If he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity - If he trust in his acting according to the statutes and ordinances of religion, and according to the laws relative to rights and wrongs among men, and in other respects commit iniquity, he shall die for it. read more
He shall live thereby - "The wages of sin is death;" the "gift of God is eternal life." It is a miserable trade by which a man cannot live; such a trade is sin. read more
The hope and the way of life. Taking these words apart from their immediate application, as we may do without departing from their spirit and inner meaning, we are invited to think of— I. HUMAN HOPELESSNESS . "Our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we pine away in them." The men into whose lips these words are put are very far from being the only ones to whom they apply. All men everywhere may say the same—all who live on in conscious departure from the will of God. 1.... read more
Men's misconception of God's government. Men are naturally prone to merge themselves in the nation. This was, perhaps, a stronger habit among the Jews than among us. They could not understand how that, while God punished the nation, he could protect the individual. Israel may be depressed in fortune, while yet Daniel and his companions are elevated. Sodom may be destroyed, but Lot shall be preserved. I. SUFFERING OFTEN BLINDS MEN 'S EYES TO GOD 'S EQUITABLENESS . It is... read more
Say unto them , etc. To meet that despair the prophet has to fall back on the truth which he had proclaimed once before ( Ezekiel 18:32 ). He must appear as uttering a message of pardon resting on the unchanging character of the great Absolver. Now, as ever, it is true that he willeth not the death of the wicked, that all punishment (in this world, at least) is meant to lead to repentance, and that for those who repent there is the hope of restoration and of life. No righteousness in the... read more
God's desire for the world's salvation. This is a Divine oath. God swears by his own life (see Hebrews 6:13 ). This shows how certain are the words spoken, how earnestly God desires men to accept them, and how difficult it is for men to believe them. I. MEN HAVE FOUND IT DIFFICULT TO BELIEVE THAT GOD HAS NO PLEASURE IN THE DEATH OF THE WICKED . Doctrines of reprobation were once popular. People thought that God destined the greater part of mankind... read more
The vanity of transitory goodness. The ministers of religion are often pained and sometimes discouraged by instances, such as are here referred to, of that goodness which is "as the morning cloud and the early dew, which soon goeth away." I. THERE IS A GOODNESS WHICH IS SPECIOUS , BUT SUPERFICIAL . Like the seed growing upon rocky soil, it springs up rapidly, and its show is fair; but the reality has no correspondence to the appearance. Impressible, easily influenced,... read more
Past and present. I. THE PRESENT WILL NOT BE JUDGED BY THE PAST . This is one principle underlying the various very clear statements of the passage. It is a principle that is needed in order to balance the influence of other principles that appear to work in an opposite direction. Indeed, at first sight it seems to be contradictory to some well-known laws. Is it not repeatedly asserted that a man will be judged by his past life? The sins of the past may be forgotten,... read more
God's equal way. These words bring out— I. THE OPPORTUNITY OF THE STONER . God gives him the opportunity of returning, and of recovering that which was lost (see previous homily). He is "not to fall in the day that he turns from his wickedness." 1. God condemns and warns him; he tells him that his sin is ruining him, leading him to death ( Ezekiel 33:14 ). 2. He hearkens and repents; has so deep a sense of his folly and his guilt that he turns utterly away, in heart... read more
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Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Ezekiel 33:11
As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked - From this to the twentieth verse inclusive is nearly the same with Ezekiel 18, on which I wish the reader to consult the notes. read more