Ezekiel 3:19 (GNV)

Passage

Yet if thou warne the wicked, and he turne not from his wickednesse, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquitie, but thou hast deliuered thy soule.

Nearby Context

Ezekiel 3:17 Sonne of man, I haue made thee a watchman vnto the house of Israel: therefore heare the worde at my mouth, and giue them warning from me.

Ezekiel 3:18 When I shall say vnto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die, and thou giuest not him warning, nor speakest to admonish the wicked of his wicked way, that he may liue, the same wicked man shall die in his iniquitie: but his blood will I require at thine hande.

Ezekiel 3:19 Yet if thou warne the wicked, and he turne not from his wickednesse, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquitie, but thou hast deliuered thy soule.

Ezekiel 3:20 Likewise if a righteous man turne from his righteousnesse, and commit iniquitie, I will lay a stumbling blocke before him, and he shall die, because thou hast not giuen him warning: he shall die in his sinne, and his righteous deedes, which he hath done, shall not be remembred: but his blood will I require at thine hand.

Ezekiel 3:21 Neuerthelesse, if thou admonish that righteous man, that the righteous sinne not, and that he doeth not sinne, he shall liue because he is admonished: also thou hast deliuered thy soule.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "thou", "warne", "wicked", "turne", "wickednesse", "shall", and "iniquitie". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "thou" and "warne", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 18's "When I shall say vnto the wicked..." into verse 20's "Likewise if a righteous man turne from...", so "thou" and "warne" belong inside that flow. In Ezekiel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "thou" and "warne" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.