“What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the teeth of the children are set on edge’?
Parallel translations
- WEB “What do you mean, that you use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’?
- KJV What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge?
- ESV “What do you mean by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’?
- NKJV “What do you mean when you use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, And the children’s teeth are set on edge’?
- NASB “What do you people mean by using this proverb about the land of Israel, saying, ‘The fathers eat sour grapes, But it is the children’s teeth that have become blunt’?
- NLT “Why do you quote this proverb concerning the land of Israel: ‘The parents have eaten sour grapes, but their children’s mouths pucker at the taste’?
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The people quote a proverb blaming their suffering on their fathers' sins. They deny personal responsibility for their plight.
Overview
The saying 'the fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge' implied the exiles were merely paying for ancestors' guilt. It expressed bitterness and evaded accountability. God will challenge this excuse and affirm individual moral responsibility before Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Lam 5:7Our fathers sinned and are no more, but we bear their punishment.
- Jer 31:29–30“In those days, it will no longer be said: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the teeth of the children are set on edge.’
- Ezek 37:11Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Look, they are saying, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.’
- Ezek 37:19you are to tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel associated with him, and I will put them together with the stick of Judah. I will make them into a single stick, and they will become one in My hand.’
- Ezek 17:12“Now say to this rebellious house: ‘Do you not know what these things mean?’ Tell them, ‘Behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, carried off its king and officials, and brought them back with him to Babylon.
- Ezek 37:25They will live in the land that I gave to My servant Jacob, where your fathers lived. They will live there forever with their children and grandchildren, and My servant David will be their prince forever.
- Isa 3:15Why do you crush My people and grind the faces of the poor?” declares the Lord GOD of Hosts.
- Ezek 25:3Tell the Ammonites to hear the word of the Lord GOD, for this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Because you exclaimed, “Aha!” when My sanctuary was profaned, when the land of Israel was laid waste, and when the house of Judah went into exile,
- Jer 15:4I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth because of what Manasseh son of Hezekiah king of Judah did in Jerusalem.
- Ezek 6:2–3“Son of man, set your face against the mountains of Israel and prophesy against them.
- Matt 23:36Truly I tell you, all these things will come upon this generation.
- Rom 9:20But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to Him who formed it, “Why did You make me like this?”
- Ezek 7:2“O son of man, this is what the Lord GOD says to the land of Israel: ‘The end! The end has come upon the four corners of the land.
- Ezek 36:1–6“And you, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel and say: O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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How Ezekiel 18:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.