Ezekiel 14 Devotional

Righteousness No One Can Lend

“then even if these three men—Noah, Daniel, and Job—were in it, their righteousness could deliver only themselves, declares the Lord GOD.”Ezekiel 14:14 (BSB)

Elders of Israel come and sit before Ezekiel, but God sees what they carry inside: idols set up in their hearts (14:1-3). God's purpose in confronting them is not to drive them off but to take hold of their hearts again, and he calls them to repent and turn away from their idols (14:5-6).

Then God says something startling. If a land sinned against him and judgment came, even Noah, Daniel, and Job, three righteous men, could save only themselves (14:14, 20). They could not rescue even their own sons and daughters (14:16). Righteousness cannot be lent out or shared around. But Paul says the obedience of one man, Jesus, brings righteousness to many (Romans 5:19). What Noah, Daniel, and Job could not do even for their own families, Christ does for all who belong to him. You do not have to borrow goodness from anyone, because his righteousness is given freely to those who trust him.

To think about: Whose goodness have you been leaning on in place of your own trust in Christ, whether a parent, a spouse, or a church?