EGW → Biblical Foundation
Select an Ellen White book from the sidebar to see each passage mapped to the Bible verses it amplifies, cites, or echoes.
Scripture Index
Ellen White & Bible Cross-Reference
Ezekiel 18:4
"Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die."
It has been shown me that every church among us needs the deep movings of the Spirit of God. O, we would point men to the cross of Calvary. We would bid them look upon Him whom their sins have pierced. We would bid them to behold the Redeemer of the world suffering the penalty of their transgression of the law of God. The verdict is that “the soul that sinneth it shall die.” [ Ezekiel 18:4 .] But on the cross the sinner sees the only begotten of the Father, dying in his stead, and giving the transgressor life. All the intelligences in earth and heaven are called upon to behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God. Every sinner may look and live. Do not survey that scene of Calvary with careless, thoughtless mind. Can it be that angels shall look down upon us, the recipients of God's love, and see us cold, indifferent, unimpressible, when heaven in amazement beholds the stupendous work of redemption to save a fallen world, and de…
Ellen White directly references Ezekiel 18:4 in this passage.
"One day I listened to a conversation between my mother and a sister, in reference to a discourse which they had recently heard, to the effect that the soul had not natural immortality. Some of the minister's proof texts were repeated. Among them I remember these impressed me very forcibly: “The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” “The living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything.” “Which in His times He shall show, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of Lords; who only hath immortality.” “To them who by patient continuance in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life.” “Why,” said my mother, after quoting the foregoing passage, “should they seek for what they already have?” 1T 39.1"
EGW directly quotes Ezekiel 18:4 in her discussion about the soul's immortality.
Satan told his angels to make a special effort to spread the lie first repeated to Eve in Eden, “Ye shall not surely die.” And as the error was received by the people, and they were led to believe that man was immortal, Satan led them on to believe that the sinner would live in eternal misery. Then the way was prepared for Satan to work through his representatives and hold up God before the people as a revengeful tyrant—one who plunges all those into hell who do not please Him, and causes them ever to feel His wrath; and while they suffer unutterable anguish, and writhe in the eternal flames, He is represented as looking down upon them with satisfaction. Satan knew that if this error should be received, God would be hated by many, instead of being loved and adored; and that many would be led to believe that the threatenings of God's Word would not be literally fulfilled, for it would be against His character of benevolence and love to plunge into eternal torments the beings whom He had…
EGW directly contrasts the lie of immortality with the biblical principle of the soul's mortality, as stated in Ezekiel 18:4. The verse supports the idea that the soul that sins will die, which is the opposite of the lie that 'ye shall not surely die.'
"I was pointed to Adam and Eve in Eden. They partook of the forbidden tree and were driven from the garden, and then the flaming sword was placed around the tree of life, lest they should partake of its fruit and be immortal sinners. The tree of life was to perpetuate immortality. I heard an angel ask, “Who of the family of Adam have passed the flaming sword and have partaken of the tree of life?” I heard another angel answer, “Not one of Adam's family has passed that flaming sword and partaken of that tree; therefore there is not an immortal sinner. The soul that sinneth it shall die an everlasting death—a death that will last forever, from which there will be no hope of a resurrection; and then the wrath of God will be appeased. EW 51.2"
EGW's statement, "The soul that sinneth it shall die," directly echoes the principle stated in Ezekiel 18:4, although it adds the concept of an "everlasting death."
Ezekiel 18:20
"The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him."
"The only one who promised Adam life in disobedience was the great deceiver. And the declaration of the serpent to Eve in Eden—“Ye shall not surely die”—was the first sermon ever preached upon the immortality of the soul. Yet this declaration, resting solely upon the authority of Satan, is echoed from the pulpits of Christendom and is received by the majority of mankind as readily as it was received by our first parents. The divine sentence, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die” ( Ezekiel 18:20 ), is made to mean: The soul that sinneth, it shall not die, but live eternally. We cannot but wonder at the strange infatuation which renders men so credulous concerning the words of Satan and so unbelieving in regard to the words of God. GC 533.2"
Ellen White directly references Ezekiel 18:20 in this passage.
