Ezekiel 18:31Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

For the Gentiles, it signifies a turning away from idolatry, disregarding honors of the deceased, and putting their faith in the God of the living. And why should you perish, O house of Israel? It is more insightful, as stated earlier, to interpret this call to repentance towards the Jews, whose death He desires to prevent. He asks, why should you die, O house of Israel, who are descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, of whom it is stated, The God of the living is not the God of the dead (Mk. 12:27). Why should you bring death upon yourselves when, due to the merits of your ancestors and My mercy, you should flourish in life?

It is a mystery how God will reward each individual according to their deeds while concurrently instilling in us both the desire and the action that align with His good purpose (Phil. 2:13). "And these things are not of yourselves, the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph. 2:8-9). This raises questions such as why it is stated, "no man can come to Me, unless the Father draw him" (John 6:44), and why we are instructed to create within ourselves a new heart and a new spirit (Ezek. 18:31), while at the same time it is declared, "And I will give you a new heart and a new spirit; I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh." As the Lord instructs Jerusalem, "Wash away the evil from your heart" (Jer. 4:14). Furthermore, the prophet implores the Lord to create a pure heart within him, declaring, "wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow" (Ps. 50:9). It is also noted, "Be sensible, ye senseless people! When will ye be sensible, ye ignorant?" (Psalms 93:8), and "The Lord opens the eyes of the blind" (Psalms 145:8).

These uncertainties can be resolved if we acknowledge that both God's grace and our free will play essential roles in our salvation. Human beings, despite sometimes yearning for virtue, always rely on divine assistance to achieve their aspirations. Just as it is insufficient for someone ill to merely wish for health, the giver of life, God, must provide the strength for restoration. To fully grasp that even naturally endowed capabilities from our gracious Creator require divine help for good intentions to be realized, we can reflect on the Apostle's words: "the desire for good is in me, but to do it, I do not find it" (Rom. 7:18).