. Much of your life might depend on
these. . . I guess.
But what we have here is a choice of whether to live in misery (or maybe even be destroyed) or
to live a flourishing abundant life in the pleasure of God. This is an ultimate decision.
I am not willing to start screaming at anyone, but at least the evangelists of old understood that
making a decision to follow God was important. Today, it seems we have the “well, why don’t
you try Jesus, if you don’t like it you can always back out.”
But Ezekiel is a second Moses of sorts. He is screaming out like Moses did in Deut 30:15-19.
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See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction.
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For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to
keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD
your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.
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But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to
bow down to other gods and worship them,
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I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in
the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.
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This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you
life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may
live
(Deu 30:15-19 NIV)
Choose life.
If you don’t know this God of love and grace, let me encourage you right now. Choose life.
By the way, this choice is put in both directions. Not only are the wicked said to repent, but the
righteous are warned about their complacency.
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Bunyan concludes Pilgrims Progress saying:
“Then I saw that there was a way to Hell even from the gates of Heaven, as well as from
the City of Destruction.” (Chapter 36)
A way to hell from the gates of heaven? Wow!
If Bunyan is right that means that everyone here content in their fire insurance, standing outside
of the gates of heaven, needs to take this warning seriously. Just as Israel did. These were the
people of God who were in danger of destruction. That’s why we started this series off with the
verse in Peter that says it’s time for judgment to begin with the house of God.
Ezekiel hasn’t been about denouncing all those people out there, its been about reminding those
of us in here that we may be flirting with destruction too. And those of you who refuse to wrestle
with this may be doing yourself an eternal disservice.
So this is not merely a gospel message that cries out to the sinful pagan who needs to turn and
live. It’s a cry out to the sinful “Christian” that he must turn and live.
The choice is yours.
4. He takes no pleasure in the destruction of anyone.
One last application to draw. I fear sometimes that if we sit in the Old Testament too long, your
vision of God becomes rather one-sided. I have tried to never let us be content with one view of
God and always take you elsewhere in every sermon. If you want to see what God looks like
most clearly he gave you a perfect representation of himself in Jesus.
God is not about destruction, he is about reconciliation and love and beauty and peace and
rebuilding.
He says we don’t respond in anger, we don’t strike back when we are hit, we give generously
even if it disadvantages us, we take up our cross, we lay down our life for others.
He does not take pleasure in destruction
Verse 23 says it. Then he repeats it in verse 32
“I do not take pleasure in the death of anyone, says the Sovereign Lord.”
God is not a God of wrath sitting gleefully in heaven waiting to strike people down. Rather, God
is a god of love moving in the world to reconcile people to himself that all might live under his
blessing of joy.
How does this happen? That’s back to application point #3. There is a choice. How is this choice
offered?
Through the death of Christ.
The world punished the perfect one. He went willingly to his death so that we might have life. So
that we might repent and live.
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This means that we are not punished because of someone else’s sin, but we are, in a sense, given
life through someone else’s sacrifice.
This is good news, is it not?
He ate the sour fruit and it brought us life.