"My dear brother, you should set your face to be a man after God's own heart. What others may venture to do or say that is not strictly in accordance with the Christian standard should be no excuse for you. You must stand before the Judge of all the earth, not to answer for another, but for yourself. We have an individual responsibility, and no man's defects of character will be the least excuse for our guilt; for Christ has given us in His character a perfect pattern, a faultless life. 4T 357.3"
Both passages emphasize individual responsibility before God. Ezekiel 18:20 states that each person is responsible for their own sins, while EGW stresses that we will answer for ourselves and cannot excuse our guilt based on others' actions.
Ezekiel 18:21
"But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die."
"turned from their unrighteousness. COL 278.2"
The phrase 'turned from their unrighteousness' is a clear and direct echo of Ezekiel 18:21, which speaks of the wicked turning from their sins. This is more than just a thematic parallel; it's a direct allusion.
Ezekiel 18:24
"But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die."
"As the books of record are opened in the judgment, the lives of all who have believed on Jesus come in review before God. Beginning with those who first lived upon the earth, our Advocate presents the cases of each successive generation, and closes with the living. Every name is mentioned, every case closely investigated. Names are accepted, names rejected. When any have sins remaining upon the books of record, unrepented of and unforgiven, their names will be blotted out of the book of life, and the record of their good deeds will be erased from the book of God's remembrance. The Lord declared to Moses: “Whosoever hath sinned against Me, him will I blot out of My book.” Exodus 32:33 . And says the prophet Ezekiel: “When the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, ... all his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned.” Ezekiel 18:24 . GC 483.1"
Ellen White directly references Ezekiel 18:24 in this passage.
Ezekiel 18:30
"Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord God. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin."
"Repentance includes sorrow for sin and a turning away from it. We shall not renounce sin unless we see its sinfulness; until we turn away from it in heart, there will be no real change in the life. SC 23.2"
Ezekiel 18:30 directly commands repentance and turning away from transgressions, which aligns with EGW's description of repentance. The connection is more than thematic; it's a direct instruction that EGW elaborates on.
"Again I warn you as one who must meet these lines in that day when the case of everyone shall be decided. Yield yourself to Christ without delay; He alone, by the power of His grace, can redeem you from ruin. He alone can bring your moral and mental powers into a state of health. Your heart may be warm with the love of God; your understanding, clear and mature; your conscience, illuminated, quick, and pure; your will, upright and sanctified, subject to the control of the Spirit of God. You can make yourself what you choose. If you will now face rightabout, cease to do evil and learn to do well, then you will be happy indeed; you will be successful in the battles of life, and rise to glory and honor in the better life than this. “Choose you this day whom ye will serve.” 2T 564.4"
Both passages emphasize the importance of repentance and turning away from sin to avoid ruin. EGW's passage uses the phrase "Choose you this day whom ye will serve," while Ezekiel 18:30 calls for repentance to avoid iniquity.
Ezekiel 18:30-32
"Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord God. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin. Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye."
"transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin. Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.” 5T 630.3"
EGW directly quotes Ezekiel 18:30-32.
Ezekiel 18:32
"For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye."
"“Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord God: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?” “Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.” “Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” Ezekiel 18:23, 31, 32 ; 33:11 . PK 127.3"
EGW directly quotes Ezekiel 18:32.
"“I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.” Ezekiel 18:32 . Satan is ready to steal away the blessed assurances of God. He desires to take every glimmer of hope and every ray of light from the soul; but you must not permit him to do this. Do not give ear to the tempter, but say, “Jesus has died that I might live. He loves me, and wills not that I should perish. I have a compassionate heavenly Father; and although I have abused His love, though the blessings He has given me have been squandered, I will arise, and go to my Father, and say, ‘I have sinned against heaven, and before Thee, and am no more worthy to be called Thy son: make me as one of Thy hired servants.’” The parable tells you how the wanderer will be received: “ When he was yet a great way off , his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.” Luke 15:18-20 . SC 53.2"
Ellen White directly references Ezekiel 18:32 in this passage.
"visit them with judgments, if need be, that they might be led to see in its true light their departure from Heaven. He longed to see them brought to repentance before they should go to such lengths in evil-doing as to provoke the Lord to destroy them utterly. PK 119.2"
Both passages express God's desire for people to repent and turn away from destruction. The EGW passage speaks of God's judgments as a means to lead people to repentance, while the Ezekiel verse emphasizes God's lack of pleasure in death and calls for repentance.