Ezekiel 14:12Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Likewise, if I brought a sword against that country, commanding it to pass through and annihilate both human and animal life, even if these three noble men were in its midst, I live, says the Lord God, they would not save their sons or daughters but only their own lives. Should I send a plague upon that land, pouring out My fury through bloodshed to wipe out both man and beast, and if Noah, Daniel, and Job were there, I live, says the Lord God, they could not deliver their sons or daughters; their righteousness would preserve only their own souls. For thus declares the Lord God: Even if I send four dreadful punishments—sword, famine, wild beasts, and pestilence—to destroy man and beast, there will still be some who will be saved, who will bear sons and daughters. They shall come to you, and you shall observe their ways and their actions, and you will find solace for the disaster I have brought upon Jerusalem, for all that I have inflicted upon it. You will be consoled when you see their paths and beginnings, knowing that I have not done all that I have done in vain, says the Lord God. Four calamities are brought upon a treacherous land, or, as the LXX puts it, a sinful land: famine, wild beasts, sword, and pestilence; and if each of these individually besets a nation, even if the righteous Noah, Daniel, and Job—a trio honored for their virtue as scriptures declare—intercede for the sinful land, they cannot save it or even their own children if the latter practice the ways of wickedness; they can save only themselves. One might wonder why only these three men are mentioned, since Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and other patriarchs and prophets demonstrated righteousness. The answer is straightforward: Noah could not avert the deluge that was destined to engulf the whole earth, for it had corrupted God’s ways; he only preserved his children to ensure the continuation of humanity. Daniel, despite his fervent prayers, could not turn back the impending exile of Judah’s people. Job, not for his failings but through testing, could not rescue his household or children. Some suggest that these three men experienced both joy and suffering, and thus are collectively mentioned; this implies that just as they saw both blessings and adversity, so too would Israel, who once relished blessings before facing the yoke of bondage, find renewal in joy should they repent. If Noah, Daniel, and Job cannot assuage God’s wrath against a sinful land, what can be said of those who believe that the merits of their ancestors will spare them from the fires of Gehenna? Thus, neither can a martyred father deliver a sinful son, nor can a virtuous mother pass her rewards to an unchaste daughter. Conversely, the sins of the parents will not detriment the children; the soul that sins shall die. Lot, who resided in Sodom but was not conformed to its spirit or flesh, could not save his wife who looked back, only his daughters who had remained blameless. The righteous king Josiah could not redeem his people with his virtue, as he himself perished because of their transgressions. Although the Lord occasionally grants mercy to descendants because of Abraham and David, it must be noted that those who continue in evil deeds are not exempted; rather, it is those who repent whose forebears' merits can be amplified by their offspring's righteous actions. Therefore, the Lord God proclaims that, due to Jerusalem’s grievous transgressions, He will bring upon it four calamities simultaneously: the sword for its enemies to slay it, famine during the siege, beasts that will devour those who flee, and pestilence that invariably follows famine and scarcity. Instead of this latter, the common translation renders it as death. He will bring it upon her, such that neither man nor beast shall remain. However, amidst these four calamities that are set to bring desolation, I will leave a remnant, who will carry their sons and daughters into captivity, arriving here—meaning Babylon and Chaldea—so that when you see their actions, you may recognize that their enslavement is justified and My decisions are right, and so you may find comfort in your own captivity, understanding that I have delivered them from sword, famine, beasts, and pestilence for this reason: to lead you to realize the rightness behind Jerusalem's destruction and the burning of its temple, and the captivity of its people, save for those who were slaughtered by sword, famine, beasts, and pestilence. Yet a famine will strike our land, where it is stated: 'You are the land, and you shall return to the land,' and it will impact our Jerusalem and every believer if they scorn God’s commands, earning the title of treacherous, not a famine of bread or water but a famine of hearing the word of God. The sword will also be unleashed, as foretold: 'They shall be delivered into the hands of weapons; they shall be the prey of foxes,' and as it was said to Mary: 'A sword shall pierce your own soul.' Beasts will also invade, concerning which the righteous implores deliverance: 'Do not deliver to beasts the soul that confesses to You.' Pestilence will come too; in the LXX this translates to death, of which it is stated: 'the death of sinners is fierce,' and 'the soul that sins shall die,' and 'is death so bitter?' None of this can save through the instruction of spiritual parents, meaning teachers, or rulers, unless their children resonate with them and earnestly contribute to their prayers. For the righteousness of the righteous shall rest upon him, and the iniquity of the wicked shall weigh heavy upon him: each shall perish for their own iniquity and be saved by their own righteousness. The Jews, in vain, claim, 'Our father Abraham,' lacking the works of Abraham. If one must trust, let it be in the Lord alone; for cursed is the man who puts his trust in man, be it saints or prophets. It is declared: 'Hope not in men,' and it is good to trust in the Lord rather than in princes, which applies to worldly rulers and also to church leaders, who can only save their own souls if they are righteous; yet their offspring, if negligent, cannot be spared. Nonetheless, the apostle asserts that one's works may perish, but the individual will be saved—yet only so as through fire. The hand is extended towards the treacherous land to crush its sustenance; this outstretched hand signifies impending calamity, yet the one who extends it desires not to smite the sinners, but to instill fear in order to bring salvation to those who genuinely fear.

Similarly, Daniel, even during captivity, could not prevent the calamities that befell the wicked; however, he himself triumphed over his foes and held power over those who had enslaved him. Job's children were not sheltered by their father's righteousness; it was he alone who triumphed over the adversary's malice. God's reiteration of this point is found in various declarations: should He bring death upon a land, subjecting it to wild beasts and the assault of enemies, even if these three men were to be found there, they would not be able to save their sons or daughters but would obtain salvation for themselves. This underscores the truth that those who refuse to repent will not benefit from the righteous. Salvation follows genuine repentance, as taught throughout Scripture. For instance, the Ninevites, who had neither Noah, Job, nor Daniel but only Jonah—who did not intercede on their behalf, but rather desired that his proclamation be upheld—found redemption through turning away from their sins. Thus, the prophetic voice warns that those who live in sin and do not choose to repent, even if they claim to associate with the righteous, will have no justification. Furthermore, it pleased the Almighty to demonstrate that His actions for Israel distinguish it from all other nations, for He says: