What's easily missed is the profound weight placed on the prophet's words: if a righteous person turns from their path and falls, and the prophet failed to warn them, their past good deeds won't count, and their spiritual blood will be on the prophet's hands. This highlights that faithfulness to God's message isn't just about confronting the outright wicked, but also about diligently guarding those who are already walking with Him.
Again, if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die. Because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds that he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood I will require at your hand.
English Standard Version (ESV)
God continues to impress upon Ezekiel the immense responsibility of his prophetic office, now extending it to those who have already been living righteously. This passage highlights that even those considered righteous can fall into sin, and God holds the prophet accountable if he fails to warn them. The stark consequence for the prophet is that the fallen person's past good deeds won't count, and their blood will be on the prophet's hands.
Does God's grace mean we can never lose our footing? Ezekiel's message challenges this idea head-on, revealing a sobering truth about the spiritual life.
This verse confronts a common misconception: that once someone is truly righteous, they are permanently secure and can never fall away. The text is clear: even someone described as 'righteous' can 'turn from his righteousness and commit iniquity.'
What 'Righteous' Means Here
This highlights the ongoing need for vigilance and reliance on God's strength, not our own past performance.
The verse mentions God 'laying a stumbling-block.' What does this mean? Is God pushing people to sin? Let's unpack this difficult idea.
When Ezekiel says God 'lays a stumbling-block' before the righteous person who falls, it's crucial to understand God's role correctly. It's not that God actively causes sin, but rather His providential actions can bring trials that reveal a person's true state.
Ask a follow-up
God's Role in Trials:
What happens to the good deeds done by someone who falls away? And what weighty responsibility does this place on the messenger of God?
This verse delivers a stark warning about the fate of past good deeds when someone apostatizes, and it places a profound burden of responsibility on the prophet.
The Fate of Past Deeds:
The Prophet's Solemn Duty:
Understand the original words
tsaddiq · Hebrew Adjective/Noun
One who is considered just or upright before God. It describes a person who lives in accordance with God's statutes and possesses a right standing with Him, though it does not imply total sinlessness.
mikshol · Hebrew Noun
An object or circumstance that causes one to stumble or fall into sin. In scripture, it can be a test from God designed to reveal the heart's true orientation or a consequence of one's own hardened heart.
chatta't · Hebrew Noun
A specific act of missing the mark of God's holiness or law. It involves failing to live up to the requirements of the covenant and is the cause of spiritual death and alienation from God.
This passage is set during the Babylonian exile, a time when the Judean people faced immense loss and questioning of God's faithfulness. Ezekiel's role as a watchman highlights the heavy responsibility of spiritual leadership, especially when the community is already suffering and tempted by despair or apostasy.
c. 597 BC
First Babylonian Deportation
King Jehoiachin and many of the Judean nobility and skilled workers are exiled to Babylon. Ezekiel is among them.
c. 593 BC
Ezekiel's Call to Prophecy
God calls Ezekiel to be a prophet to the exiles in Babylon, commissioning him with a difficult message.
c. 593 BC
Ezekiel's Vision of the Temple
Ezekiel receives a vision of the glory of God departing from and returning to a future temple, symbolizing God's judgment and hope.
c. 592 BC— this verse
God Charges Ezekiel as Watchman
God explicitly instructs Ezekiel on his role as a watchman for the house of Israel, responsible for warning them of sin and judgment.
c. 586 BC
Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple
The Babylonians, under Nebuchadnezzar, conquer Jerusalem, destroy the Temple, and deport the remaining population. This event confirms Ezekiel's dire prophecies.
This passage directly parallels Ezekiel 3:20 by exploring the severe consequences for a righteous person who turns away from righteousness and commits iniquity, emphasizing that their past deeds will not count in their favor.
1 Corinthians 10:12This New Testament verse echoes the warning in Ezekiel 3:20, cautioning believers to 'take heed lest they fall,' highlighting the ever-present danger of even those who consider themselves standing firm to turn away from God.
Hebrews 6:4-6This passage speaks to the profound spiritual danger faced by those who have experienced God's goodness but then fall away, mirroring Ezekiel 3:20's concern for a righteous person turning to iniquity and the seriousness of that apostasy.
Matthew 24:13Jesus' teaching here, 'the one who endures to the end will be saved,' strongly resonates with Ezekiel 3:20's implication that righteousness is not a permanent state but requires continued faithfulness, especially in the face of trials or temptations.
1 Peter 5:8This verse's call to be self-controlled and alert because the devil prowls around like a roaring lion provides a crucial background to Ezekiel 3:20, explaining the nature of the 'stumbling-blocks' and temptations that can cause even the righteous to fall.
pooleEzekiel 3:20: "Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand."
What must be done to sinners is said, now for those that have been righteous take thy directions. A righteous man; either one that hath for some continuance of time profes…
barnesEzekiel 3:20: "Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand."
I lay a stumblingblock before him - I bring him to trial by placing difficulties and temptations in his way (compare Ezekiel 7:19 ; Ezekiel 44:12 margin; Ezekiel 14:3-4 ).…
What's easily missed is the profound weight placed on the prophet's words: if a righteous person turns from their path and falls, and the prophet failed to warn them, their past good deeds won't count, and their spiritual blood will be on the prophet's hands. This highlights that faithfulness to God's message isn't just about confronting the outright wicked, but also about diligently guarding those who are already walking with Him.
God continues to impress upon Ezekiel the immense responsibility of his prophetic office, now extending it to those who have already been living righteously. This passage highlights that even those considered righteous can fall into sin, and God holds the prophet accountable if he fails to warn them. The stark consequence for the prophet is that the fallen person's past good deeds won't count, and their blood will be on the prophet's hands.
God continues to impress upon Ezekiel the immense responsibility of his prophetic office, now extending it to those who have already been living righteously. This passage highlights that even those considered righteous can fall into sin, and God holds the prophet accountable if he fails to warn them. The stark consequence for the prophet is that the fallen person's past good deeds won't count, and their blood will be on the prophet's hands.
"Again, if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die. Because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds that he has done shal…" — What's easily missed is the profound weight placed on the prophet's words: if a righteous person turns from their path and falls, and the prophet failed to warn them, their past good deeds won't co…
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Last reviewed October 2026
