18:21 “But if the wicked person turns from all the sin he has committed and observes all my statutes and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die.
34:25 “‘I will make a covenant of peace with them and will rid the land of wild beasts, so that they can live securely 6 in the wilderness and even sleep in the woods. 7
1 tc The MT reads לַעֲשׂוֹת אֱמֶת (la’asot ’emet, “to do with integrity”), while the LXX reads “to do them,” presupposing לַעֲשׂוֹת אֹתָם (la’asot ’otam). The ם (mem) and ת (tav) have been reversed in the MT. The LXX refelcts the original, supported by similar phrasing in Ezekiel 11:20; 20:19.
2 tn Heb “he.”
3 tn Heb “living, he will live.” The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis.
4 tc This translation follows the LXX. The MT reads “restrains his hand from the poor,” which makes no sense here.
5 tn Or “in his father’s punishment.” The phrase “in/for [a person’s] iniquity/punishment” occurs fourteen times in Ezekiel: here and in vv. 18, 19, 20; 3:18, 19; 4:17; 7:13, 16; 24:23; 33:6, 8, 9; 39:23. The Hebrew word for “iniquity” may also mean the “punishment for iniquity.”
7 tn The phrase “live securely” occurs in Ezek 28:26; 38:8, 11, 14; 39:26 as an expression of freedom from fear. It is a promised blessing resulting from obedience (see Lev 26:5-6).
8 sn The woods were typically considered to be places of danger (Ps 104:20-21; Jer 5:6).